. Ortiz was a career official who slowly climbed the ranks over his 30-year career, and he was Scott’s top deputy at the time he became the leader, but he kept focused more on the work of the job and stayed away from more charged issues like the border wall.
“Selecting him to lead the Border Patrol was among the most important decisions I have made,” he said. “Chief Ortiz agreed to postpone his retirement several times since, and the Border Patrol, the department and our country have been all the better for it.”The Border Patrol, a part of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, has been been under a constant spotlight for years as the number of illegal crossingsbefore decreasing.
Almost from the start of his tenure, Ortiz faced extraordinary frustration within his ranks as illegal crossings reached the highest levels ever recorded. Ortiz acknowledged at a meeting with agents in Laredo, Texas, in January 2022 thatafter an agent complained about “doing nothing” but releasing migrants in the U.S. to pursue their cases in immigration court, according to leaked video published in the Washington Examiner.