Trump Nominates DHS Sub-Secretary Troy Edgar for Ambassador to El Salvador, Further Consolidates El Salvador as Key Ally in Regional Security and Anti-migrant Agenda

On December 9, it was reported that Troy Edgar, currently serving as Deputy Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) under Kristy Noem, has been nominated as U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador. The news raises concerns among solidarity organizations, human rights groups, migrant communities and grass roots movements in El Salvador. While the Salvadoran people have for decades faced the devastating consequences of U.S. intervention, Edgar’s profile and track record point to a dangerous shift in the role of the Embassy in San Salvador. While U.S. foreign policy toward El Salvador has historically sought to promote political and economic agendas aligned with U.S. interests, Edgar’s expected arrival suggests the U.S. wants to further consolidate the country as a regional hub for advancing its anti-immigration and militarized “security” agenda.

In February 2025, the U.S. struck an opaque agreement with the government of Nayib Bukele that included the jailing of Venezuelan and Salvadoran migrants at the Center for Terrorism Confinement (CECOT) mega-prison, which likely remains in effect. The nomination also comes amidst a regional climate that is increasingly characterized by pressure, threats, and coercive measures by the United States against leftist and progressive governments.

Edgar does not come from the diplomatic corps nor is he a specialist in Central America; his career is closely linked to US internal security structures. During Trump's first administration, he served as Chief Financial Officer of the Department of Homeland Security, where he managed a budget of approximately $90 billion to implement anti-immigrant policies, including funding for the border wall, the expansion of detention and deportation centers, and investment in physical and technological infrastructure aimed at containing immigration. Edgar also served previously as mayor of Los Alamitos, CA where he strongly opposed sanctuary cities and supported measures that strengthened the deportation machinery, consistently aligning himself with the anti-immigrant agenda promoted by Washington.

The Ambassadorship in El Salvador, currently under the interim management of Elizabeth Hoffman Franolich, has been vacant since August 2025. The term of the previous ambassador, William H. Duncan, nominated under Biden, bore witness to deepening of democratic setbacks and human rights violations under Bukele regime. Duncan, nevertheless, prioritized promoting investments in technology, strengthening ties with the private sector, and a discourse of economic modernization, a logic likely to continue or deepen under Trump.

In announcing Edgar’s nomination on Truth Social, Trump stated that "El Salvador is one of our most important partners in the region... Troy will play a key role in advancing our Western Hemisphere strategy." Recently, the United States also announced a new trade agreement with El Salvador, the actual scope and concrete effects of which are still unclear but appears to simply build off the existing U.S.-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR). Regardless, the relationship between the two countries seems to be increasingly defined by security and immigration control considerations - which reflects the U.S.’ overall priorities in the region and worldwide.

According to the U.S. National Security Strategy, which the White House published on December 5, the United States’ plan in Latin America is to first “enlist the support of established friends in the hemisphere to control migration, stop the flow of drugs, and strengthen stability and security on land and at sea,” all in order to “re-establish American pre-eminence” in the hemisphere. So, it’s no surprise that the U.S. is prioritizing alliances with right-wing governments like Bukele that it considers useful for its regional strategy, even when these governments manipulate laws to concentrate power, commit human rights violations, weaken democratic checks and balances, and criminalize dissent. 

In this context, El Salvador under Bukele emerges as a strategic ally, offering not only political cooperation, but also large-scale prison infrastructure and a government willing to facilitate territorial control operations. Edgar’s nomination likely opens the door to greater militarization in El Salvador, as well as closer coordination in surveillance, intelligence, and intensified deportations. Meanwhile, by teaming Edgar up with Bukele, the U.S. finds a willing partner to advance its security and immigration control policies throughout the region.