The White House withdrew the nomination of former Oklahoma state trooper Lance Schroyer to serve as director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Thursday.

President Trump had announced the nomination in late June, praising Schroyer for his law enforcement experience and commitment to detaining and deporting illegal immigrants. Schroyer had served as a senior adviser to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and previously worked on his security detail.

The nomination faced immediate hurdles in the Senate. Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Rand Paul declined to schedule a confirmation hearing. Paul requested additional information from the Department of Homeland Security regarding investigations into two incidents in which ICE and Border Patrol agents were accused of killing U.S. citizens in Minneapolis earlier this year.

Schroyer lacked prior experience leading a major federal law enforcement agency or working directly within ICE. Critics within the administration and among immigration hardliners had questioned whether he possessed the operational background needed to advance the president's mass deportation agenda at the scale required.

ICE has operated without a Senate-confirmed director since 2017. David Venturella currently serves as the acting director.

The withdrawal represents a setback for Mullin, who had backed Schroyer for the role. The Department of Homeland Security continues to face pressure to accelerate enforcement actions against illegal immigrants, including criminal aliens, amid ongoing operations across the country.

The White House provided no detailed explanation for the decision beyond listing the nomination among several withdrawals on its website.