U.S. Border Patrol Chief Mike Banks Resigns

U.S. Border Patrol Chief Mike Banks resigned on May 14, 2026, telling staff the move was effective immediately. Banks informed Border Patrol employees on Thursday that he is retiring to return home to Texas to focus on his family and ranch.

"It's just time," he said. "I feel like I got the ship back on course from the least secure, disastrous, chaotic border to the most secure border this country has ever seen. " In a farewell message to employees, Banks wrote, "What we have accomplished together in the last year and a half is nothing short of amazing.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott issued a statement thanking Banks. U.S. Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks for his decades of service to this country and congratulate him on his second retirement after returning to serve during one of the most challenging periods for border security," Scott said.

"During his time as Chief, the border was transformed from chaos to the most secure border ever recorded. " Banks assumed the role of Border Patrol chief in January 2025 after his appointment by the second Trump administration. He had previously served as Texas Gov.

Greg Abbott's border czar and in mid-level roles at Border Patrol. U.S. Navy, and applied to CBP in 2000. He retired from the Border Patrol during the first two years of the Biden administration and went to work for the state of Texas before returning under President Trump.

During Banks' tenure, authorities reported a dramatic downturn in illegal border crossings and asylum seekers. His departure marks the latest in a series of changes among top immigration officials. In March 2026, Kristi Noem was replaced by Markwayne Mullin as homeland security secretary.

Outspoken Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino retired the same month. Todd Lyons, the acting head of ICE, is set to step down at the end of May 2026. The resignation comes six weeks after the Washington Examiner reported that Banks had bragged to co-workers about paying for sex with prostitutes while traveling abroad more than a decade earlier.

A CBP spokesperson told the Examiner that the allegations dated back more than a decade, were reviewed years ago and the matter was closed. Controversy over enforcement actions by Border Patrol and ICE led to a partial shutdown of DHS from February to late April 2026. Congressional Democrats refused to approve funding for the parent agency due to concerns about immigration enforcement.

A deal that ended the shutdown did not include funding for ICE and CBP.