Top Trump Homeland Security spokesperson to depart, with immigration crackdown under scrutiny
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Ms Tricia McLaughlin became a prominent booster of Mr Trump's aggressive approach to immigration enforcement.
SCREENSHOT: X/@TRICIAOHIO/ABC NEWS
- Tricia McLaughlin, DHS spokeswoman, is departing; Katie Zacharia, a conservative commentator, will join. Lauren Bis is expected to take the top role.
- Public support for President Trump's immigration crackdown declined significantly after violent incidents, including fatal shootings by federal officers.
- Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem faced impeachment efforts and criticism for labelling victims "domestic terrorists" after officer-involved shootings.
AI generated
WASHINGTON - US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin will leave the administration, she said in a social media post on Feb 17, a move that comes as public support for President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown has dwindled.
Ms McLaughlin was a prominent booster of the Republican president’s aggressive approach to immigration enforcement and headed the press operation at DHS, which has come under scrutiny for issuing inaccurate or incomplete statements following violent encounters involving federal immigration officers.
Ms Lauren Bis, currently a deputy in the DHS public affairs division, will take the top role in the department and conservative commentator Katie Zacharia will join as a spokesperson, Ms McLaughlin said, confirming moves previously reported by Reuters.
Public support for Mr Trump’s immigration enforcement push dropped to the lowest level of his presidency in January after months of clashes in US cities and after federal immigration officers shot and killed two US citizens in Minneapolis, Reuters/Ipsos polls show.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem initially called the victims in those shootings “domestic terrorists” rather than back an investigation, leading to criticism from Democrats and some fellow Republicans.
Democrats in the US House of Representatives last month launched an effort to impeach Ms Noem, saying she had violated public trust, stymied congressional oversight and engaged in self-dealing.
Ms Noem, a former governor of South Dakota, became the face of Mr Trump’s immigration crackdown during his first year, appearing on the ground with ICE officers in New York City and posing for photographs in front of detainees in a high-security prison in El Salvador.
A Wall Street Journal report last week detailed internal tensions at DHS under Ms Noem and top adviser Corey Lewandowski.
Ms Noem praised Ms McLaughlin on X, saying she demonstrated “exceptional dedication, tenacity, and professionalism” during her tenure at DHS.
A department spokesperson said Ms McLaughin’s departure had been planned since December.
Incoming department spokesperson Ms Zacharia previously worked as a legal adviser for Fix California, a conservative group that aims to address what it described as “the left’s stranglehold” on state politics.
The group was founded by Mr Richard Grenell, who has served as Mr Trump’s envoy to Venezuela and is the interim president and executive director of the Trump Kennedy Centre in Washington.
In appearances on Fox News in recent months, Ms Zacharia, a California native, has criticised the state’s Democratic Governor, Mr Gavin Newsom, and offered support for Mr Trump’s agenda.
Ms Zacharia, whose social media posts mix her media appearances with footage of gym workouts, wrote in a New York Post opinion article on Feb 15 that she refused to back down to “liberal bullies” who pressured her to remove her pro-Trump hat at her local kickboxing gym. REUTERS
