Just one day after President Trump announced a broad crackdown on border security on the Mexico-U.S. border, a Department of Homeland Security official told Reuters on Thursday that Morgan had been asked to leave.
But the Associated Press is reporting that Mark Morgan told senior Border Patrol agents about his ouster during a brief video conference on Thursday morning, saying he was asked to leave and that he decided to resign rather than fight the request, according to an official who was in one the video conference.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Morgan, a long-time former FBI official, is expected to leave his post by the end of the month. The Hill reported that Morgan did not come into his office today.
Morgan was appointed to head up the agency, bypassing the usual “coming up through the ranks” route only seven months ago. He immediately ended up being “at odds” with the border patrol union who had endorsed Trump’s campaign promises and applauded his executive orders on building a border wall.
Morgan was seen as an “outsider” because he didn’t come up through the ranks and because he supported President Barack Obama’s plans to safeguard certain undocumented immigrants from deportation. He angered union officials, when during a Senate hearing on December 1, in answering a question from Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., he said he supported a comprehensive immigration overhaul, which is often interpreted to include a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants.
The animosity was so strong Morgan had to clarify his remarks to soothe the union, writing: “I do not, as some have suggested, support what is often referred to as ‘blanket amnesty.’ This assertion could not be further from my position. I encourage everyone to listen to my testimony.” It did no good, in the end. Trump now has someone more in line with his rhetoric.