U.S. Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks resigned from his position on May 14.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Rodney Scott confirmed the chief’s exit to The Epoch Times on May 14.
“We thank 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 wrote in a statement to the Epoch Times.
“During his time as chief, the border was transformed from chaos to the most secure border ever recorded. We wish him and his family well.”
The Georgia native had a long history working for the federal law enforcement organization, which oversaw more than 20,000 agents who are assigned to patrol thousands of miles along U.S. land borders.
Banks did not reveal what prompted him to retire from the position now, but he had previously said that the Biden administration’s policies caused him to leave CBP in 2022 after two decades in the agency.
“For the first two years of the Biden administration, I watched what they did to the Border Patrol and retired and went to work for the state of Texas,” Banks said in a Q&A interview posted on the CBP website in March 2025.
“I watched what they continued to do to, not just the men and women of the Border Patrol, but to the mission of the Border Patrol and to border security. I couldn't wait to come back and take on this challenge.”
President Donald Trump selected Banks to be the agency’s top leader in January 2025.
The Epoch Times contacted the White House for a statement but did not receive a response by publication time.
Banks told Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin that it was “just time” to step away.
“I feel like I got the ship back on course,” Banks told Fox News on May 14. “From the least secure, disastrous, chaotic border to the most secure border this country has ever seen. Time to pass the reins, 37 years, it’s time to enjoy the family and life.”
The exit comes months after Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin was picked to replace Kristi Noem in March.