Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Border Patrol chief forced to step down, official says
WASHINGTON — The man charged with protecting America’s borders was ousted Thursday, one day after President Donald Trump announced plans to build a massive wall at the Mexican border and bolster the ranks of the Border Patrol.
Border Patrol Chief Mark Morgan said he was asked to leave and decided to resign rather than fight the request, according to a U.S. official with knowledge of the brief video conference in which Morgan informed senior agents of the change. The official spoke on condition of anonymity.
Morgan’s resignation is effective Jan. 31, officials said.
Border security and a “big beautiful wall” paid for by the Mexican government were centerpieces of Trump’s immigration platform during his presidential campaign. Mexico has repeatedly said it won’t pay for a barrier, and Mexican president Enrique Pena Nieto on Thursday canceled a meeting with Trump.
Morgan was named to the post in June and took office in October. The former FBI agent briefly led the internal affairs department at the Border Patrol’s parent agency before heading the agency of roughly 20,000 agents.
From the start, Morgan clashed with the Border Patrol’s union, which had advocated for an insider to lead the agency and criticized Morgan at almost every turn.
The union was incensed when Morgan, at a Senate hearing Dec. 1, said he supported a comprehensive immigration overhaul, which is often interpreted to include a path to citizenship for people who are in the country illegally. Morgan clarified his remarks in a note to Border Patrol staff the following week, saying he does not support “blanket amnesty.”
The union, the National Border Patrol Council, has had a strong relationship with Trump. It was so enamored with his stance on security that it took the unusual step of endorsing him during the campaign. The endorsement was a leadership decision and not decided on by a unionwide vote. Union chief Brandon Judd was part of Trump’s transition team.