Heads of ICE, CBP and USCIS set to testify before Congress in February

Washington — The leaders of the three major immigration enforcement agencies are set to testify before a pair of House and Senate committees in February following a pair of deadly shootings by federal agents in Minneapolis.

Todd Lyons, the acting head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Rodney Scott, the commissioner of Customs and Border Protection; and Joseph Edlow, the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, will testify before the House Homeland Security Committee on Feb. 10, Chairman Andrew Garbarino said. 

"Transparency and communication are needed to turn the temperature down," Garbarino said in a statement. "Thank you to Secretary Noem and the Department of Homeland Security for making these witnesses available, and I look forward to receiving their testimony."

The three will testify before the Senate Homeland Security Committee two days later on Feb. 12, according to GOP Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, the panel's chairman. Paul called on the group to appear on Monday.

ICE, CBP and USCIS are all part of the Department of Homeland Security. CBP oversees Border Patrol, whose agents have been at the center of some of the highest-profile immigration operations and confrontations with protesters in recent months.

Garbarino's staff sought the officials' testimony before the deadly shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti over the weekend. On Saturday, the chairman formalized the request, emphasizing that his "top priority remains keeping Americans safe and ensuring the Department of Homeland Security can accomplish its core mission."

The Trump administration has faced intense scrutiny in recent days over its immigration operation in Minneapolis. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem has been among those at the center of the criticism, but she is expected to keep her job, CBS News reported earlier Tuesday. Her focus is expected to shift from immigration enforcement operations in the country's interior to securing the southern border and other priorities. 

Noem is expected to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee in March.