Anticipated leadership changes at ICE and Homeland Security Investigations, insiders report
The Department of Homeland Security is set to undergo a significant leadership change within Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to reports from our website. The anticipated shift includes the retirement of Kenneth Genalo, acting executive associate director of ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), and the reassignment of Robert Hammer, executive associate director of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), sources within the White House and ICE have confirmed.
Derek Gordon, the current deputy special agent in charge, is expected to take over as acting HSI director as part of a broader "massive realignment" within ICE. ICE and HSI have yet to respond to requests for comment.
This leadership shake-up is connected to recent demands from White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem for ICE to substantially boost its arrest operations. Miller and Noem insist ICE work towards arresting 3,000 individuals daily as part of an increased focus on illegal immigration and deportation.
The changes come at a time when ICE officers have already launched a nationwide initiative aimed at arresting illegal immigrants at their immigration and asylum hearings, targeting individuals who have been in the U.S. for less than two years. The DHS strategy involves dropping their immigration case, arresting the migrant, and then placing them into expedited deportation proceedings.
The White House, as well as ICE headquarters, have seen tense meetings in recent days, with Miller reportedly openly criticizing top immigration officials at a May 21 meeting in ICE headquarters, according to Axios.
The ongoing push by the Trump administration and DHS to implement a mass deportation agenda has sparked controversy, including accusations from Secretary Noem that certain states, such as Minnesota, are harboring "criminal illegal aliens" in defiance of federal immigration laws. This local pushback, with officials like Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey opposing federal immigration enforcement actions by local law enforcement due to state laws and public safety priorities, remains a complex issue in the ongoing ICE leadership change and enforcement escalation.
- The leadership change within ICE is driven by the demand from Stephen Miller and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem for ICE to enhance its arrest operations, with a focus on arresting 3,000 individuals daily as part of a broader policy-and-legislation push for stricter immigration and deportation procedures.
- The anticipated leadership shake-up in ICE, including the reassignment of Robert Hammer and the expected appointment of Derek Gordon as acting HSI director, is part of a more extensive realignment within ICE, which aligns with the administration's finance-driven agenda of increased immigration enforcement.
- The ongoing general-news debate revolves around the Trump administration's political push for mass deportation, with controversy sparked by accusations from Secretary Noem against certain states, such as Minnesota, harboring criminal illegal aliens, and local officials like Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey opposing federal immigration enforcement actions due to state laws and public safety priorities, adding complexity to the ICE leadership change and enforcement escalation.
