By Ted HessonWASHINGTON – The top official in the Trump administration responsible for overseeing the well-being of unaccompanied migrant children was unexpectedly removed on Tuesday, as revealed in an email reviewed by Reuters.
Mellissa Harper, the acting director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, informed her staff via the email that she was notified on Tuesday that her assignment to the agency had been terminated.
Harper’s message did not provide any explanation for the decision. Both Harper and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the parent agency of ORR, did not respond to requests for comment.
The sudden change in leadership occurs at a time when President Donald Trump’s administration is instructing immigration authorities to locate migrant children who entered the United States unaccompanied, as part of an expansion of Trump’s efforts for mass deportation.
Harper, who had previously held a senior position at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, reportedly brought a small team from ICE to the refugee office, according to two sources familiar with the situation.
Following Trump’s inauguration, Harper informed her staff that the agency intended to focus on combating smuggling, a move that could potentially lead to the apprehension of parents who had paid smugglers to transport their children to the United States, as indicated by one of the sources.
She also mentioned that ORR was considering the utilization of DNA tests to verify familial relationships, although it remained unclear how frequently these tests would be employed, as reported by Reuters last month.
Throughout his initial term, Trump demonstrated a propensity for cycling through personnel. Top officials at ICE, including acting Director Caleb Vitello, had already been reassigned amid mounting pressure to intensify enforcement efforts, as reported by Reuters in February.
(Reporting by Ted Hesson; Additional reporting by Kristina Cooke; Editing by Gerry Doyle)
