US President Donald Trump has appointed a former Oklahoma state trooper to head Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), one of the key agencies responsible for carrying out the mass deportation campaign.
On Saturday, President Trump unveiled Lance Schroyer as his nominee, praising his 29 years of law enforcement experience and service as a U.S. Marine.
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“Like me and Secretary of Homeland Security Mark Wayne Mullin, he loves the men and women of ICE,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“Importantly, Lance Schroyer has what it takes to apprehend and deport illegal alien criminals, including murderers (sic), rapists, and drug traffickers, at a rate never seen before!”
But Schroyer is a newcomer to leading the federal agency, and his level of experience is likely to be scrutinized when his nomination goes before Congress for confirmation hearings.
But both Mr. Trump and Mr. Mullin argued that Mr. Schroyer’s background as a law enforcement officer qualified him for the job.
“Lance comes directly from the field where he conducted large-scale operations and worked collaboratively with state and federal partners to remove illegal aliens from Oklahoma under the 287G program,” Mullin wrote, referring to the Immigration Enforcement Partnership Initiative.
Although immigration law enforcement is primarily a federal responsibility, Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act allows ICE to perform certain functions on behalf of state and local officials and under their supervision.
If confirmed, Mr. Schroyer will replace Acting ICE Commissioner David Venturella, whose career with the government’s immigration agency dates back to the 1980s.
Venturella, who previously worked for the private prison company Geo Group, has been in a temporary position since May following the resignation of ICE’s other acting director, Todd Lyons.
Lyons, whose career with ICE dates back to 2007, announced in April that he would step down at the end of next month.
He cited a desire to “spend more time with his family.” But his resignation comes as ICE faces increased scrutiny over its tactics, including allegations that it used excessive force and circumvented civil liberties protections.
For example, in January, an ICE enforcement operation in Minnesota under the name Operation Metro Surge resulted in the shooting death of protester Renee Nicole Good.
Other incidents also sparked nationwide protests. In one instance, federal immigration agents allegedly broke down the door of a Minnesota home without a warrant, unlawfully detained U.S. citizen Chongli Scott Tao, and forced him to parade outside in the snow in his underwear.
An ICE officer was also arrested after Minneapolis prosecutors accused him of falsely reporting a crime after the fatal shooting of Julio Sosa-Celiz, a Venezuelan immigrant.
Lyons himself acknowledged that the agent appeared to have made “untruthful statements” and called lying under oath a “serious federal crime” as he opened an investigation into the case.
Trump’s immigration crackdown in Minnesota and other states has led critics to call for reforms to ICE operations.
At least 19 people have died in ICE custody so far this year. On Friday, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk called for authorities to be “held accountable” for these deaths.
Separately, Congressional Democrats earlier this year refused to defund ICE and its sister agency, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), unless certain steps are taken.
It included requirements for immigration officers to clearly identify themselves, adhere to standards against excessive use of force, submit to supervision and end racial profiling.
Although the reforms did not pass, the impasse in Congress delayed new funding for ICE and CBP for months.
That funding was approved June 9, with votes in both chambers falling along party lines.
Lyons’ decision to resign this year comes amid widespread turmoil in the Trump administration. In the past few months, several cabinet secretaries and government agency heads have been fired or resigned.
They included Kristi Noem, the former head of the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, and Attorney General Pam Bondi, who led the Justice Department and voiced support for ICE’s operations.
Mullin, who was confirmed to replace Noem in March, noted in a statement Saturday that ICE had not had a Senate-confirmed director in more than a decade.
The last person confirmed for the role was Sara Saldaña, who was appointed by President Barack Obama and whose term ended in 2017.
The acting director has been the only person to lead the department since President Trump took office.
“It’s been 11 years since the Senate confirmed @ICEgov Director[of Homeland Security],” Mullins, also from Oklahoma, wrote in the post. “The Senate must confirm Lance Schroyer immediately.”
President Trump echoed this call in his own social media posts. “The Senate must confirm Mr. Lance immediately. Don’t delay. Together, we will make America safe again,” he said.
