DHS Secretary Takes Blame For Chaotic Rollout Of Immigration Order

Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly pauses while testifying on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017, before the House Homeland Security Committee. This is Kelly's first public appearance before lawmak... Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly pauses while testifying on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017, before the House Homeland Security Committee. This is Kelly's first public appearance before lawmakers who are sure to press him for details about the Trump administration's contentious rollout of a travel and refugee ban. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) MORE LESS

Department of Homeland Security secretary John Kelly shouldered the blame on Tuesday for the chaotic rollout of President Donald Trump’s executive order barring visitors from seven predominantly Muslim countries from entering the United States.

“In retrospect, I should have, this is all on me by the way, I should have delayed it just a bit so that I could talk to members of Congress,” Kelly said during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing on border security. “Particularly to the leadership of committees like this, to prepare them for what was coming.”

He said that he “should have slowed” the order’s implementation down by a day or two.

“If something happens bad from letting people in, they don’t come to the judge to ask them about his ruling. They come to people like me,” Kelly said. “I have nothing but respect for our judges, but they live in a different world than I do. I’m paid to worst-case it.”

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  1. Avatar for hoagie hoagie says:

    He is being a good soldier. I know this crap. I was drafted in 1969 and was a victim of it. He can go to hell.

  2. “Oh. So this is what the world looks like from under the bus…”

  3. Why is Kelly prostrating himself like this? He’s got to know that this won’t be the last time any of Rump’s “rollouts” reach shambolic level. Any sort of loyalty to Rump is completely misguided. Why defend the indefensible?

  4. This is what falling on your sword looks like. You can watch MSNBC right now to following the appeal hearing, people who know about these things are predicting the trumpees will lose their appeal because they made their religious hatred plain early on.

  5. Great sword seppuku. Apparent reality:

    “They were in charge of this operation,” one senior DHS official said, adding that the experts were “almost immediately overruled by the White House, which means by Bannon and Miller.”

    “DHS officials say there was little or no White House consultation with immigration, customs and border security agencies on the immigration policy change, causing widespread confusion over how to implement Trump’s order.”

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