Chad Wolf is now said to be permanently responsible for homeland security
Photo:TOM BRENNER / REUTERS
If Donald Trump has his way, the provisionally appointed minister should remain permanently in his post: Trump announced on Twitter on Tuesday that he would officially nominate Chad Wolf for the office of Homeland Security Minister.
The Court of Auditors had recently ruled that Wolf and his deputy Kenneth Cuccinelli's provisional appeal violated federal law. Since the resignation of Kirstjen Nielsen in April 2019, the department no longer has a minister confirmed by the Senate. According to the legal provisions, the director of the computer security authority (CISA) should have been appointed, explained the audit office.
Trump had defended the practice of only ever promoting executive ministers who did not have the full authority of a minister confirmed by the Senate. "I like acting. It gives you great flexibility," he said. In the US, the majority of the Senate usually has to approve the appointment of ambassadors, cabinet members, and some top officials and judges.
The Secretary of Homeland Security is responsible for the internal security of the United States. The ministry, which was founded in 2002 after Islamist terrorist attacks, has played a central role in tightening entry regulations and measures against people who have entered illegally since the beginning of Trump's term in office.
Most recently, Wolf had defended the actions of federal police officers against demonstrators in Portland, Oregon, calling them "violent anarchists". The Senate Democratic minority leader Chuck Schumer criticized Trump's intention to nominate Wolf. "Given his actions so far, he would be a terrible choice," Schumer wrote on Twitter.
Icon: The mirrorevh / dpa
