For Immediate Release
DHS Press Office
Contact: 202-282-8010
“During my confirmation I said that filling vacancies in the Department would be a key priority, and today I thank the Senate for confirming President Obama’s nominees to three key leadership positions at the Department of Homeland Security – Gil Kerlikowske for Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection; Suzanne Spaulding to be Under Secretary for National Protection and Programs Directorate; and John Roth for Inspector General.
Good leadership starts with adding other good leaders to our team. These highly experienced, qualified nominees will join the dedicated men and women of DHS who work hard each and every day to fulfill our critical and noble mission. I welcome them to their new roles, and look forward to continuing to work with the Senate to fill our other senior management vacancies.”
Today the Senate confirmed the following individuals to key DHS posts:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner
Gil Kerlikowske is Director of National Drug Control in the Office of National Drug Control Policy at the White House, a position he has held since 2009. From 2000 to 2009, he served as Chief of Police in Seattle, Washington. From 1998 to 2000, he was Deputy Director of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services at the U.S. Department of Justice. From 1994 to 1999, he was Police Commissioner of Buffalo, New York. He began his law enforcement career serving in the St. Petersburg, Florida Police Department from 1972 to 1987. Mr. Kerlikowske served on active duty in the U.S. Army from 1970 to 1972, and in the Army Reserve from 1972 to 1976. He received a B.A. and an M.A. as well as an D.H.L. from the University of South Florida.
National Protection and Programs Directorate Under Secretary
Suzanne E. Spaulding is the Deputy Under Secretary for National Protection Programs at the Department of Homeland Security, a position she has held since 2011. Prior to joining the Administration, she was a principal in the Bingham Consulting Group from 2006 to 2011. Previously, she served as the Minority Staff Director for Ranking Member Jane Harman on the U.S. House of Representatives’ Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence from 2003 to 2004. In 2002, she was a Member of the Secure Commonwealth Panel. From 1989 to 1995, Ms. Spaulding served as Assistant General Counsel and the Legal Advisor to the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency’s Nonproliferation Center. From 1983 to 1987, she served as Senior Counsel and Legislative Director for U.S. Senator Arlen Specter. Ms. Spaulding has also served as Security Counsel for the Business Roundtable, Executive Director of the National Commission on Terrorism, and a member of the Commission to Assess the Organization of the Federal Government to Combat the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction. Ms. Spaulding received a B.A. and a J.D. from the University of Virginia.
DHS Inspector General
John Roth served as the Director of the Office of Criminal Investigations at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, a position he has held since 2012. Prior to that, he was Special Counsel for International Money Laundering Policy at the Department of Justice (DOJ) from 2010 to 2012. Prior to this, Mr. Roth was the Chief of Staff to the Deputy Attorney General at DOJ from 2008 to 2009 and Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division at DOJ from 2007 to 2008. From 2004 to 2007 and 2009 to 2010, Mr. Roth worked in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia in several roles, including Chief of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section and Executive Assistant U.S. Attorney for Operations. Previously, Mr. Roth served as Section Chief at DOJ’s Criminal Division for the Narcotic and Dangerous Drugs Section and the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section from 1999 to 2004, including serving a detail as Senior Counsel and Team Leader for the 9/11 Commission from 2003 to 2004. From 1994 to 1999, he was Chief of the Narcotics Section at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and from 1987 to 1994 he was an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. Mr. Roth received a B.A. and J.D. from Wayne State University.
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