CPUd
11-15-2016, 11:55 AM
McCaul on DHS chief: 'I’ve expressed my interest'
House Homeland Security Chairman Mike McCaul is pushing to become head of the federal agency he oversees in Congress.
“I've expressed my interest, and I think the process is taking place,” McCaul told POLITICO this morning outside a House Republican Conference meeting, when asked whether he was open to becoming Homeland Security secretary.
“I think I have both a good skill set, and I know the department very well, know what needs to be done,” added the Texas Republican, who has chaired the House Homeland Security Committee for four years.
During the 2016 campaign, McCaul advised Trump and his team on national security issues.
McCaul made headlines when he mentioned that Trump had dismissed his efforts to convince the candidate that Russia was responsible for the spate of election-season hacks that roiled the Democratic Party. But McCaul has continued to advise the president-elect’s transition team.
“I've demonstrated my loyalty to the campaign,” he said.
His remarks would seem to shut the door on the possibility that McCaul might challenge fellow Texas Republican, Sen. Ted Cruz in 2018. Reportedly, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry had been encouraging him to run.
In Congress, McCaul has been out front on a variety of cybersecurity issues, most notably shepherding through last year’s landmark cybersecurity information-sharing law. He's also the co-sponsor of a compromise bill on encryption that would create an independent commission to study how law enforcement can access secure communications without endangering Americans’ digital safety and right to privacy.
http://www.politico.com/blogs/donald-trump-administration/2016/11/mccaul-on-dhs-chief-ive-expressed-my-interest-231407
House Homeland Security Chairman Mike McCaul is pushing to become head of the federal agency he oversees in Congress.
“I've expressed my interest, and I think the process is taking place,” McCaul told POLITICO this morning outside a House Republican Conference meeting, when asked whether he was open to becoming Homeland Security secretary.
“I think I have both a good skill set, and I know the department very well, know what needs to be done,” added the Texas Republican, who has chaired the House Homeland Security Committee for four years.
During the 2016 campaign, McCaul advised Trump and his team on national security issues.
McCaul made headlines when he mentioned that Trump had dismissed his efforts to convince the candidate that Russia was responsible for the spate of election-season hacks that roiled the Democratic Party. But McCaul has continued to advise the president-elect’s transition team.
“I've demonstrated my loyalty to the campaign,” he said.
His remarks would seem to shut the door on the possibility that McCaul might challenge fellow Texas Republican, Sen. Ted Cruz in 2018. Reportedly, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry had been encouraging him to run.
In Congress, McCaul has been out front on a variety of cybersecurity issues, most notably shepherding through last year’s landmark cybersecurity information-sharing law. He's also the co-sponsor of a compromise bill on encryption that would create an independent commission to study how law enforcement can access secure communications without endangering Americans’ digital safety and right to privacy.
http://www.politico.com/blogs/donald-trump-administration/2016/11/mccaul-on-dhs-chief-ive-expressed-my-interest-231407