WASHINGTON (AP) - The Latest on President Trump’s nominee for secretary of Homeland Security (all times local):
President Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Department of Homeland Security says cybersecurity will be one of her top priorities.
Kirstjen Nielsen, a former staffer at the sprawling federal agency, says the scope and pace of cyberattacks on federal networks and critical infrastructure are “continually increasing” and grow more complex and sophisticated each day.
Nielsen, 45, now serves as deputy White House chief of staff. She tells the Senate Homeland Security Committee that threats to the homeland “are too many and too varied” for any one agency to confront alone. She pledged to work across government and the private sector to find solutions.
Noting recent hurricanes and wildfires, Nielsen called disaster preparedness crucial.
Trump nominated Nielsen last month to succeed John Kelly, now White House chief of staff.
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Kirstjen (KEER’-stehn) Nielsen was tapped to help shepherd President Donald Trump’s Department of Homeland Security secretary pick through his Senate confirmation process. Now she’s got her own team shepherding her.
The Senate Homeland Security Committee will hold a confirmation hearing for Nielsen on Wednesday.
Trump surprised many in his administration when he announced his pick to run the sprawling agency was Nielsen. Nielsen had served as the top deputy to DHS Secretary John Kelly in the Trump administration and moved with Kelly to the White House when he was elevated to Trump’s chief of staff.
It’s been a lightning-fast rise for the 45-year-old Nielsen, who arrived in Trumpworld only after the president had won the election.
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