Harris County sheriff withdraws nomination from top immigration post

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Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, who was previously tapped to steer the nation’s immigration and customs enforcement company, stated Monday that he was withdrawing himself from consideration for the function after his affirmation vote has stalled for months in Congress.

Gonzalez made the announcement on Monday by way of Twitter, noting that “more than a year has passed since the President nominated me for this important position.”

“I arrived at this decision after prayerfully considering what’’s best for our nation, my family, and the people of Harris County who elected me to serve a second term as Sheriff,” Gonzalez wrote.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which operates below the Department of Homeland Security to detain and deport undocumented immigrants, has not had a Senate-confirmed director since early 2017.

Gonzalez’s affirmation vote to steer ICE was anticipated earlier this yr however was halted after an affidavit surfaced detailing a home violence dispute between Gonzalez and his spouse, Melissa Gonzalez, former president of Houston Community College-Southeast.

In the affidavit, a former Houston Community College police officer alleged that he had obtained phrase that Melissa Gonzalez, who was then the varsity’s vice chancellor of workforce and financial improvement, needed to file a criticism towards her husband due to “suggested violence she had experienced at her home at the hands of the sheriff.”

Both the sheriff and Melissa Gonzalez denied the allegations, and an inquiry into the allegations obtained by the Houston Chronicle undermined the credibility of the claims. The White House stood by President Joe Biden’s ICE nominee.

“Sheriff Gonzalez has the qualifications and experience to do this important job and would have been a great leader of ICE,” a White House spokesperson stated Monday, according to Reuters. “We thank Sheriff Gonzalez for his willingness to serve in the face of baseless allegations against his family.”

It is unclear who Biden will nominate subsequent to steer the company, which is presently led by appearing director Tae Johnson. The earlier interim director, Jonathan Fahey, resigned final yr after simply two weeks on the job. The company has shuffled by means of appearing administrators in recent times and hasn’t had a Senate-confirmed chief for the reason that Obama administration.

News of Gonzalez’s withdrawal got here hours earlier than 46 people were found dead inside an 18-wheeler in San Antonio on Monday night. Federal, state and native authorities imagine that the victims had been migrants. San Antonio Police Chief William McManus described the case because the deadliest human smuggling incident he may recall within the metropolis.

Texas Republicans have slammed Biden for what they imagine has been lax enforcement of the nation’s immigration insurance policies.

In addition to the state’s efforts to construct a border wall, Gov. Greg Abbott final yr launched a border safety initiative referred to as Operation Lone Star in response to an increase in border crossings, an effort costing Texans more than $2.5 million a week, and later boasted concerning the challenge’s success. An investigation by the Tribune, ProPublica and The Marshall Project raised serious doubts concerning the governor’s claims.

Gonzalez was a vocal adversary of former President Donald Trump, who has beforehand endorsed Abbott, and his immigration insurance policies, particularly on deportation. After changing into sheriff of Harris County, the place greater than 400,000 undocumented immigrants are estimated to dwell, Gonzalez ended a partnership with ICE that skilled deputies to display jailed people for his or her immigration standing, amongst different efforts.

“I do not support #ICERaids that threaten to deport millions of undocumented immigrants, the vast majority of whom do not represent a threat to the U.S.,” Gonzalez tweeted in 2019. “The focus should always be on clear & immediate safety threats.”

Gonzalez was a former Houston police officer earlier than serving three phrases on town council. He was elected sheriff of the state’s most populous county in 2016 and received reelection in 2020.

“I am grateful to President Biden for the honor of nominating me,” Gonzalez wrote on Monday. “I wish this administration well as it strives to overcome the paralyzing political gridlock that threatens far more than our nation’s border. Frankly, the dysfunction threatens America’s heart and soul.”

Disclosure: Houston Community College has been a monetary supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news group that’s funded partly by donations from members, foundations and company sponsors. Financial supporters play no function within the Tribune’s journalism. Find an entire list of them here.

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