SMU alum Chad Wolf resigned as acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Monday. Wolf’s resignation comes after Trump rescinded his nomination for Wolf to become permanent DHS secretary last Thursday.
“Unfortunately, this action is warranted by recent events, including the ongoing and meritless court rulings regarding the validity of my authority as Acting Secretary,” Wolf wrote in an email originally obtained by CBS. “These events and concerns increasingly serve to divert attention and resources away from the important work of the Department in this critical time of a transition of power.”
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Wolf, who graduated from SMU with a history B.A. in 1998, was sworn in as DHS acting secretary in 2019. Trump rescinded his nomination an hour after Wolf publicly called on Trump to denounce the violence at the Capitol riots Wednesday.
“We now see some supporters of the President using violence as a means to achieve political ends,” Wolf said in a Thursday statement, where he then specified he was not resigning. “These violent actions are unconscionable, and I implore the President and all elected officials to strongly condemn the violence that took place yesterday.”
Controversy has surrounded the legality of Wolf’s position since his 2019 appointment, and Wolf came under further scrutiny over the summer for deploying federal officers in Portland in response to BLM protestors.
Wolf will remain at DHS as the head of its policy and planning office.