Jeh Johnson Confirmed as Next Secretary of Homeland Security

On Monday, the Senate confirmed Jeh Johnson as the next Secretary of Homeland Security. Johnson won confirmation with a bipartisan vote of 78 to 16, winning the vote of all Democratic senators and a majority of GOP senators. Johnson is the former general counsel for the Pentagon also a former Air Force general counsel. Johnson stated that he hope “to be a visible leader [and] remind people of the importance of the overriding, unifying mission of homeland security.” Johnson will be the fourth leader of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), since the agency’s inception in 2001.

The White House released a statement of President Obama in which he stated that Johnson “will play a leading role in our efforts to protect the homeland against terrorist attacks, adapt to changing threats, stay prepared for natural disasters, strengthen our border security, and make our immigration system fairer – while upholding the values, civil liberties, and laws that make America great.”

DHS is comprised of various government agencies including U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the agency responsible for granting immigration benefits, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency responsible for enforcement of immigration laws, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the agency responsible for protecting U.S. borders and facilitating lawful international travel.