White House pressure to accelerate deportations has sparked internal conflict at DHS, with Secretary Kristi Noem and adviser Corey Lewandowski blaming acting ICE and CBP leaders for missed arrest targets. Newly released ICE data show arrests averaging fewer than 1,000 per day, far below the 3,000-per-day goal. Concerns about email monitoring and strained relationships among senior officials have heightened tensions, and personnel moves, including a possible nomination for Troy Edgar, may reshuffle DHS leadership.
DHS Rifts Deepen as White House Pushes for Faster Deportations
A member of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in New Orleans on Feb. 8. (Aaron M. Sprecher / Getty Images)
WASHINGTON — Intense White House pressure to accelerate deportations has produced mounting friction inside the Department of Homeland Security. Secretary Kristi Noem and her senior adviser, Corey Lewandowski, have publicly and privately shifted blame onto subordinates for missing arrest targets, creating strains between DHS leadership and the West Wing, according to two DHS officials familiar with the situation.
Internal Blame and Strained Relations
Noem and Lewandowski have pointed to acting ICE Director Todd Lyons and Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott as responsible for not meeting the administration's deportation goals. The dispute has deepened as DHS leaders seek to explain why deportation numbers lag behind the White House timeline.
Concerns About Monitoring
The internal turmoil was magnified when Commissioner Scott expressed concern that Lewandowski might be monitoring his emails, prompting unease among senior staff about the privacy of internal communications. One senior staffer said leadership is increasingly cautious about what they put in email and text messages.
Everyone in leadership is so worried about what they say in email and text, one senior staffer said.
Numbers and Targets
Newly disclosed ICE figures, released as part of a lawsuit, show ICE is arresting fewer than 1,000 people per day on average — well below the 3,000-per-day target set by White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller in May. The administration does not publish official deportation totals, and those internal targets have put added pressure on DHS managers.
Personnel Tensions and Responses
Officials say Lyons has pushed back against suggestions that detention capacity shortfalls are his responsibility and at one point threatened to resign, arguing that Lewandowski was making decisions about detention facilities. ICE is reportedly moving forward with plans to establish and operate detention space in large warehouse facilities.
According to the officials, Scott has been excluded from conversations about Border Patrol operations in several major U.S. cities and omitted from social gatherings with other senior DHS leaders. They also said DHS leaders have suggested Scott could be replaced despite record-low border numbers during his tenure.
Staff Changes
A change at the top may be imminent. Noem's deputy, Troy Edgar, has been told the president intends to nominate him as U.S. ambassador to El Salvador, a move that would remove him from his No. 2 role at DHS, a person familiar with the plans said.
Official Responses
When asked about the internal finger-pointing, White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson defended Noem's record, saying the secretary is implementing the president's agenda and that the border is secure as deportations increase. Requests for comment from DHS officials, and spokespeople for CBP and ICE, were not answered.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
