UPDATE April 8, 6:36 A.M. EST:
Kirstjen Nielsen announced that she will be staying on as Homeland Security Secretary until Wednesday, April 10, "to assist with an orderly transition and ensure that key DHS missions are not impacted."
She shared her statement of resignation on Sunday, which indicated that she would be stepping down as Secretary effective the same day, April 7, 2019.
President Trump announced along with Nielsen's resignation that CBP Commissioner Kevin McAleenan would be her replacement.
UPDATE 7:17 P.M. EST:
Now-former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen confirmed her resignation in a statement Sunday evening, suggesting obstruction by Congress and the courts contributed to her decision to step down.
Nielsen shared the full statement on Twitter:
Nielsen writes, "Despite our progress in reforming homeland security for a new age, I have determined that it is the right time for me to step aside," adding that she hopes the next secretary "will have the support of Congress and the courts in fixing the laws which have impeded our ability to fully secure America's borders and which have contributed to discord in our nation's discourse."
She thanks "the men and women of the Department as its sixth Secretary" and writes that she is "immensely proud of our successes," noting that she "can say with confidence that our homeland is safer today than when I joined the Administration."
Nielsen did not mention President Trump during her statement of resignation effective April 7th, 2019, but did thank him in a tweet for "the opportunity to serve in his administration."
She wrote in another tweet to DHS, "Keep up the good fight."
ORIGINAL STORY:
In an unexpected move -- at least this soon and amid the chaos on the border -- President Trump announced Sunday afternoon that Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen will stepping down from her position with the agency and will be replaced by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Kevin McAleenan.
Trump on Twitter wrote thanking Nielsen “for her service” and added in a following tweet that he has “confidence that [McAleenan] will do a great job!
The announcement comes as the U.S. faces an immigration crisis on its southern border. The news that Nielsen would be resigning came rather abruptly, as Nielsen in recent weeks was seen publicly rallying for resources among departments and calling for action by Congress, characterizing the current influx of migrants and overcrowding of detention facilities as a “Cat 5 hurricane disaster,” as MRCTV reported. She even traveled to the U.S.-Mexico border as recently as Friday where she sat alongside President Trump at a roundtable with border officers and local law enforcement.
According to The Associated Press, Nielsen had reportedly “grown increasingly frustrated by what she saw as a lack of support from other departments and increased meddling by Trump aides.”
“She went into a meeting with Trump at the White House in Sunday not knowing whether she'd be fired or would resign, and she ended up resigning” writes AP, citing two sources.
Nielsen has yet to address her resignation -- or confirm these reports -- publicly.
As Fox News reports,
Trump nominated Nielsen as Homeland Security secretary in October 2017, replacing her former boss John Kelly, whom Trump had named White House chief of staff months earlier. She was confirmed by the Senate in December of that year.
Trump nominated McAleenan as CBP commissioner on the first day of his presidency, but McAleenan as not confirmed by the Senate until March of 2018. He was previously appointed CBP deputy commissioner in November 2014 by President Barack Obama.
Nielsen's departure is the latest staffing shakeup in the department, which was founded to combat terrorism after the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.
On Friday, Trump confirmed he had withdrawn the nomination of acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director Ron Vitiello to become the permanent head of the agency, telling reporters that ‘Ron’s a good man, but we’re going in a tougher direction, we want to go in a tougher direction.’
This story is developing. Stay tuned to MRCTV for updates.