Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen left Washington last Sunday for what was supposed to be a week-long trip to Europe. While there, Nielsen planned to discuss cybersecurity and terror threats with senior UK and Swedish government officials, and attend a meeting of G7 interior ministers in Paris — providing her a temporary respite from the tense situation at the US Southern border, where a recent rise in migrant apprehensions had drawn the intense ire of President Donald Trump.
Instead, the trip proved to be a miscalculation on her part, one that began a week-long descent into limbo for Nielsen that ended with her abrupt resignation on Sunday evening after meeting with Trump in the White House. Nielsen did not resign willingly, a person close to her told CNN, but was under pressure to do so. Nor did she fight or plead to keep her job, the source said.
The resignation ends months of speculation over her possible departure.
