President Obama has nominated the former general counsel at the Pentagon, Jeh Johnson, to lead DHS, which has been operating under acting secretary Rand Beers since September 6.
The nomination requires Senate confirmation. The chair of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Tom Carper, D-Del., said the nomination is "welcome news" for the department that has experienced significant turnover at its top levels through much of its decade in existence.
Johnson has been described as a member of Obama’s inner circle, is currently a partner at the law firm Paul Weiss and has been a key figure in the White House policy on the use of drones as well as the repeal of the military’s "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" policy.
