Latest news with #JasonHouser
New York Times
3 days ago
- General
- New York Times
How the Supreme Court Made Legal Immigrants Vulnerable to Deportation
The government knows their names. Their fingerprints have been scanned into government computers. The Department of Homeland Security knows where most of them live, because the immigrants in question — more than 500,000 of them — reside in the United States legally. But two new Supreme Court decisions have left them open to deportation, an abrupt turn for a population that has been able to remain in the country by using legal pathways for people facing war and political turmoil at home. 'Thousands of people — especially Haitians, Cubans and Venezuelans — instantly shift from 'lawfully present' to 'deportable,'' said Jason Houser, a former official with Immigration and Customs Enforcement during the Biden administration. Now, with their protections revoked while legal challenges move through lower courts, many immigrants have found themselves in a vulnerable position. Because so many of them have shared detailed information with the government, including addresses, biometrics and the names of their sponsors, they could be easy to track down at a moment when the Trump administration is looking for ways to deport people quickly. 'Ending the C.H.N.V. parole programs, as well as the paroles of those who exploited it, will be a necessary return to common-sense policies, a return to public safety, and a return to America First,' said Tricia McLaughlin, a spokeswoman for the Homeland Security Department. She was using an abbreviation for Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela, the countries in the humanitarian parole program targeted by the Trump administration. Whether and how aggressively the administration might move to begin rounding up people whose legal protections have been revoked remains unclear, though officials signaled several months ago that they feel they have the authority to do so. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
DHS staffer facing ‘serious punishment' for including journalist in email thread
A Department of Homeland Security staffer who invertedly added a journalist to an email thread about an impending operation was placed on leave, sources say. Former ICE Chief of Staff Jason Houser told NBC News that the longtime federal employee, whose identity remains anonymous, told colleagues she mistakenly included the reporter in a message about unclassified plans regarding an upcoming Immigration and Customs Enforcementoperation in Denver in late January. A former and a current DHS official, who both spoke on the condition of anonymity, also confirmed the story to the network. The recipient, a reporter at a conservative Washington-based publication, agreed not to disclose the information, the sources said. While the information was not classified, officials specified the sensitive nature of the email because it included the time of the operation and the location of targets. The DHS staffer was placed on administrative leave, according to the report. This is in contrast to White House National Security adviser Mike Waltz who has so far not faced major repercussions for adding The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg to a Signal group where top officials discussed impending strikes on Houthi terrorists in Yemen earlier this month. The agency is also planning to revoke her security clearance. After being placed on leave, the employee was asked to take a polygraph test and hand in her cell phone, which she declined, sources say. One person familiar with the matter said the DHS employee had 30 days to appeal the decision. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has rushed to support Waltz and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth—who Golberg revealed in his explosive report Monday sent the highly sensitive attack plans in the Signal chat—and dismissed the incident as 'a witch hunt.' The White House denied that any classified information was sent in the Signal group, prompting Goldberg to release the full chat, detailing specific timelines of the strikes, hours before they occurred. Trump and his allies have repeatedly attempted to smear the The Atlantic editor before the president attempted to distance himself from Signalgate claiming: 'I wasn't involved in it. I wasn't there.' Houser, the former ICE chief of staff, claimed that the Trump administration 'punishes integrity and protects recklessness.' 'That doesn't just betray her, it weakens every public servant who risks their career to do the right thing,' he added. Experts say the DHS staffer's case raises questions about the unequal punishment for inadvertent leakers of government information. Mary McCord, a former top official in the Justice Department's national security division, told NBC News that the Signal security breach should be treated as seriously as the ICE operation email lapse. 'Both of these are examples of carelessness in the handling of highly sensitive information, the disclosure of which could put U.S. government employees or military members in danger,' she said. 'We should expect the Signal chat breach to be taken at least as seriously as the DHS employee's breach.' The Independent has contacted the DHS for more information.
The Independent
28-03-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
DHS staffer facing ‘serious punishment' for including journalist in email thread
A Department of Homeland Security staffer who invertedly added a journalist to an email thread about an impending operation was placed on leave, sources say. Former ICE Chief of Staff Jason Houser told NBC News that the longtime federal employee, whose identity remains anonymous, told colleagues she mistakenly included the reporter in a message about unclassified plans regarding an upcoming Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation in Denver in late January. A former and a current DHS official, who both spoke on the condition of anonymity, also confirmed the story to the network. The recipient, a reporter at a conservative Washington-based publication, agreed not to disclose the information, the sources said. While the information was not classified, officials specified the sensitive nature of the email because it included the time of the operation and the location of targets. The DHS staffer was placed on administrative leave, according to the report. This is in contrast to White House National Security adviser Mike Waltz who has so far not faced major repercussions for adding The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg to a Signal group where top officials discussed impending strikes on Houthi terrorists in Yemen earlier this month. The agency is also planning to revoke her security clearance. After being placed on leave, the employee was asked to take a polygraph test and hand in her cell phone, which she declined, sources say. One person familiar with the matter said the DHS employee had 30 days to appeal the decision. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has rushed to support Waltz and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth—who Golberg revealed in his explosive report Monday sent the highly sensitive attack plans in the Signal chat —and dismissed the incident as 'a witch hunt.' The White House denied that any classified information was sent in the Signal group, prompting Goldberg to release the full chat, detailing specific timelines of the strikes, hours before they occurred. Trump and his allies have repeatedly attempted to smear the The Atlantic editor before the president attempted to distance himself from Signalgate claiming: 'I wasn't involved in it. I wasn't there.' Houser, the former ICE chief of staff, claimed that the Trump administration 'punishes integrity and protects recklessness.' 'That doesn't just betray her, it weakens every public servant who risks their career to do the right thing,' he added. Experts say the DHS staffer's case raises questions about the unequal punishment for inadvertent leakers of government information. Mary McCord, a former top official in the Justice Department's national security division, told NBC News that the Signal security breach should be treated as seriously as the ICE operation email lapse. 'Both of these are examples of carelessness in the handling of highly sensitive information, the disclosure of which could put U.S. government employees or military members in danger,' she said. 'We should expect the Signal chat breach to be taken at least as seriously as the DHS employee's breach.'
