Home Ridge Becomes First Secretary of Homeland Security WASHINGTON D.C., January 24, 2003 - Thomas J. Ridge, the former Pennsylvania governor who returned to Washington in 2001 to lead President Bush’s homeland security efforts, became the Nation’s first Secretary of Homeland Security January 24 during ceremonies held at the White House. With the President by his side, Secretary Ridge took the oath of office administered by Vice President Dick Cheney. Secretary Ridge becomes leader of the Federal Government’s 15th executive department and will direct over 170,000 Federal workers tasked with protecting their fellow Americans. The Department of Homeland Security will lead a comprehensive and unified effort to defend the country by analyzing threats; guarding the Nation’s borders and airports; safeguarding critical infrastructure, and coordinating the Nation’s response to future emergencies. Part of that effort will come from the National Communications System (NCS), which will join the new department on March 1. Initial plans announced last June by the White House would place the NCS into the Department’s Information Assurance and Infrastructure Protection (IAIP) Directorate. The President said he knew immediately that Secretary Ridge was the right man for the assignment. “[Secretary Ridge] is a decisive, clear-thinking executive who knows how to solve problems,” said President Bush. “The American people can be certain that the mission of homeland security will be carried out with focus and resolve, with the resources the task requires. And the American people can know, as well, that the Department is under the command of a superb leader who has my confidence.” Secretary Ridge was twice elected Governor of Pennsylvania, serving from 1995 to 2001. He grew up in Erie, Pennsylvania, attended Harvard University on a scholarship, and received his undergraduate degree with honors from Harvard in 1967. Soon after, he postponed his academic career at Dickinson Law School to begin a combat tour in Vietnam, where he earned a Bronze Star for Valor. After returning to civilian life, Secretary Ridge received his law degree from Dickinson in 1972, then went on to serve as an assistant district attorney before his first Congressional bid in 1982. He became the first Vietnam combat veteran to win a seat in the House of Representatives, and was re-elected by an overwhelming majority six times before he left for the Pennsylvania Governor's mansion in 1995.
In addition to Secretary Ridge’s confirmation by the U.S. Senate, two other Homeland Security Department nominees received Senate approval. On January 24, the Senate confirmed Asa Hutchinson to be the Nation's first Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Border and Transportation Security, and then approved the nomination of former Secretary of the Navy Gordon England as the Deputy Secretary of the new department on January 30. Secretary England served as executive vice president of General Dynamics Corporation from 1997 until 2001, when he accepted President Bush’s nomination to become the Navy Secretary. Previously, Secretary England served as Executive Vice President of the Combat Systems Group, President of General Dynamics Fort Worth aircraft company (later Lockheed), President of General Dynamics Land Systems Company, and as the principal of a mergers and acquisition consulting company. Secretary Ridge’s top deputy was also served as a member of the Defense Science Board, acting as its chair and participating in a broad range of subjects dealing with the U.S. military and the industrial base. Secretary England is active in a variety of civic and charitable organizations, including Goodwill International, where he served as Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors; the United Servicemembers Organization's (USO) Board of Governors; and as a member of the board of visitors at Texas Christian University (TCU) and other universities. A Baltimore native, Secretary England graduated from the University of Maryland in 1961 with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering. In 1975, he earned a master's degree in business administration from the M. J. Neeley School of Business at Texas Christian University. He is a member of the following honorary societies: Beta Gamma Sigma (business), Omicron Delta Kappa (leadership) and Eta Kappa Nu (engineering). Under Secretary Hutchinson will be responsible for securing the Nation's borders, ports, waterways and transportation system. He will oversee the functions now housed in agencies like the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the U.S. Customs Service, the Transportation Security Administration and the Office for Domestic Preparedness. "In our mission to protect America, we face
the daunting challenge of improving border and transportation security,
while at the same time facilitating the unimpeded flow of legitimate
commerce and people across our borders and ports,” said Secretary
Ridge. “In his career, Asa Hutchinson, has demonstrated that he
is up for big challenges. I congratulate him on his confirmation and
look forward to working with him in this new mission."
As President George W. Bush watches,
Vice President Dick Cheney swears in Tom Ridge as the Secretary of the
Department of Homeland Security in the Cross Hall on January 24. Secretary
Ridge's wife, Michele, and children, Tom and Lesley, hold the Bible
during the administering of the oath.
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