Acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd Lyons announced in April that he is stepping down from the post effective May 31 because he wants to spend more time with his family. That leaves a pretty big hole to fill, as the Trump administration has prioritized putting an end to illegal immigration and getting criminal illegals out of the country.
The president has found his man, and it’s David Venturella, an ICE senior advisor who was recruited to the agency by Border Czar Tom Homan and who has a background in private prison firms. That resume is certain to drive the Democrats crazy, as they tend to view prisons as the ultimate sign of evil.
He would do things differently from some of his predecessors:
He started his career in 1986 at the former INS (Immigration and Naturalization Service) and as acting director and assistant director of ICE’s Office of Detention and Removal Operations.
Sources said he is well liked within ICE and one source described him as “definitely on board with the mission and the mass deportation agenda,” though he does not support certain policies, including roving immigration patrols, that were being used during former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s tenure.
NEW: Dave Venturella is expected to be named the next Acting Director of ICE, replacing Todd Lyons, multiple sources say.
Venturella has been working in the Trump administration as an ICE senior advisor. He was recruited with help from Tom Homan after President Trump was elected.