Biden to nominate Trump critics to lead border and immigration agencies
Reuters
Published Apr 12, 2021 09:25AM ET
Updated Apr 12, 2021 10:30AM ET
By Steve Holland and Ted Hesson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden intends to nominate two critics of former President Donald Trump's immigration policies to key positions in his administration, a White House official said on Monday, signaling a continued push to ease Trump's restrictions on migration.
Biden will tap Chris Magnus, the chief of police in Tucson, Arizona, to lead U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the agency charged with border security and facilitating legal trade and travel, the official said. Biden will nominate Ur Jaddou as director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which handles immigration paperwork and processing.
The Democratic president has reversed many of his Republican predecessor's immigration policies. Biden's immigration actions have pleased his Democratic base but outraged many Republicans, who accuse him of encouraging illegal immigration as the number of migrants arriving at the U.S.-Mexican border has soared in recent months.
Magnus and Jaddou must be approved by the Senate, which is narrowly controlled by Democrats. The chamber is divided 50-50 between Democrats and Republicans, with Vice President Kamala Harris as the tie-breaking vote.
The New York Times first reported the nominations.
Magnus served in the Lansing, Michigan Police Department, and was police chief in the cities of Fargo, North Dakota, and Richmond, California, before landing in Tucson, Arizona, the White House official said.
"In each of these cities Chief Magnus developed a reputation as a progressive police leader who focused on relationship-building between the police and community, implementing evidence-based best practices, promoting reform, and insisting on police accountability," the official said in a statement.
Magnus offered to resign as Tucson police chief last year over the death of a man in custody who said he could not breathe after he was handcuffed and restrained face down. The Tucson city manager rejected his resignation offer.
During the Trump administration, Jaddou worked for the Washington-based immigrant advocacy group America's Voice as director of DHS Watch, a project that sought to uphold transparency and accountability at the Department of Homeland Security and frequently criticized Trump's policies.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.