The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the parent agency of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and a key architect in President Donald Trump's controversial travel ban is facing a barrage of bad news this month.
Most recently, a key DHS official, the Reverend Jamie Johnson resigned after a CNN report revealed he made several racist remarks. Johnson, the director for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, reportedly made several comments disparaging African Americans and Muslims in various talk radio appearances from 2008 through 2016, according to The Hill.
In one such appearance, Johnson said black Americans were responsible for turning "major cities into slums because of laziness, drug use and sexual promiscuity."
On a separate program, he said, "[Islam] is not a religion of peace," followed by, "I agree with [conservative political commentator] Dinesh D'Souza, your friend and mine, who says all that Islam has ever given us is oil and dead bodies over the last millennia and a half."
Johnson's resignation has been accepted by acting DHS Secretary Elaine Duke, and of his departure, the agency's acting press secretary, Tyler Houlton said, "His comments made prior to joining the Department of Homeland Security clearly do not reflect the values of DHS and the administration. The Department thanks him for his recent work assisting disaster victims and the interfaith community."
Vacancy at the Top
His departure also leaves another key opening at an agency that has been leaderless since General John Kelly left in July to become President Trump's Chief of Staff.
Change may be coming, as, in October, President Trump nominated his deputy Chief of Staff, Kirstjen Nielsen to fill the top slot.
Nielsen brings with her an extensive background in cybersecurity issues.
"Cybercriminals and nation states are continually looking for ways to exploit our hyperconnectivity," she said in remarks to the Senate panel.
However, in an apparent split with President Trump, she also told the panel that "there was no need to build a wall on the Mexican border 'from sea to shining sea,'" according to Reuters.
The Senate has made forward progress on the appointment. Last week, bi-partisan Senate panel voted 11-4 in her favor, although the process was delayed a few times as key lawmakers grilled Nielsen on a number of issues, many related to her lack of leadership experience. Officials now say they hope to see the confirmation appear for a full Senate vote by Thanksgiving.
Her confirmation could face a possible roadblock, however, as she now faces a "conflict of interest" charge, according to the Washington Post, which reported that she is being "guided" through the process by a lobbyist who also represents numerous companies with huge financial dealings with the DHS.
Raising the issue of a "possibility of a financial windfall" for the consultant, the complaint was filed by the Campaign Legal Center, which said, "The consultant has clear financial incentive to assist in the nomination of an agency secretary who would have the power to steer government contracts in his direction."
As just one example, USA Today noted, "CBP apprehends immigrants but relies on ICE to house them, yet ICE didn't consistently notify CPB if and where beds were available. In addition, while CBP is a 24-hour, seven-day operation, ICE enforcement and removal staff normally don't work nights and weekends, leaving customs and border workers scrambling to house detainees."
The inspector general also called attention to the loss of thousands of "sensitive assets" like guns, badges and official immigration and border control stamps. According to the report, some 228 guns and nearly 1,900 badges belonging to Border patrol, ICE agents and TSA officers went missing between 2014 and 2016.
As previously reported by TravelPulse, the report also found that Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers failed to detect 80 percent of test-weapons smuggled through security checkpoints.
In the earliest days of President Trump's administration, DHS added to the chaos and confusion over the initial travel ban, by failing to inform key stakeholders of new policies and initiatives, often leaving airline workers guessing as to correct procedures when boarding citizens of targeted nations.
In the following months, the agency spearheaded an electronics ban in carry-on baggage on flights from the Middle East, that also added to air travel confusion as then-Secretary Kelly publicly mused inconsistent messages over the future of the ban and whether or not it would expand to Europe or even all international flights.
The full Inspector General's report can be downloaded here.
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