The White House has withdrawn President Donald Trump’s nomination of former Oklahoma state trooper Lance Schroyer to lead US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), leaving the agency without a Senate-confirmed director.The withdrawal was announced in a brief notice on Thursday, which did not give a reason for the decision. Schroyer’s nomination had stalled in the Senate after Republican Senator Rand Paul, who chairs the Homeland Security Committee, declined to advance it for a full vote.Paul had sought more information from the White House about the fatal shootings of two US citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, during separate confrontations involving federal immigration agents in Minneapolis in January.Schroyer, who spent 29 years with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and also served in the US Marines, was serving as a senior adviser to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin when Trump nominated him in June. Mullin, a former Oklahoma senator, is a close ally of Schroyer and oversees ICE through the Department of Homeland Security.Trump had praised Schroyer at the time of his nomination, describing him as a “PATRIOT with real operational experience” and a “proven leader” with decades of law-enforcement experience.However, Schroyer had limited experience specifically in immigration enforcement and had not previously led an agency the size of ICE.ICE has not had a Senate-confirmed director since 2017 and has instead been led by acting chiefs. David Venturella is currently serving as acting director after Todd Lyons left the position in April.The withdrawal means Venturella is expected to continue leading ICE while the administration considers its next nominee. The agency is central to Trump’s immigration agenda and his push for a large-scale deportation programme.
