By: EFE Updated 03 Feb 2022, 10: 03 am EST
The President’s Nominee Joe Biden for Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Ed González, advanced in his confirmation process by being approved by a committee of the United States Senate, and now he will have to wait for the plenary’s decision.
The White House had to consider González for the second time due to the lack of action to confirm him in the Senate last year.
Biden nominated González as director of the ICE in April 2021 and in July the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee approved the appointment after a hearing with the candidate.
But the appointment of González, like other almost 200 nominations made by Biden, was stalled and without a vote in the Upper House when he concluded its legislative session of 2021, so all the procedures They had to return to their starting point.
This Wednesday, and despite Republican opposition, González, who serves as head of the Harris County Sheriff’s Department in Texas, He again obtained the approval of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate, and now his nomination will be evaluated by the plenary session of that legislative body.
If confirmed, González would be the first director of ICE endorsed by the Senate since the Administration of Barack Obama (287-2017). Under the Government of Donald Trump (2017-2021), all the directors of the agency maintained the category of interim.
The main Republican in the Committee, Senator Rob Portman of Ohio recognized González’s years of service on Wednesday before the vote, but said he could not support his nomination, according to the news network CNN.
“His history with ICE, both his statements and his actions with respect to the agency of which he was appointed head, deeply concerns me and I think it would also concern the members of ICE”, argued the senator.
During his tenure as Harris County Sheriff, González locally terminated the program known as 287(g), by which the local authorities collaborated with the federal ones in the application of immigration laws.
This collaboration allows local authorities to hand over undocumented immigrants to the federal authorities who may be detained for minor crimes such as traffic violations or drunkenness.
However, during the hearing before the Senate last July and in response to questions from Portman, González said that if he were confirmed as head of ICE he would not terminate the program 287(g), which unsettled some Democratic senators.
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2022