The White House abruptly withdrew President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead Immigration and Customs Enforcement, leaving the agency at the center of his immigration agenda without a Senate-confirmed director.
An official notice sent to the Senate on Thursday listed the withdrawal of Richard “Lance” Schroyer’s nomination as assistant secretary of homeland security but provided no explanation for the decision.
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Trump selected Schroyer, a former Oklahoma Highway Patrol major and Marine, in June and called upon the Senate to confirm him immediately.
Schroyer has served as a senior adviser to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, a fellow Oklahoman who supported his nomination and praised Trump for making what he called “a great pick.”
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Before joining the administration, Schroyer helped lead an Oklahoma initiative that trained more than 700 state troopers to cooperate with federal authorities in enforcing immigration laws.
Schroyer also completed a 40-hour online training program and received authority under ICE’s 287(g) partnership program to perform certain immigration-enforcement functions alongside federal agents.
Supporters pointed to his law-enforcement background and role in expanding local cooperation with ICE, while critics questioned whether he possessed sufficient immigration expertise or experience managing a national agency.
Reuters reported that Schroyer’s selection surprised some administration officials because he had never worked directly for ICE or led a major law-enforcement organization.
His nomination remained stalled before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, where Republican Chairman Rand Paul had not scheduled a confirmation hearing.
Paul told the Associated Press that he had no concern with Schroyer personally but was waiting for DHS to provide information about internal investigations into civilian deaths during recent enforcement operations.
“I had asked them to give me an update on the internal investigation into civilian deaths,” Paul said before adding that the requested information still had not arrived.
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Paul said he intended to hold a hearing on Schroyer’s nomination and learned that the White House had withdrawn it only when the decision became public Thursday.
The withdrawal means ICE will continue operating under acting leadership after going more than nine years without a director who has successfully completed the Senate confirmation process.
Sarah Saldaña, who departed in January 2017 before Trump’s first inauguration, remains the most recent Senate-confirmed director of the agency.
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David Venturella currently serves as acting director after returning to federal immigration enforcement following a lengthy career that included employment with private prison operator GEO Group.
White House border czar Tom Homan previously praised Venturella’s experience and argued that the agency needed career officials who understood its operations and had performed the work themselves.
The Washington Post reported, citing administration officials, that Mullin personally persuaded Trump to choose Schroyer during a June visit to the White House.
Trump subsequently described Schroyer as a “patriot with real operational experience” and said he would help advance the administration’s efforts to arrest and remove undocumented immigrants.
The Post also reported through an anonymous source that DHS leaders were blindsided by Thursday’s withdrawal, although neither the department nor the White House publicly confirmed that characterization.
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The decision comes as ICE continues expanding arrests under Trump’s second administration, reaching nearly 51,000 arrests in August, according to figures cited by the Associated Press.
That increase has occurred alongside intensifying scrutiny of the agency’s recruitment, training and enforcement tactics following fatal encounters involving federal immigration and border personnel.
Mullin took control of DHS in March after resigning his Oklahoma Senate seat and pledged to concentrate ICE resources on criminal offenders while reducing the agency’s presence in politically damaging controversies.
Democrats have argued that ICE’s prolonged reliance on acting directors has weakened congressional accountability during a period of rapid operational expansion and heightened public attention, The Washington Post reported.
Sen. Gary Peters, the committee’s ranking Democrat, called for Trump to submit another nominee capable of securing bipartisan support and providing greater transparency about the agency’s operations.
This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.
