WRITTEN
TESTIMONY for the confirmation hearing
of tom ridge, nominee for the secretary,
department of homeland security
As I have said many times before my nomination was announced, and as I have said many times since, to me there is no more serious job in all the land than stopping future terrorist incidents from occurring on American soil. I can imagine no mission more imperative than protecting the American people; and should another terrorist attack occur, I can think of nothing more crucial than working to ensure that every single echelon of society is as prepared as possible to respond.
I wish to commend the Congress again for pressing forward and taking bold and historic steps to establish this new Department of Homeland Security. Together, the Congress and the Executive Branch realized the current structure of our government limited our ability to protect America. Now, for the first time, we will have a Federal Department whose primary mission is the protection of the American people.
America is undoubtedly safer and better prepared today than on September 10th, 2001. We have taken key steps to protect America – from pushing our maritime borders farther from shore and professionalizing airport screening to developing vaccination plans and tightening our borders. Public servants at all levels of government, private sector employees, and citizens all across the United States have changed the way in which they live and work in a unified effort to improve our security since the September 11th attacks.
For the first time in our Nation’s history, the President has created a National Strategy for Homeland Security, a strategy which provides the framework to mobilize and organize the nation – the federal government, state and local governments, the private sector, and the American people – in the complex mission to protect our homeland. We have begun the very first steps of critical work in the initiative by identifying and assessing our vulnerabilities to see where we are exposed to an unpredictable enemy.
That said, we are only at the beginning of what will be a long struggle to protect our Nation from terrorism. While much has been accomplished, there is much more work to do. We are a country that is built from ingenuity and hard work and we will not rest on our laurels. We must stay focused. We must stay vigilant.
We have no higher purpose than to ensure the security of our people to protect and preserve our democratic way of life. Terrorism directly threatens the foundations of our Nation, our people, our freedom, and our economic prosperity. We face a hate-filled, remorseless enemy that takes many forms, has many places to hide, and is often invisible.
The role of the Secretary of Homeland Security will be, first and foremost, the protection of the American people. Since being sworn in by the President as the first Homeland Security Advisor on October 8th, 2001, I have been focused solely on this mission.
Shortly after the President made his speech to the nation announcing his intention to propose the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, he also appointed me as Director of the Transition Planning Office. It was in that capacity that I testified in front of Congressional committees in both the House and Senate about the vision we were undertaking that began the critical partnership of working with Congress to ensure the success of this venture.
The Secretary of Homeland Security, however, is only one person who, without the support of those who have dedicated and risked their lives to protecting America, will not succeed. Should I be confirmed as the Secretary of Homeland Security, I will go to work every single morning with the mission of protecting the American people from the threat of terrorist attack, knowing that the most valuable asset the new Department will have is not funding, or technology, or equipment, but the men and women who work there.
These are the true patriots in every sense of the term. They are vital to the mission.
The more than 170,000 future employees of the Department of Homeland Security will be doing the same job in the new Department that they are doing today: protecting our country from terrorist attack. That focus exists now, and it will exist long after the Department is created.
We will also not forget the breadth of the task at hand. This is the largest and most significant transformation of the U.S. government in over a half-century. We will not be naive to the challenge of merging 22 separate work cultures, operating procedures and management procedures into one cohesive organization. At the same time, we cannot lose sight of the individual missions of each of the agencies. But we must create a mindset in which everyone is thinking about how each of their missions fit into the larger mission of protecting our homeland. From day one, we will not allow for invisible barriers to lead to the breakdown of information. To be successful, we will need to foster teamwork and a strong sense of pride about working together to accomplish the mission.
However, unifying in one Department on the federal level will not in itself be able to stop all attempts to do harm to America. We must realize fully the value of cultivating partnerships and cooperating with our partners in other federal agencies, state and local governments, the private sector and with the American people.
As a former Governor, I am keenly aware of the shared responsibility that exists between the federal, state, and local governments for homeland security. In fact, over the past year I have often said that “when our hometowns are secure, our homeland will be secure.” That is not merely rhetoric, but a fundamental principle of the nation’s homeland security effort.
I’m pleased to report that all 50 states and the territories have appointed homeland security advisors and that they participate regularly in meetings at the White House and in bi-monthly conference calls with the Office of Homeland Security. We have, for the first time, created a single entry point to address many of the homeland security concerns of our Governors and Mayors.
We know, however, that much more needs to be done. We must recognize that communities and state and local governments face new and unprecedented threats. As such, the new Department should stand ready to work with them to obtain the tools, resources, and information they need to do their jobs. We also must develop new channels of communication with private sector organizations, and provide clear, concise, scientifically sound and easily accessible information so that Americans citizens can be prepared in the event their community is affected by a terrorist act.
If I should become the new Secretary, you have my pledge that I will focus on increased collaboration and coordination so that public and private resources are better aligned to secure the homeland and support each one of our critical missions.
Supporting the National Strategy for Homeland Security
I also wish to state my promise that I will do everything in my power to use the office of the secretary to keep the Department focused on all six of its critical missions outlined in the National Strategy for Homeland Security. They include:
· Intelligence and Warning,
· Border and Transportation Security,
· Domestic Counterterrorism,
· Protecting Critical Infrastructure and Key Assets,
· Defending Against Catastrophic Threats, and
· Emergency Preparedness and Response.
While each of these missions is unique, each is essential to our primary mission of protecting the security of the United States. Some, such as Emergency Preparedness and Response, have long played key roles in helping society overcome hardship and emergencies; while others are byproducts of the harsh reality that terrorism can strike on our soil.
As I said earlier, the future employees of the Department of Homeland Security will be doing the same job in the new Department that they are doing today. The difference is that the new structure of the Department will refocus, consolidate and reorganize the functions of each of the 22 agencies involved in protecting the homeland.
The Department will be structured into four Directorates, each responsible for implementing the applicable components of the six critical missions. They are:
· Border and Transportation Security,
· Information Analysis and Critical Infrastructure Protection,
· Emergency Response and Preparedness, and
· Science and Technology.
The United States Coast Guard and Secret Service will retain their independence and will play key roles in supporting all of the critical missions.
I would like to give you a sense of how I believe this unified homeland security structure will mobilize and focus the resources of the federal government, state and local governments, the private sector, and the American people to accomplish its mission; beginning first with one of the most sizable challenges, border and transportation security.
America has historically relied on two vast oceans and two friendly neighbors for border security. And our country has long cherished its identity as a nation of immigrants. Nearly 500 million people enter our country each year at our numerous border checkpoints, seaports and airports. The sheer volume of those wishing to visit our great country or move here permanently in search of the American dream, coupled with the burden of processing vast amounts of information from disparate federal agencies, has severely taxed our border security and immigration systems. Even before September 11th, it had become apparent that the system could no longer determine who exactly was in our country, for what reason, and whether they left when they said they were going to leave.
Since then, we have made substantial improvements to tighten security in areas like visa issuances and border patrol; but more importantly, we have laid the foundation for a comprehensive plan with tangible benchmarks to measure success through the National Strategy for Homeland Security.
The new Department will be organized to implement this plan efficiently and meet its two inherent strategic goals: to improve border security while at the same time, facilitate the unimpeded flow of legitimate commerce and people across our borders.
We will implement the President’s plan to separate the Immigration and Naturalization Service into two functions: services and enforcement. This plan will allow the new Department to greatly improve the administration of benefits and services for applicants, while at the same time ensuring full enforcement of the laws that regulate the flow of aliens to the United States. I realize that this is no simple task. But if we are to remain the land of freedom and opportunity, we must retain complete control over who enters our country and maintain the integrity of our immigration system so that we always know who is in our country and for what purpose.
The integrity of our borders goes hand-in-hand with the security of our transportation systems. Today, Americans are more mobile than ever. We enjoy the freedom to go where we want, when we want, using the best transportation system in the world. This efficient system is also one of the engines that drives our economy. Shutting down that engine is not a viable option.
But the destructive potential of modern terrorism requires that we fundamentally rethink how we should protect this system. Virtually every community in America is connected to the global transportation network by seaports, airports, highways, railroads, and waterways.
One area in which we have shown significant progress is security at our nation’s airports. The Transportation Security Administration, under the leadership of the Department of Transportation, has hired, trained and deployed a new federal screening workforce that is professional and focused on providing the highest levels of security without hindering our aviation system. We need to build on that success, but at the same time realize we have farther still to go. The new Department must work with its federal and private sector partners to assess and take the necessary steps to secure our means of transportation, including our railways, roadways, bridges, waterways and especially our seaports.
We must take immediate action to make sure our seaports are open to process the flow of goods and commercial traffic, but are closed to terrorists. A vast majority of container cargo remains unscreened. Port security remains the responsibility of a myriad of local port authorities, federal agencies and the Coast Guard. However, we are making changes. We must enhance risk management and implement practices that allow for higher efficiency screening of goods. Our fundamental goal is to make certain that heightened security does not obstruct legitimate trade.
Progress, however, is already underway. Programs like the Container Security Initiative are helping nations spot and screen the highest-risk containers. Operation Safe Commerce focuses on business-driven initiatives to enhance security for the movement of cargo throughout the entire supply chain. Most recently, Congress passed the Maritime Transportation Security Act, which gives authority to the Coast Guard and Customs Service to develop standards and procedures for conducting port vulnerability assessments.
United States Coast Guard
The men and women of the United States Coast Guard, who live under the guiding principle Semper Paratus or Always Ready, have been performing the mission of Homeland Security in a complex and dangerous maritime environment for more than 200 years. The Coast Guard’s fundamental responsibilities -- preparedness, protection, response and recovery -- cut across all facets of the Department’s mission.
Every day since the September 11th terrorist attacks, the Coast Guard pushes our maritime borders farther from shore. All ships bound for the U.S., regardless of registry, face a multi-layered, interagency security screening process in addition to traditional safety, environmental and operational standards enforcement, plus random boardings. Vessels now must provide 96-hour advance notice of arrival to the Coast Guard National Vessel Movement Center, including detailed crew and passenger information, cargo details, and voyage history. The Coast Guard has also created highly trained and specially equipped Maritime Safety and Security Teams to add an extra layer of security and additional quick-response capabilities in key U.S. ports.
But let me make one thing clear. The new Department will not lose focus of the Coast Guard’s other critical missions. From search and rescue, anti-drug and illegal migrant patrols to fisheries enforcement and aids to navigation, I will work personally to ensure that the Department continues to support the entirety of the Coast Guard mission.
No branch of the Armed Forces has as much history in protecting the homeland, and should I be confirmed as Secretary, I can think of no honor that would make me more proud than calling myself a Service Secretary of the Coast Guard.
United States Secret Service
The Secret Service represents another unique critical mission that aligns with the core competencies of the new Department and will remain independent. Through its two distinct missions, protection and criminal investigation, the Secret Service is responsible for the protection of the President, the Vice President and their families; heads of state; the security for designated National Special Security Events; and the investigation and enforcement of laws relating to counterfeiting, fraud and financial crimes.
The Secret Service is, and has been for decades, in the business of assessing vulnerabilities and designing ways to reduce them in advance of an attack. This expertise will greatly benefit the Department as we strive to create an overall culture of anticipation, vulnerability assessment, and threat reduction. Building on these institutional ideals will be of the utmost importance as it pertains to nearly all of the missions in the Department, but none more so than protecting our critical infrastructure.
On September 11th, we were dealt a grave, horrific blow, and today we face the real possibility of additional attacks of similar or even greater magnitude. Our enemy will choose their targets deliberately based upon weaknesses in our defenses and preparations. Thus, a fundamental priority in our mission must be to analyze the threat, while concurrently and continuously assessing our vulnerabilities. The Department is structured in such a way as to efficiently conduct this task.
The Information Analysis and Critical Infrastructure Directorate will bring together for the first time under one roof the capability to identify and assess threats to the homeland, map those threats against our vulnerabilities, issue warnings, and provide the basis from which to organize protective measures to secure the homeland.
For this Directorate to play an effective role in the mission of securing our homeland, I believe a top priority will be to work with the CIA, the FBI and other intelligence-gathering agencies to define the procedures from which to obtain the appropriate intelligence. This means that the Department will be a full participant, at all levels, in the mechanisms for setting foreign intelligence requirements, including the prioritization for terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, and other relevant foreign intelligence collection activities. We also must continue to work with the FBI as they reorganize to most effectively collect domestic intelligence.
More than just countering each identified threat, the Department will design and implement a long-term comprehensive and nationwide plan for protecting America’s critical infrastructure and key assets. A key mission of the Information Analysis and Critical Infrastructure Protection division will be to catalogue and reduce the Nation's domestic vulnerability.
America’s critical infrastructure encompasses a large number of sectors ranging from energy and chemical to banking and agriculture. Each has unique vulnerabilities, and each requires different kinds of protection. This, coupled with the fact that nearly 85 percent of critical infrastructure is owned by the private sector – and that 12 separate federal agencies have oversight authority -- creates an enormous challenge.
Realizing the breadth of this task, the Office of Homeland Security began working with the federal lead departments and agencies for each of the 14 critical infrastructure sectors designated in the President’s National Strategy for Homeland Security. This cooperation has included the identification of infrastructures and assets of national-level criticality within each sector; facilitating the sharing of risk and vulnerability assessment methodologies and best practices; and enabling cooperation between federal departments and agencies, state and local governments, and the private sector.
This process, however, is only the beginning. The Department of Homeland Security will provide greater uniformity to these efforts and further strengthen the relationships with the private sector and state and local governments so that we can integrate the threat and vulnerability analysis in a way that will help produce effective countermeasures. As this information is collected and mapped to critical infrastructure vulnerabilities, our top priority must be to get this information to those federal, state and local officials to whose mission the information is relevant. These individuals represent the first line of defense against and response to a terrorist attack, and we must make it a priority to keep them properly informed and aware.
Our nation’s three million firefighters, police officers, and EMTs are the first on the scene in a crisis and the last to leave. Their heroic efforts saved lives and speeded the recovery from the attacks of September 11th, and they will be called upon to do so in the event of future attacks against our hometowns. They’re living proof that homeland security is a national, not a federal effort.
We must give these brave men and women all the assistance and support possible. Under the Emergency Preparedness and Response Directorate in the new Department, we will strengthen our relationship with first responders and partner with the states, cities and counties that manage and fund them. We will work with Congress to provide them with the resources they need, beginning with the President’s First Responder Initiative, which offered a thousand-percent increase in funding to equip, train and drill first responders to meet a conventional attack or one involving a weapon of mass destruction.
We will build on the strong foundation already in place by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which for decades has provided command and control support and funding support in disasters, whether caused by man or Mother Nature.
The new Department of Homeland Security will consolidate at least five different plans that currently govern federal response to disasters into one genuinely all-discipline, all-hazard plan – the Federal Incident Management Plan. This will eliminate the artificial distinction between “crisis management” and “consequence management.” Moreover, it will consolidate grant programs for first responders and citizen volunteers that are now scattered across numerous federal agencies. This will prevent waste and duplication, and ultimately save lives, including the lives of first responders.
In a crisis, the Department will for the first time provide a direct line of authority from the President through the Secretary of Homeland Security to a single on-site federal response coordinator. All levels of government will have complete incident awareness and open communication.
The Department will also direct our federal crisis response assets, such as the National Pharmaceutical Stockpile and nuclear incident response teams – assets that work best when they work together. In doing all this, we believe we can build the capabilities for a proactive emergency management culture – one that is well-planned, well-organized and well-equipped to not just manage the risk, but reduce the risk of death and damage to property.
It is vitally important to remember that no matter what steps we take to preempt terrorists, we cannot guarantee that another attack will not occur. However, we must be prepared to respond. We must also take brave new steps, think creatively and invest in homeland security technologies that aim to stay one step ahead of the technologically proficient terrorists.
As stated in the President’s National Strategy for Homeland Security, our Nation enjoys a distinct advantage in science and technology. We must exploit that advantage. And just as technology has helped us to defeat enemies from afar, so too will it help us to protect our homeland.
Creating a Directorate in the new Department specifically devoted to Science and Technology for the homeland represents an exciting milestone. For the first time, the federal government will harness American ingenuity to develop new synergies and form robust partnerships with the private sector to research, develop and deploy homeland security technologies that will make America safer.
The science and technology organizational structure, while still being defined, is envisioned to be a streamlined, integrated team that will access the technical resources and assets of the private sector, academia, and federal government. It will be based on customer-focused portfolios for countering chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear attacks and for conducting and enhancing the normal operations of the Department. Research, development, test and evaluation programs will address the greatest threats and highest priorities based on assessments of threats, customer requirements and technological capabilities.
The technologies developed through this research and development should not only make us safer, but also make our daily lives better. These technologies fit well within our physical and economic structure and our national habits. And the Science and Technology Directorate will have a structure that ensures those who are the end users of all technologies provide their expertise throughout the entire lifecycle of research, development and acquisition of systems.
Before any new homeland security technologies are deployed, we will ensure that we are upholding the laws of the land. Any new data mining techniques or programs to enhance information sharing and collecting must and will respect the civil rights and civil liberties guaranteed to the American people under the Constitution. Furthermore, as we go about developing new technologies and programs to strengthen our homeland, treating citizens differently on the basis of religion or ethnicity will not be tolerated.
Before I close, I wish to again underscore an earlier point. No matter how this organization is structured it will not achieve its mission without the dedication of its employees. And the key to ensuring the Department’s mission and focus throughout the transition will be the continuing support of those conducting the day-to-day work. This will be an all-inclusive effort. We will eagerly solicit and consider advice from employees, unions, professional associations and other stakeholders.
We will create a human resource model that will be collaborative, responsive to both its employees and the mission of the agency.
First, we will work to create some measure of stability for employees even as we undergo the transition. For the first year, employees can expect to receive at least the same pay and benefits, and probably in the same location. Some people will certainly be able to take advantage of new career opportunities.
Second, we will work hard to create a modern, flexible, fair, merit-based personnel system. Third, we will communicate to ensure that personnel know what to expect and when to expect it. Fourth, we will work hard to ensure that employees continue to receive the same civil service protections that they currently enjoy. Most importantly, we aim for the Department’s employees to be better able to do their jobs with more support and more effective use of resources.
Finally, I will insist on measurable progress from all of the agencies and bureaus that will make up the Department of Homeland Security. Americans must and will know when improvements have been made.
In a town hall I hosted with future employees of the Department in December, I made all of these promises to them, as well as the pledge to keep them informed and aware of historic changes before them. Should I be confirmed, I make that same pledge to you.
In closing, during our darkest hour on September 11th, American spirit and pride rose above all else to unify our Nation. In the time since, we have fought a new kind of war –one that has a new enemy, new techniques, new strategies, new soldiers and is fought on a new battlefield -- our own homeland. Our response has been strong, measured and resolute. But nothing has been more profound as the creation of one Department whose primary mission is the protection of the American people.
The Department of Homeland Security will better enable every level of federal, state and local government; every private sector employee; and, ultimately, every citizen in our Nation to prevent terrorist attacks, reduce America’s vulnerability and respond and recover when attacks do occur.
The road will be long, and the mission difficult. We will not have truly succeeded until the day when terrorists know the futility of attacking Americans and Americans know we have the ability to protect them. The bottom line is, we will secure the homeland – whether by the efforts of thousands of people working together, or by a single scientist working alone in a laboratory – whether from behind a desk in Washington, or at the far corners of the continent. We will accomplish our mission.