Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security John Tien quietly resigned this week, in an unexpected move buried in the news cycle under the Trump indictment and missing submersible. Tien follows Customs and Border Protection chief Chris Magnus, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) acting chief Tae Johnson, and US Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz, all of whom bowed out in recent months.
Officially, Tien says he wants to spend more time with his family. It’s a euphemistic rationale, especially as just weeks ago he was giving interviews about his “new challenge” in the job, claiming he has “a responsibility to be both seen and heard.”
But like Magnus, Johnson and Ortiz, he is unlikely to be seen or heard from again, at least in this government.
Speculation will necessarily abound, but Biden’s border has arguably been the most colossal failure of his three years in office thus far, and there’s plenty to pick from.
Moves to prevent an embarrassing surge in border crossings ahead of an election year may be informing the departures. After all, Tien recently refused to confirm that he believes crossing the border illegally should even be a crime.
Magnus, meanwhile, resigned in November amidst pressure to reduce crossings – instructions contrary to his belief in sanctuary cities and states, and a distraction from his priorities of increasing female recruitment and clamping down on agents’ social media posts.
Ortiz, at Border Patrol, is said to have sought retirement, having only landed the gig in 2021, after 32 years of service.
“After a 32-year Border Patrol career spanning multiple Sectors, HQ tours, and overseas assignments in Afghanistan, I have decided to retire from federal service on June 30th,” he said in May.
Illegal crossings have been at (or near) record highs for much of 2022 and 2023. It was widely expected, including by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, that this situation would dramatically worsen with the expiration of Trump-era Title 42 border controls in May.
Hastily reinforced Title 8 controls criminalizing illegal entry have so far prevented the worst of the catastrophe, but migrants presenting themselves at points of entry have hit an all-time high as a side-effect.
Jack Montgomery contributed to this report.
