President Donald Trump replaced the acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Monday night, shortly after he fired the acting attorney general, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed.
Unlike the firing of Acting Attorney General Sally Yates, the replacement of Acting ICE Director Daniel Ragsdale came with no explanation. Ragsdale was replaced by Thomas Homan, ICE's executive associate director of enforcement and removal operations since 2013.
"I am confident that he will continue to serve as a strong, effective leader for the men and women of ICE," John Kelly, the secretary of Homeland Security, said in a brief statement.
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Homan, a former New York police officer, is a 30-year veteran of immigration enforcement, having served as U.S. Border Patrol agent and deputy assistant director of ICE for investigations, according to DHS.
The announcement came as turmoil swirled around Washington over Trump's firing of Yates, an Obama administration holdover, as acting attorney general.
In a blistering statement announcing Yates' replacement, the White House cited Yates' memo earlier in the day ordering to Justice Department lawyers not to go to court to defend sharp restrictions Trump ordered last week on immigration from seven majority Muslim countries.
No such language was used in the announcement of Ragsdale's replacement. Like Yates, Ragsdale had stayed over after having served as deputy director of his agency during the presidential transition.