Congratulations on your nomination as secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) in the new Trump Administration. While much to-do is being made over who will be secretary of state, your position is right up there with secretary of defense and secretary of state.
Since your background and experience is primarily military I'd like to give you some advice from the emergency management trenches where I have lived and worked for 25 years since leaving the United States Army, where I served for twenty years as an Infantry Officer. This advice is similar to to what I have given many military leaders as they transition into service in emergency management.
First and foremost, I'd say what DHS needs is leadership. Recall all your military training from the past and formalized instruction at different military schools. They should have always started with "leadership" as a subject area. You bring a vast amount of leadership in leading large organizations, but this will be different. The poor morale at DHS is a reflection of poor leadership. While you have worked "within a military system" that has a common culture and standards, that is all behind you. Internally and externally people know that you will be around for 18 to 24 months, if history is a lesson, so you can be "waited out" by civilians working in the department and across the political spectrum.
All the 50 states and their National Guard Commands are not waiting to do your bidding. They will not "jump" when you issue a directive or change a policy. They may actively oppose or just drag their feet in implementing whatever it is that you are trying to implement. Your direct reports who you might bring with you into the department are totally committed to you, but beyond that the idea of "loyalty and service" that characterized your military experience may be lacking in the departments that you lead (I say lead, since it is not a command relationship). I would like to suggest that you approach your service in the area of emergency management, much as you would with coalition warfare. Since you don't command, you must cajole cooperation from others outside your direct sphere of influence.
I understand that FEMA is likely not your number one priority. I expect as you study up on the position and the vast number of issues you are expected to deal with, the border will consume much of your time. The best thing you can do is help in getting nominated an experienced emergency manager to be the FEMA administrator. That person will take care of much of what needs to be done with that agency. Please look to appoint other competent emergency managers into political positions in the FEMA regions that still have administrators who are politically appointed. We are not looking for faceless bureaucrats, be they emergency managers or not, who are only looking to maintain the status quo. We need leaders, like yourself, who are willing to push for a new and better future.
Lastly, I'll tell you that disasters for you are like wars for Presidents. Presidents don't come into office thinking they will spend their time on foreign entanglements, but then many do. While you may want to focus on the border, we have mega disasters on the horizon. Think $80 to $100 billion that will stress our ability to respond to them and recover the regions and communities impacted. Emergency management is more than disaster response. If you want to have a real impact on the future of America and its economic vitality and security, focus on disaster mitigation and climate adaptation. Let me say this one more time. to provide a lasting legacy for your tenure as secretary of Homeland Security, invest in disaster mitigation and climate adaptation which will help reduce the impacts of these disasters.
Call me if you would like to discuss any of the above, 253-376-6683.
Your future success is our success. I'll be praying for you,
Eric Holdeman
