The United States secretary of homeland security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security,the federal department tasked with ensuring public safety in the United States. The secretary is a member of the Cabinet of the United States. The position was created by the Homeland Security Act following the attacks of September 11,2001.
Robert Jones Portman is an American attorney and politician who served as a United States senator from Ohio from 2011 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party,Portman was the 35th director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) from 2006 to 2007,the 14th United States trade representative from 2005 to 2006,and a U.S. representative from 1993 to 2005,representing Ohio's 2nd district.
Barack Obama assumed office as the 44th president of the United States on January 20,2009,and his term ended on January 20,2017. The president has the authority to nominate members of his Cabinet to the United States Senate for confirmation under the Appointments Clause of the United States Constitution.
Kenneth Leonard Wainstein is an American lawyer. He served as the first assistant attorney general for national security,and later as the homeland security advisor to United States President George W. Bush. In 2022 under the Biden administration,he was appointed under secretary of homeland security for intelligence and analysis.
David Peter Pekoske is an American government official and retired U.S. Coast Guard vice admiral who has served as the seventh administrator of the Transportation Security Administration in the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) since 2017. He served as the acting deputy secretary of Homeland Security from April to November 2019 and again from January to June 2021. From January 20,2021 to February 2,2021 he served as acting secretary of homeland security,during the Senate confirmation of Alejandro Mayorkas. Pekoske retired with 33 years of active military service in 2010 as the 26th vice commandant of the Coast Guard.
Chad Fredrick Wolf is an American former government official and lobbyist who was named the acting United States secretary of homeland security in November 2019. His appointment was ruled unlawful in November 2020. Wolf was also the under secretary of homeland security for strategy,policy,and plans from 2019 to 2021.
Alejandro Nicolas Mayorkas is an American attorney and government official who is the 7th United States Secretary of Homeland Security,serving since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party,Mayorkas previously served as director of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services from 2009 to 2013,and the 6th Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security from 2013 to 2016.
John Marshall Mitnick is an American lawyer who served as General Counsel for the United States Department of Homeland Security.
Joe Biden assumed office as the 46th president of the United States on January 20,2021. The president has the authority to nominate members of his Cabinet to the United States Senate for confirmation under the Appointments Clause of the United States Constitution.
Cory Lee Mills is an American politician,businessman,and Army combat veteran who has served as the U.S. Representative from Florida's 7th congressional district since 2023. He previously served as a Trump appointee on the Defense Business Board from 2020 to 2021. He is a member of the Republican Party.
John Kai Tien Jr. is an American government official and retired United States Army officer who served as the United States deputy secretary of homeland security in the Biden administration from 2021 to 2023.
Robert Peter Silvers is an American lawyer and government official who has served as the Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Strategy,Policy,and Plans since 2021.
Kate Elizabeth Heinzelman is an American attorney serving as the general counsel of the Central Intelligence Agency. She was nominated by President Joe Biden to the position and was confirmed by the Senate on July 14,2022.
Paul M. Rosen is an American attorney who currently serves as Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Investment Security.
The Disinformation Governance Board (DGB) was an advisory board of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS),from April 27,2022 to August 24,2022. The board's stated function was to protect national security by disseminating guidance to DHS agencies on combating misinformation,malinformation,and disinformation that threatens the security of the homeland. Specific problem areas mentioned by the DHS included false information propagated by human smugglers encouraging migrants to surge to the Mexico–United States border,as well as Russian-state disinformation on election interference and the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Jonathan Davidson is a U.S. government official and lawyer serving as the chief of staff of the United States Department of Homeland Security since August 2023. He previously served as the assistant secretary of the Treasury for legislative affairs from 2021 to 2023.
On January 28,2024,House Republicans indicated their intention to move forward with two articles of impeachment against Alejandro Mayorkas,the United States Secretary of Homeland Security,alleging "willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law" in regards to federal immigration laws and breach of the public trust. On January 31,Republicans on the House Homeland Security Committee approved the articles along party lines for referral to the full House. Mayorkas is the second Cabinet member in history,and first since Secretary of War William W. Belknap in 1876,to be impeached.
