President Donald Trump has pulled the nomination of former Oklahoma state trooper Lance Schroyer to lead Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The White House website identified Schroyer’s nomination as withdrawn on Thursday. Schroyer is a longtime personal friend of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin.
Trump selected Schroyer for the post in late June, highlighting his 29 years in Oklahoma law enforcement and describing him as “a patriot with real operational experience.”
The White House did not immediately respond to Our News Outlet’s request for comment.
Schroyer’s nomination surprised many lawmakers, several of whom raised questions about whether he was qualified to run the federal immigration agency.
The Daily Mail reported in July that his confirmation was in jeopardy amid mounting questions about his experience and personal history, citing eight current and former DHS officials.
Court documents reviewed by Our News Outlet show that Schroyer’s second ex-wife accused him of going four years without paying child support for their two children.
Schroyer had never headed a law enforcement agency. Instead, he previously served as the head of Mullin’s security detail. After Mullin took over DHS following Kristi Noem’s ouster, he appointed Schroyer as a senior adviser at the department.
President Donald Trump withdrew Lance Schroyer’s nomination to become the next ICE director on Thursday
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin had backed his Oklahoma friend, former state trooper Lance Schroyer, pictured above, for the ICE post, but Republicans pushed back against the nomination
The decision represents a significant setback for DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin because of his close personal ties to the former Oklahoma state trooper
Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Rand Paul effectively stalled Schroyer’s nomination by seeking additional information from DHS about the federal officer-involved killings of two American citizens in Minneapolis earlier this year.
Reports have described Paul as one of the Republican lawmakers most skeptical of Schroyer’s qualifications.
As chairman, Paul controls the committee’s work, including the scheduling of confirmation hearings. No hearing was set for months.
The withdrawal is a major blow to Mullin, who oversees ICE in his role as DHS secretary and had a personal connection to Schroyer.
Schroyer is a veteran of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. When Mullin was serving as a senator from the Sooner State, Schroyer worked as his security guard and unofficial chauffeur.
Within DHS, Mullin was reportedly mocked behind the scenes for promoting Schroyer despite the former trooper’s limited background in immigration matters.
Mullin, who replaced Noem as Homeland Security secretary in March, has said he spent two months conducting an extensive search for the right person to oversee ICE.
“I interviewed countless individuals, because we wanted someone not to just hold the position, someone that could also be confirmed, and here you have Lance that was literally right in front of me the whole time,” Mullin told Fox News this summer.
However, sources familiar with the search for an ICE director told Our News Outlet they had no knowledge of Mullin vetting other candidates.
Instead, sources say, Mullin tapped his ‘buddy’ and took his case directly to Trump without consulting two of the President’s top immigration advisers: Stephen Miller and Tom Homan.
Currently, David Venturella is serving as acting ICE director.
