On Wednesday, Congressman Andrew Clyde (GA-09) led over 30 of his House Republican colleagues in sending a letter to Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Director Kiran Ahuja urging the agency to reject a potential petition from the Biden Administration to convert political appointee Claire Trickler-McNulty to a civil service position, otherwise known as “burrowing.”
The lawmakers warn that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) may petition the OPM to convert Trickler-McNulty, who currently serves as the Assistant Director of the Office of Immigration Program Evaluation (OIPE) within Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), from a political appointee to a civil servant.
“Her conversion to a career appointee, a process commonly known as ‘burrowing,’ would undermine the American people’s confidence in the federal hiring process and diminish the reputation of impartiality of federal civil servants. Ms. Trickler-McNulty’s actions and career demonstrate that she is unfit to serve as an objective civil servant and does not meet the guidelines OPM has implemented for consideration of conversion.”
Given the timing, the lawmakers assert the nefarious political motives behind the Biden Administration’s potential petition.
“We understand that part of the push by the Biden Administration to burrow Ms. Trickler-McNulty into the Department is that there is a belief that there might be a change in Presidential Administrations. Ms. Trickler-McNulty has stated previously that she used her prior civil service position as a platform from which to resist changes at ICE being proposed by the previous Administration.”
Additionally, the lawmakers highlight Trickler-McNulty’s controversial decisions and radical policies under the Biden Administration.
“Since starting in the Biden Administration, Ms. Trickler-McNulty has been mired in controversy beginning with an $87 million no-bid contract to former ICE employee, Andrew Lorenzen-Strait; her former boss at ICE.
“Ms. Trickler-McNulty is part of a group of current and former ICE political employees who are ‘Abolish ICE’ architects. They are systematically replacing enforcement, compliance, and removal of illegal aliens with ‘catch and release’ social service programs. Currently, under Ms. Trickler-McNulty’s design at ICE, they are closing down existing operational ICE processing centers around the country including one in House Speaker Mike Johnson’s congressional district to divert those funds to social service programs with NGOs. At the same time, the Biden Administration is asking for $450 million in a supplemental request for 12,500 detention beds. The duplicity does not end there. In September 2023, Ms. Trickler-McNulty created a Request for Information (RFI) for social service programs called ‘Release and Report Management’ (RRM) that would replace the current Intensive Supervision Appearance Program (ISAP) for electronic monitoring of illegal aliens that ICE has used for 19 years. The intention of RRM is to eliminate the use of electronic monitoring completely in any immigrant population in the interior.”
In closing, the lawmakers, led by Rep. Clyde, request the OPM to reject a potential petition related to converting Trickler-McNulty’s position.
“Ms. Trickler-McNulty should not be rewarded with the protections of federal civil servant status for implementing her own, woke agenda. We urge the Department of Homeland Security to not petition OPM to convert Ms. Trickler-McNulty to a civil service position, and if they do, we urge the OPM to immediately reject the petition.”
Full text of the letter is available HERE.
Read the Daily Caller’s exclusive on Rep. Clyde’s letter HERE.
Co-signers include Representatives Brian Babin (TX-36), Jim Baird (IN-04), Andy Biggs (AZ-05), Dan Bishop (NC-08), Lauren Boebert (CO-03), Josh Brecheen (OK-02), Michael Cloud (TX-27), Warren Davidson (OH-08), Scott DesJarlais (TN-04), Byron Donalds (FL-19), Jeff Duncan (SC-03), Bob Good (VA-05), Lance Gooden (TX-05), Paul Gosar (AZ-09), Mark Green (TN-07), Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA-14), Harriet Hageman (WY-At-Large), Andy Harris (MD-01), Diana Harshbarger (TN-01), Clay Higgins (LA-03), Anna Paulina Luna (FL-13), Rich McCormick (GA-06), Mary Miller (IL-15), Alex Mooney (WV-02), Troy Nehls (TX-22), Ralph Norman (SC-05), Andy Ogles (TN-05), Bill Posey (FL-08), John Rose (TN-06), Matt Rosendale (MT-02), Chip Roy (TX-21), Tom Tiffany (WI-07), Michael Waltz (FL-06), and Randy Weber (TX-14).
Supporting organizations include the American Accountability Foundation.
“Congressman Clyde’s letter is an extremely important step towards holding the faceless bureaucrats destroying our country under the auspices of Sleepy Joe accountable. Shady radicals like Claire Trickler-McNulty like to use their anonymity to advance their leftist agenda behind-the-scenes, but this letter rips off the mask, exposing one of the worst of the Biden bureaucrats. McNulty has worked tirelessly to eradicate any semblance of security at our southern border, but worse, there are now attempts to make her a permanent fixture at DHS, enabling to sabotage future presidents who try to secure the border. The administration cannot be allowed to get away with this.” – Tom Jones, President, American Accountability Foundation
