The White House's personnel director has told President Trump that neither immigration hardliner Ken Cuccinelli nor Customs and Border Protection chief Mark Morgan are eligible to succeed Kevin McAleenan as acting Homeland Security secretary, a source says
The Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel concluded that neither of the two men, who were said to be Trump's favorites to succeed McAleenan and filling acting posts at the Department of Homeland Security, are eligible to succeed McAleenan because they had not served at least 90 days under the last Senate-confirmed Homeland Security secretary, Kirstjen Nielsen.
Cuccinelli was immediately rumored to be among the candidates considered for the acting secretary job. The former Virginia state attorney general is currently serving as the acting head of US Citizenship and Immigration Services, where he's been out front on the President's immigration agenda. But there are legal hurdles to installing Cuccinelli as acting Homeland Security secretary.
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