President Joe Biden is set to nominate a liberal police chief, who criticized Trump-era policies in the past, to lead Customs and Border Protection in the coming days.
On Monday, the White House announced Biden’s intent to select Tucson Police Chief Chris Magnus for the role as the administration continues to come under fire for its handling of the unprecedented surge at the U.S.-Mexico border. Magnus, one of six new picks by the administration, will need to be confirmed before he assumes his new post.
The top law enforcement figure made headlines in 2014 when he stood alongside demonstrators in Richmond, California, and hoisted a sign that read “#Black Lives Matter” during protests over the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, two black men killed in officer-involved shootings. At the time, Magnus was the police chief for the city of Richmond, and his move drew ire from local law enforcement unions, which insisted he violated a statute that forbids officers from engaging in politics while in uniform.
“Sure, I would do it again, but I would like to be a little better prepared for the fallout,” Magnus said in reference to his protest at the time.
BIDEN BORDER CZAR TO STEP DOWN
In 2017, Magnus lashed out against the immigration policies of former President Donald Trump and then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions. He berated the administration for its crackdown on sanctuary city policies and praised proposals from the Obama era.
“As the police chief here, I’m deeply troubled by the Trump administration’s campaign against “sanctuary cities,” which refuse to turn over undocumented immigrants to federal authorities,” he wrote in an op-ed. “Washington is trying to retaliate against them by withholding funding for things like crime prevention, drug treatment and mental health programs.”
“The Justice Department could be playing a key role in building on the Obama-era policing reforms that many of my fellow police chiefs strongly support,” he continued. “Instead, the changes it wants to make — to force local police officers to cooperate much more closely with federal immigration authorities — will compromise public safety by reducing community confidence in law enforcement.”
In June 2020, Magnus made headlines again when he offered to resign amid the release of video showing officers restraining Carlos Ingram-Lopez, a Hispanic man who later died in law enforcement custody. He felt “terrible” about the man’s treatment by his department, called for a full-scale internal investigation and urged his officers to “do better.”
“I don’t know whether the City Manager will accept my offer to resign but I’m sure his decision will be based on the perspectives of, and feedback from, the City Council members and Mayor,” he said at the time. “I’m fine with whatever the direction is that they choose to take.”
The White House announcement follows the resignation of Roberta Jacobson, who was appointed to the National Security Council as the border coordinator and as a special assistant to the president. She will vacate her position at the end of April.
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The Biden administration is also reportedly eyeing five more picks for the Department of Homeland Security, of which a few will assume posts in cybersecurity. At least two of the president’s potential nominations are former Obama officials.
The White House did not immediately respond to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
