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| Kirstjen Nielsen |
She showed up for a meeting at the White House with Donald Trump on Sunday, and before she could even make her resignation public, Trump beat her via Twitter.
Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen will be leaving her position, and I would like to thank her for her service....— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 7, 2019
....I am pleased to announce that Kevin McAleenan, the current U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner, will become Acting Secretary for @DHSgov. I have confidence that Kevin will do a great job!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 7, 2019
According to the New York Times:
“I have determined that it is the right time for me to step aside,” Ms. Nielsen said in a resignation letter. “I hope that 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.”
Ms. Nielsen had requested the meeting to plan “a way forward” at the border, in part thinking she could have a reasoned conversation with Mr. Trump about the role, according to three people familiar with the meeting. She came prepared with a list of things that needed to change to improve the relationship with the president.
Mr. Trump in recent weeks had asked Ms. Nielsen to close the ports of entry along the border and to stop accepting asylum seekers, which Ms. Nielsen found ineffective and inappropriate. While the 30-minute meeting was cordial, Mr. Trump was determined to ask for her resignation. After the meeting, she submitted it.
This morning, folks believe Nielsen's tenure in the Trump administration could be a "reputation killer."
“Kirstjen Nielsen I think is a great example of what happens when you go to work for Donald Trump," said CNN's Jeffrey Toobin. "He is the great reputation killer. Here is this woman who was a reasonably admired bureaucrat. For the rest of her life people will look at her and think, ‘Oh, that’s the woman who put children in cages. That’s the woman who broke up families across the border.’ You know what? They’ll be right.”
.@JeffreyToobin calls President Trump "the great reputation killer."— New Day (@NewDay) April 8, 2019
Kirstjen Nielsen "was a reasonably admired bureaucrat. For the rest of her life people will look at her and think, 'Oh, that's the woman who put children in cages.'" https://t.co/fDKX7RtHY0 pic.twitter.com/LxuMjpog39
The NY Times also notes that Trump reportedly urged Nielsen to take illegal actions to tamp down what he saw as the immigration 'emergency."
The president called Ms. Nielsen at home early in the mornings to demand that she take action to stop migrants from entering the country, including doing things that were clearly illegal, such as blocking all migrants from seeking asylum.
She repeatedly noted the limitations imposed on her department by federal laws, court settlements and international obligations.
Those responses only infuriated Mr. Trump further.
.@SecNielsen separated mamas from their babies and locked little children in cages.— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) April 8, 2019
I’m not sorry to see her go. I only wish she’d been fired long ago, before she ever had a chance to resign.
If this were a TWILIGHT ZONE episode, Kirstjen Nielsen would wake up in a small cage with Latin American children on the outside watching her.— Harold Itzkowitz (@HaroldItz) April 7, 2019
I have repeatedly called for Kirstjen Nielsen's resignation for her lies in service of @realDonaldTrump’s abhorrent immigration policies, and I welcome her decision today. History will not judge her or the president kindly.— Senator Mazie Hirono (@maziehirono) April 7, 2019
She is despicable and a liar - and no one should ever hire her for anything https://t.co/Qi3r6GUNwC— Joe Sudbay (@JoeSudbay) April 7, 2019
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