President Donald Trump withdrew his nominee for the head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to a notice posted to the White House’s website, after his pick faced skepticism from lawmakers and agency insiders.
Trump had nominated former Oklahoma state trooper Lance Schroyer, a former U.S. Marine with close to three decades of law enforcement experience, to replace former ICE acting Director Todd Lyons. Lyons, who resigned in April, was a key figure in carrying out the Trump administration’s mass deportation efforts and ICE raids across the country.
Although Schroyer also had support from Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, a former Oklahoma senator with a personal connection to Schroyer, some DHS officials questioned his lack of experience in managing large law enforcement agencies, according to Politico.
The Wall Street Journal reported in August that Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky), the chair of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, was stalling Schroyer’s nomination until he received more information on the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens by federal immigration agents this year in Minneapolis.
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The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on why it withdrew Schroyer’s nomination.
Mullin, who appointed Schroyer as one of his senior advisers, defended Schroyer’s nomination in an August interview with Fox News, saying the Trump administration wanted someone who could be easily confirmed by the Senate.
The Senate has not confirmed an ICE director since Sarah Saldaña’s three-year tenure during the Obama administration. The agency has been led by acting directors since then.
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