The White House on April 8 confirmed that the United States Secret Service chief is stepping down after reports emerged saying he would be leaving.
“United States Secret Service director Randolph ‘Tex’ Alles has done a great job at the agency over the last two years, and the President is thankful for his over 40 years of service to the country,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement.
She said he is slated to leave “shortly,” and President Donald Trump, meanwhile, selected James M. Murray, who is a career Secret Service member, to “take over as director beginning in May.”
Director of the US Secret Service Randolph Alles speaks during a press conference at the Department of Justice in Washington, on Oct. 26, 2018. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images)Sanders didn’t offer any more details about Alles’s departure.
Fox News reported that Alles would step down from his post and was notified about 10 days ago to “prepare an exit plan.”
The report, citing an unnamed source, said he should be prepared to leave his post. The source said that his departure comes after Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen’s resignation on April 7.
Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen will be leaving her position, and I would like to thank her for her service….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 7, 2019
Nielsen and Trump met over the weekend at the White House, and Trump later announced she should resign as head of the agency, which oversees the Secret Service. He said Customs and Border Protection chief Kevin McAleenan would take her place as acting DHS secretary.
“Its[sic] been an honor of a lifetime to serve with the brave men and women of @DHSgov. I could not be prouder of and more humbled by their service, dedication, and commitment to keep our country safe from all threats and hazards,” Nielsen tweeted.
Its been an honor of a lifetime to serve with the brave men and women of @DHSgov. I could not be prouder of and more humbled by their service, dedication, and commitment to keep our country safe from all threats and hazards. pic.twitter.com/lIQ5iqGDmF
— Sec. Kirstjen Nielsen (@SecNielsen) April 7, 2019
It was accompanied by a photo of the resignation letter.
Her letter, in part, read: “Despite our progress in reforming homeland security for a new age, I have determined that it is the right time for me to step aside.”
….I am pleased to announce that Kevin McAleenan, the current U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner, will become Acting Secretary for @DHSgov. I have confidence that Kevin will do a great job!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 7, 2019
Following an incident last week, where a Chinese woman entered Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort carrying Chinese passports and a flash drive with malware, Trump said he “could not be happier” with the job the Secret Service is doing.
“Secret Service has done a fantastic job from Day 1. Very happy with them,” Trump said at the time.
And regarding the incident at Mar-a-Lago, Trump said he is “not concerned at all.”
President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, on March 22, 2019. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)
The Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, on Jan. 11, 2018. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)“I have—we have very good control. We have extremely good. And it’s getting better. And cyber — frankly, what we’re doing with cyber is a story in itself,” he said.
