Washington (CNN) President Donald Trump is pulling the nomination of Ron Vitiello to lead US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, saying he wants to go in a "tougher direction" -- a move that came at the urging of White House senior adviser Stephen Miller.

"We're going in a little different direction. Ron's a good man but we're going in a tougher direction. We want to go in a tougher direction," Trump told reporters Friday at the White House.

Miller directly lobbied Trump to pull the nomination, two White House officials told CNN.

Miller went to the President and told him that Vitiello, who has led the agency in an acting capacity since last summer, was not fully in favor of closing the southern border, as Trump has threatened to do in recent days.

The move to withdraw the nomination came as a surprise to the Department of Homeland Security and members of Congress, sources familiar with the nomination told CNN. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen was unaware what was happening until after the nomination had been pulled, a person familiar with the news said.

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