DHS Secretary Nielsen has temporarily re-assigned Manuel “Manny” Padilla to coordinate DHS and interagency support for the US border response effort.

Manny is a 30-year veteran of the U.S. Border Patrol, serving most recently as Chief of the Rio Grande Sector. In September 2018 he was appointed by President Trump as Director of the Department’s Joint Task Force - West. Effectively immediately, Manny will lead an Interagency Border Emergency Cell to improve information sharing and coordinate interagency support to CBP and ICE efforts. 

“Manny brings deep on-the-ground experience and an operator’s understanding of the challenges we face in responding to the current crisis,” says Nielsen. “I have asked him to lead day-to-day efforts to ensure our front line agencies have what they need to confront this situation head on. Manny’s team will utilize the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) National Response Coordination Center (NRCC) as the hub for interagency coordination.”

The Secretary also announced additional actions to address the response operations: “I want to be clear with the American people: there is an unprecedented emergency at the southern border, and DHS is leading a true government-wide emergency response,” says Nielsen. “We are using every tool at our disposal, redeploying personnel and resources, and calling on all federal agencies to assist, where possible. While only legislation can fix this crisis in the long term, we cannot wait for Congress to act. It is our duty to secure the homeland, enforce our immigration laws, and uphold our humanitarian obligations. So we are devoting everything we can to that end.”