Donald Trump appoints Thomas Homan to acting ICE director
Jan 30, 2017, 8:39 PM | Updated: 10:11 pm
An ICE agent looks on to an airplane. (Facebook photo)
(Facebook photo)
President Donald Trump quietly appointed Thomas D. Homan as acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement late Monday night, according to a press release.
In a statement from Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, there was no reason given for the dismissal of former acting ICE Director Daniel Ragsdale.
“I am confident that [Homan] will continue to serve as a strong, effective leader for the men and women of ICE,” the statement read. “I look forward to working alongside him to ensure that we enforce our immigration laws in the interior of the United States consistent with the national interest.”
Homan had served as the executive associate director of ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations since 2013 and was a 33-year veteran of law enforcement.
The move came less than an hour after White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer announced acting Attorney General Sally Yates had been replaced by U.S. Attorney Dana Boente. The move dominated news headlines, after Yates defied Department of Justice by refusing to defend Trump’s executive order.
