ICE Chief Admits that He Didn't Really Have to Release All Those Illegal Aliens

Via the Examiner, one government officer’s take on competence.

Immigrations and Customs Enforcement Director John Morton admitted that he could have avoided releasing 2,228 illegal immigrant detainees by asking  Congress for flexibility under sequestration, but he never made an effort to do so.

“We can seek reprogramming requirements, that is absolutely true, Mr. Chairman, and we did not in this instance,” Morton told House Judiciary Committee chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., during a hearing this afternoon. “I did not want to rob Peter to pay Paul. My view is that we need to maintain the operations of the agency, I did not want to furlough people, and my view is that I need to make rational decisions across the [agency accounts].”

Don’t the “operations of the agency” that Morton wanted to “maintain” include, you know, not releasing captured criminals into the wild? At least four of the thousands they released were known violent criminals.

Mr. Morton needs to receive a permanent furlough.