Tag Archives: Homeland Security

Politico reports: Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, under heavy pressure from within the Trump administration to reduce illegal immigration, said Friday that “every option is on the table“ to halt the flow of migrants to the southwest border. Speaking at a recently completed 30-foot section of border wall in Calexico, Calif., Nielsen said the administration will announce in the coming …

Reuters reports: The U.S. military has received a request from the Department of Homeland Security for active-duty troops on the U.S.-Mexico border, a U.S. official said on Thursday, after President Donald Trump said he was “bringing out the military” to guard against a caravan of Central American migrants trekking through Mexico. The U.S. official, speaking to Reuters on condition of …

CBS News reports: President Trump is signing an executive order regarding the administration’s “zero tolerance” policy amid nationwide outcry for the Trump White House to roll back the practice of family separation at the U.S. border. Signing the order in the Oval Office, Mr. Trump told reporters in the room that the administration would still continue its “zero tolerance” policy …

Mediaite reports: Protesters tied to the Washington, D.C. area chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America heckled Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen out of a Mexican restaurant on Tuesday over her role in separating migrant families at the border. The protesters chanted “shame!” and “abolish ICE!” at Nielsen while she sat at a restaurant table surrounded by security. As can …

Glorious Leader will be ever so pissed: Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) on Monday shared photos of a child detention facility in Texas that he called “the real Trump Hotel.” The photos shared by the former Democratic vice-presidential nominee show young undocumented immigrants in cages on Sunday at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility in McAllen, Texas. Kaine’s tweet came …

Via press release from Sen. Kamala Harris: “The government should be in the business of keeping families together, not tearing them apart. And the government should have a commitment to transparency and accountability. Under Secretary Nielsen’s tenure, the Department of Homeland Security has a track record of neither. As a result, she must resign. “During her time as the manager …

The New York Daily News reports: The nation’s homeland security chief insisted Sunday that immigrant children are not being separated from their parents at the border — despite the Trump administration defending its policy and eyewitness accounts of government-snatched boys and girls being held in cages at a private detention center in Texas. “We do not have a policy of …

All while Trump rejects “inconvenient” phone security protocols: A federal study found signs that surveillance devices for intercepting cellphone calls and texts were operating near the White House and other sensitive locations in the Washington area last year. A Department of Homeland Security program discovered evidence of the surveillance devices, called IMSI catchers, as part of federal testing last year, …

Politico reports: President Donald Trump’s frustration with Kirstjen Nielsen, which boiled over Wednesday in a Cabinet meeting tirade, has been growing for weeks — stoked by associates who have privately made the case that she’s a closeted “never Trumper” who still doesn’t fully back his agenda. Trump’s advisers have been increasingly criticizing the Homeland Security chief in private conversations with …

The New York Times reports: Kirstjen Nielsen, the homeland security secretary, told colleagues she was close to resigning after President Trump berated her on Wednesday in front of the entire cabinet for what he said was her failure to adequately secure the nation’s borders, according to several current and former officials familiar with the episode. Ms. Nielsen, who is a …

Homeland Security advisor Tom Bossert abruptly resigned this morning, according to multiple outlets. At this writing there’s no explanation. According to MSNBC, the White House has issued a brief statement thanking Bossert for his “commitment to the safety and security of our great country.” Over the weekend Bossert appeared on multiple cable news shows to defend Trump’s policies. He last …

Bloomberg Law reports: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security wants to monitor hundreds of thousands of news sources around the world and compile a database of journalists, editors, foreign correspondents, and bloggers to identify top “media influencers.” It’s seeking a contractor that can help it monitor traditional news sources as well as social media and identify “any and all” coverage …

ABC News reports: The bombshell firing of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson comes amid another shakeup in the West Wing involving President Donald Trump’s personal aide (his body man) John McEntee, who was escorted from the White House Monday, sources told ABC News. There were issues with his background clearance, according to the sources. McEntee is the latest original Trump …

NBC News reports: The U.S. official in charge of protecting American elections from hacking says the Russians successfully penetrated the voter registration rolls of several U.S. states prior to the 2016 presidential election. In an exclusive interview with NBC News, Jeanette Manfra, the head of cybersecurity at the Department of Homeland Security, said she couldn’t talk about classified information publicly, …

CNN reports: The Department of Homeland Security documents critiquing the response to a simulated anthrax attack on Super Bowl Sunday were marked “For Official Use Only” and “important for national security.” Recipients of the draft “after-action” reports were told to keep them locked up after business hours and to shred them prior to discarding. They were admonished not to share …

The Hill reports: The Republican National Committee (RNC) slammed Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) on Wednesday, accusing him of “mansplaining” to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen during her hearing in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee. In an email titled “Derogatory Cory”, the RNC urged readers to “picture” a male Republican lawmaker “mansplaining” to a female Cabinet secretary. “There’d …

Raw Story reports: While questioning Nielsen about the DHS’s response to white supremacist hate groups, Booker rant down a litany of all Trump’s past racist remarks and shamed her for claiming she couldn’t recall whether Trump had called African countries “shitholes.” “The commander in chief, in an Oval Office meeting, referring to people from African countries and Haitians with the …

Reuters reports: President Donald Trump may tap U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry to replace former Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, who took over as White House chief of staff this week, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday. Bloomberg, citing three people familiar with deliberations, said others were also being considered for the post. White House officials had no immediate comment. Asked …

The Chicago Tribune reports: The Department of Homeland Security on Monday announced a one-time increase of 15,000 additional visas for low-wage, seasonal workers for the remainder of this fiscal year, a seeming about-face from President Trump’s “Hire American” rhetoric, following heavy lobbying from the fisheries, hospitality and other industries that rely on temporary foreign workers. The increase represents a 45 …

Raw Story reports: Former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson on Wednesday bluntly shot down any doubts about whether Russia was responsible for the hacking of the Democratic National Committee that was intended to disrupt the 2016 presidential election. “The Russian government, at the direction of Vladimir Putin himself, orchestrated cyber attacks on our nation for the purpose of …