New York Times: “A whistle-blower complaint filed on Monday said a top Trump homeland security official sought to constrain the Biden administration’s immigration agenda by agreeing to hand policy controls to the pro-Trump union representing Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The complaint accuses Kenneth T. Cuccinelli II of ‘gross mismanagement, gross waste of government funds and abuse of authority” over the labor agreements he signed with the immigration agents’ union the day before President Biden’s inauguration.”

“Mr. Cuccinelli – an immigration hard-liner whose legal legitimacy to serve in senior positions at the Department of Homeland Security was contested – essentially sought to tie Mr. Biden’s hands, according to the complaint. ‘This abuse of authority is shocking,’ wrote David Z. Seide, a lawyer representing the whistle-blower, whom he described as ‘a current federal employee who wishes to remain anonymous’ and who ‘possesses information concerning significant acts of misconduct’ by Mr. Cuccinelli. A senior homeland security official confirmed that since Mr. Biden’s inauguration, officials have been meeting to discuss the implications of the ICE labor agreements. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations. One clause in the contract requires homeland security leaders to obtain ‘prior affirmative consent’ in writing from the union on changes to policies and functions affecting agents. It also appears to allow the ICE union to argue that it can reject changes such as Mr. Biden’s recent order to focus on violent criminals and not prioritize other undocumented immigrants.”