Senate Confirms Former USCIS Chief Counsel as Agency’s Head (1)

The Senate confirmed by a 47-34 vote former U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services chief counsel Ur Mendoza Jaddou as the agency’s director.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce joined immigrant rights groups and a union representing USCIS employees in endorsing the Biden nominee ahead of the Friday vote. The California-born Jaddou is the daughter of Mexican and Iraqi immigrants.

Charged with administering lawful immigration to the U.S., the agency is a part of the federal Department of Homeland Security.

DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas thanked the Senate for confirming Jaddou and congratulated her in a statement released immediately after the vote.

“Ur ...