makes sure everybody is playing by the same rules. i m confident i could not make a better choice in jeh, somebody who i m confident is going to be moving not just the agency forward, but helping to move the country forward, so jeh, thank you so much for agreeing to take on this very difficult and extraordinary mission. you ve got a great team over at dhs, and i know they re looking forward to having you over there. i urge the senate to confirm jeh as soon as possible, and i thank you as well as your family for agreeing to serve. your wife susan and your daughter natalie couldn t be here because they re visiting jeh jr. at occidental college, which by the way, i went to for two years when i was young. a fine college. i m sorry i couldn t be there to say hi to him. but your son shows well. so ladies and gentlemen, i would like to invite jeh johnson to say a few words. hopefully our next secretary of the department of homeland security.
civil liberties that make america great. jeh tells the story of his uncle woo was a member of the legendary tus klegend a tuskegee airmen, and they served with honor even when the country didn t treat them with the dignity and respect they deserved, and it was a lesson he never forgot. we must adopt values with common sense, consistent with who we are as americans. jeh is a pretty good lawyer so he knows what that means. jeh understands that this country is worth protecting, not because of what we build or what we own, but because of who we are. that s what sets us apart. that s why as a nation we have to keep adapting to changing threats, whether natural or manmade. we have to stay ready when disaster strikes and help americans recover in the aftermath. we ve got to fix our broken immigration system in a way that strengthens our borders and modernizes legal immigration and
spoke eloquently about how we meet today s threats in a way that is consistent with our values, including the role of love. jeh also knows meeting these threats means cooperation and coordination across our government. he s been there in the situation room. at the table, in moments of decision. working with leaders from a host of agencies to make sure everyone is growing in the same direction. and he s respected across our government as a team player. somebody who knows how to get folks who don t always agree to work towards a common goal. jeh has experience leading large complex organizations. as a member of the pentagon s senior management team, first under bob gates and then under leon panetta, he helped oversee the work of more than 3 million military and civilian personnel across the country and around the world. and i think it s fair to say that both former secretaries gates and panetta will attest
the incredible professionalism that jeh brings to the job. and the bipartisan approach that appropriately he takes when it comes to national security. he s also earned a reputation as a cool and calm leader. jeh appreciates that any organization s greatest asset is its people. at the pentagon, he guided the report explaining why our men and women in uniform serving our country openly would not weaken our military. congress ended up using that report that jeh helped to craft to justify repealing don t ask don t tell, and america and our military are stronger because we did. in part because of jeh s determined leadership. i know he would bring that same commitment to our hard-working folks at dhs. and finally, jeh believes in a deep and personal way that keeping america safe requires us also upholding the values and
americans recover from hurricanes and tornadoes, floods and wildfires. and we have worked to clean up a massive oil spill in the gulf as well as addressed a flu pandemic. in jeh johnson, we have the right person to continue this important work. from the moment i took office, jeh was an absolutely critical member of my national security team and he demonstrated again and again the qualities that will make him a strong secretary of homeland security. jeh has a deep understanding of the threats and challenges facing the united states. as pentagon s top lawyer, he helped design and implement many of the policies that have kept our country safe, including our success in dismantling the core of al qaeda and the fatah. when i dreirected my national security team to be more open and transparent about how our policies work and how we make decisions, jeh was a leader who