Department of Homeland Security, Assistant Secretary, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Department/Agency: Department of Homeland Security

Position:

Assistant Secretary, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Executive Schedule: Executive Level IV - Presidential Appointment with Senate Confirmation

Major Responsibilities:

Heads the largest investigative component within the Department of Homeland Security
Enforces the immigration laws
Seeks to reduce vulnerabilities in the nation's borders, and safeguard economic, transportation and infrastructure security
Leads four law enforcement divisions and ICE’s Office of Intelligence. The law enforcement divisions are:

            o        Detention and Removal Operations
            o        Investigations
            o        Federal Protective Service
            o        International Affairs

Key Competencies and Preferred Qualifications:

Previous experience in dealing with border security and trade across U.S. borders
Litigation experience
Background in drug, financial, and international law
Familiarity with the Congress

Insight:

The Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement is the largest investigative arm of DHS, and the second largest such agency in the federal government. Comprised of more than 15,000 employees and with a yearly budget of more than $5 billion, ICE is charged with a multitude of tasks in its attempt to secure the nation’s borders.

With ICE’s focus on immigration and customs oversight, the reach of the agency is broad. While ICE doesn’t solely monitor and handle international trade and the movement of people across American borders, its work with state and local law enforcement agencies is paramount to the success of the agency’s mission. This, according to Assistant Secretary Julie Myers is one of the major challenges that face the agency in the future due to what she characterizes as “the state and local frustration and large number of new state laws and local ordinances” passed since the attacks of September 11, 2001.

The relative youth of both ICE and its parent means that “you have many opportunities to truly make a difference and change things,” according to Myers.

The agency has drawn sharp criticism from Congress for its handling of raids on workplaces across the country to round up undocumented workers. One of the most vocal critics has been Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO), a member of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. In 2007, during hearings on the raids, McCaskill raised concerns regarding the detention and prosecution of undocumented workers in various meat-packing facilities across the country. “Why is it that hundreds of bar owners can be sanctioned in Missouri every year for letting somebody with a fake ID have a beer, but we can't manage to sanction hundreds of employers for letting people use fake identities to obtain a job?”, she asked. As a result of the scrutiny from Capitol Hill, ICE stepped up its efforts to hold employers accountable for illegal hiring practices.

Myers says that “hiring, managing and retaining the best employees” will be a major challenge for the new administration as much of the workforce at ICE and across the government moves closer to retirement age. Myers said ICE “is definitely not a place for the faint-hearted.” But ICE plays such an important role in keeping the country safe that it makes meeting these daily challenges well worth the effort, she indicated.

Key Relationships – Within the Department or Agency:

Secretary
Deputy Secretary
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Transportation Security Administration

Key Relationships – Within the Government:

Department of Justice
Director, Criminal Division, DOJ
U.S. Attorneys, DOJ field offices
Various law enforcement agency chiefs

Key Relationships – Outside the Government:

Immigration advocacy groups
American Immigration Lawyers Association
National Immigration Forum

Nomination Referred to:

Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

Current Position Profile:
1. John T. Morton, J.D. (Confirmed May 12, 2009). Former Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Office of the Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, United States Department of Justice ; Member, The Council, Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

Recent Position Profiles:

2. Julie Myers, J.D. (2006-2009). Former chief of staff for the Criminal Division at the Department of Justice and federal prosecutor in New York’s Eastern District.

3. Michael J. Garcia, J.D. (2003-2005). Acting Commissioner of the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service immediately preceding its move from the Department of Justice to the new Department of Homeland Security in 2003. Former federal prosecutor in New York’s Southern District