The Texas sheriff who was nominated by President Joe Biden in April of last year to head Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) made the announcement that he was withdrawing from consideration on Monday.
Sheriff Ed Gonzalez of Harris County claimed to have alerted the White House over the weekend in a series of tweets in which he also denounced the “political deadlock” in Washington.
It’s the most recent in a succession of setbacks for Biden in the Senate, which has easily confirmed his senior-level Cabinet nominees but rejected nominations for crucial mid-level administrative positions.
That includes the head of ICE, a Department of Homeland Security organization that has served as a political flashpoint ever since it was established by George W. Bush to combat crime tied to illegal immigration.
Gonzalez’s nomination has stalled, which means the organization has been run on an acting basis during a year that has seen hundreds of thousands of migrants put a burden on the state and municipal infrastructure as well as the US immigration system at the southern border.
239,416 interactions between law enforcement and migrants at the southern border set a record in May.
Despite a judge preventing the Biden administration from ending the COVID-19 pandemic’s Title 42 deportation policy, which was predicted to spark a fresh wave of asylum applicants, this is the case.
Gonzalez said that since Barack Obama’s presidency, ICE has not had a director who has received Senate approval.
The rest of his statement read: “I came to this conclusion after praying about what’s best for our country, my family, and the people of Harris County who elected me to serve a second term as Sheriff.”
“I am thankful to President Biden for the honor of nominating me, and I wish this administration well as it struggles to break through the crippling political impasse that threatens much more than our country’s border,” said the nominee.
Frankly, the dysfunction affects the heart and spirit of America, he said in his warning.
Gonzalez vowed to keep his attention on his law enforcement responsibilities in the third-most populous county in the nation and the most populous county in the Lone Star state.
In these divisive times, “my love for America and my willingness to serve is stronger than ever,” he declared.
It is a great honor for me to continue to ensure the safety and security of the residents of Harris County, and I am totally committed to doing so.
Gonzalez attained the rank of sergeant in the Houston Police Department and served on the city council before being chosen as sheriff in 2016.
But for months, it appeared that his appointment as head of ICE was in doubt. After Biden’s nomination ran out of time during the previous session of the Senate, he was compelled to resubmit it in January.
He obtained a party-line vote to advance out of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in February, but he was never given a full floor vote and it’s uncertain whether he would have received the votes.
He has frequently fought as sheriff with the organization he was chosen to head.
Gonzalez broke off Harris County’s collaboration with ICE in 2017, and according to the Houston Chronicle, he declined to take part in an ICE raid personally in 2019.
Gonzalez criticized the so-called “anti-sanctuary city legislation” in a letter to the Senate State Affairs Committee, which was then led by Republicans, in 2017.
Gonzalez claimed that the legislation was “creating a climate of fear and suspicion that could damage our efforts to reinforce trust between law enforcement and the communities we serve.”
Additionally, Republican Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma’s reservations concerning a domestic complaint hindered his candidacy.
An unrelated affidavit from 2019 mentions “an alleged domestic dispute” involving Gonzalez’s wife Melissa Gonzalez that was looked into by an officer.
She and her husband have both refuted the accusation.
The White House at the time supported the sheriff and shared Melissa Gonzalez’s denial with news organizations.
The White House has been contacted by DailyMail.com for comment on Gonzalez’s resignation.
Also driven out of their positions in the past year were David Chipman, the president’s choice to oversee the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Sarah Bloom Raskin, Biden’s candidate for the Federal Reserve, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and Saule Omarova.