Tucson’s former Police Chief Chris Magnus was long considered by Arizonans to be ill-equipped for any major assignment, and now he is out as head of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. He resigned from his position Saturday, according to a White House press release.
In response to the news, the National Border Patrol Council tweeted:
We were opposed to the Magnus appt from the outset. He had a long history of anti-BP sentiment and he thought BP agents were the bad guys. That’s why they selected him. The entire Biden Admin despises BP agents.
We have little confidence his replacement will be any better.
CBP Commissioner Magnus deserved to be fired. As a crisis rages at our border he focused on imaginary BP “culture” problems instead of enforcing our laws. He was in over his head.
We have no idea who they’ll replace him with. The core problem remains-Biden, Harris and Mayorkas.
CBP Commissioner Magnus deserved to be fired. As a crisis rages at our border he focused on imaginary BP "culture" problems instead of enforcing our laws. He was in over his head.
We have no idea who they'll replace him with. The core problem remains-Biden, Harris and Mayorkas.
— Border Patrol Union – NBPC (@BPUnion) November 13, 2022
We were opposed to the Magnus appt from the outset. He had a long history of anti-BP sentiment and he thought BP agents were the bad guys. That's why they selected him. The entire Biden Admin despises BP agents.
We have little confidence his replacement will be any better.
— Border Patrol Union – NBPC (@BPUnion) November 13, 2022
Magnus, who is considered a scapegoat for the Biden administration’s border crisis, was appointed to the role in December 2021. Arizona Congressman Andy Biggs called for Magnus’ former boss, Alejandro Nicholas Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, to resign next:
Magnus was a total disaster.
Mayorkas must be next. https://t.co/3PT7wJ4oaK
— Rep Andy Biggs (@RepAndyBiggsAZ) November 13, 2022
Although Magnus had reportedly been asked to resign by Mayorkas earlier in the week, or else be fired from his position, he pushed back in an effort to save his job.
In fact, Magnus told the Los Angeles Times, “I expressed to him (Mayorkas) that I felt there was no justification for me to resign when I still cared deeply about the work I was doing.”
Apparently, his feelings did not matter as much as the bad public relations Magnus was creating by falling asleep in meetings, and interjecting identity politics in even the smallest matters.
Surprisingly out-of-character, Magnus’ letter of resignation was unemotional.
“I am submitting my resignation effective immediately but wish you and your administration the very best going forward,” he wrote.
In October, the Arizona Daily Independent reported that Magnus was coming under attack for his perceived disinterest in parts of his job, according to an article published by Politico.
The article cited several criticisms including the fact that Magnus decided to not personally participate in many “high-level interagency” discussions, and when he did attend, he sometimes fell asleep during the meetings, according to insiders.
According to Politico, Magnus is also known to “badmouth” other agencies.
At Tucson PD, Magnus led a local agency just one-tenth the size of CBP, the country’s largest federal law enforcement agency with a presence in dozens of countries and U.S. territories. Magnus was nominated by President Joe Biden as CBP Commission in April 2021, but the U.S. Senate did not have enough votes for confirmation until last December, according to the previous report from the Arizona Daily Independent.