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Before the creation of ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), I was one of the biggest cheerleaders of the Customs Service and its Operation Greenquest–led by Marcy Forman-Friedman. Here’s a transcript of one of the many such kudos I heaped on Customs and Greenquest (this one from a June 2002 appearance on ABC’s “Politically Incorrect“).
But I’m no longer such a fan of Forman a/k/a Peppermint Patty, now Director of Investigations of ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), an agency that was and is a huge bureaucratic mistake.
Today’s homepage of the ICE website has an interesting item about Forman’s speech to the first graduating class of ICE agents, entitled, “First Class To Graduate With ICE Special Agent Badges And Credentials.”
Ironically, we in August that a brilliant, trusted ICE agent friend relayed to us his rightful consternation regarding language on the new ICE badges and credentials–or rather language that is missing. The old Customs agent credentials bore this language, now absent from the ICE credentials:
“THIS OFFICER POSSESSES INTEGRITY AND IS WORTHY OF TRUST AND CONFIDENCE.”

Minus INTEGRITY, TRUST =

Why?: Integrity, Trust, Confidence Missing From New ICE Badge
We’ve since asked ICE press chief, Dean Boyd, why the language was deleted. He was nonplussed, and to date, he has failed to provide an answer.
The ICE website item regarding the new ICE graduates states that Forman “gave the keynote address at this historic commencement.”
Historic? Perhaps only in the sadness of the mess that is ICE–an agency with conflicting and aimless undefined missions–created to give then-ICE head Michael Garcia, and soon the , a job.
“Director Forman shared with the graduates highlights from her 25 year career in law enforcement and discussed the important role of ICE Special Agents in the Global War on Terror.” (Was one of the highlights?)
Really? ICE plays a role in the Global War on Terror? Did Peppermint Patty miss the memo that her then-boss Tom Ridge signed a Memorandum of Understanding with then-Attorney General Ashcroft taking all terrorism-related cases away from Homeland Security and Customs/ICE (as I wrote in this which appeared in the New York Post)? Hmmm . . . . Was she too busy with Charlie Brown and the gang to notice that Operation Greenquest (the successful Customs operation SHE headed against terrorism financing and money-laundering) was shut down?
These days, the only connection with the Global War on Terror that ICE seems to have is Michigan and Ohio Special Agent In Charge ‘s” close “relationship” with “former” PFLP terrorist and FBI Award Revokee . Oh, and there’s Abu Mosque-owitz’s little .
Minus INTEGRITY, TRUST =
Forman: Why did ICE Investigations chief lie to new agents about relinquished terror mission?
Forman “reminded them [the new ICE agents] that no other law enforcement agency possesses such broad legal and investigative authority.” See above re-Memo of Understanding. Most of Customs’ former authority has been ceded to a lesser known agency called the FBI. ICE now has a very narrow, nebulous mission, and no-one seems to know what it is. None of the many agents, who’ve contacted me, do.
“She told them that . . . their careers would be rewarding.” So rewarding that many veteran, skilled ICE agents–whether legacy INS or Customs–are quitting.
So rewarding that Peppermint Patty, herself, is trying to high-tail it out of ICE Headquarters before the gets there to make things even worse.