Washington, April 13 (RHC)-- In the U.S., the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Ron Vitiello, is the latest Homeland Security official to leave the agency.  The announcement came as part of a string of high-profile exits, starting with DHS head Kirstjen Nielsen’s ouster on Sunday. 

The departmental “purge” is said be part of a plan by Trump adviser Stephen Miller to steer the administration toward even more hard-line immigration policies.  Last week, Trump withdrew Vitiello’s nomination to head ICE, indicating he wasn’t “tough” enough for the role.

Meanwhile, Politico reported that Donald Trump is considering a former head of an anti-immigrant hate group to lead U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.  Julie Kirchner previously worked at the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which espouses white supremacist views and backs reforms to reduce nonwhite immigration. It has been labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.  Kirchner would replace Lee Francis Cissna, who is reportedly in line to be ousted as part of the ongoing purge at DHS.