by Elaine Durbach
NJJN Bureau Chief/Central

December 11, 2008

While others might be celebrating the holiday season, Michael Chertoff is celebrating the end of the hurricane season. The United States secretary of homeland security told an audience at Kean University on Dec. 4 that he is relieved and pleased with the significant improvement in the way hurricanes Gustav and Ike were handled this year, compared to hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, the year he took office.

In brisk, concise terms, Chertoff laid out just what he sees as the accomplishments of the past three years and of the outgoing administration. Speaking on Thursday, Dec. 4, at the university in Union, he pointed out the absence of terror attacks on United States soil since 9/11 and the government’s handling of natural disasters in the past year.

To those who have criticized the absorption of the Federal Emergency Management Agency into the Department of Homeland Security, he said that move has made possible a level of coordination that was not possible before, providing FEMA with far greater access to resources like intelligence, transportation services, and manpower support.

He said it felt particularly apt mentioning this new integration when speaking at Kean, which is named for the family of former Gov. Tom Kean, who chaired the 9/11 Commission. The commission was sharply critical of the disconnect between first responders and between various agencies during the attack on the World Trade Center in 2001. Chertoff said its recommendations were built “into the DNA” of his department and helped shape its policies and practices.

In the audience of around 600 were numerous members of the local law enforcement and fire departments, civic leaders, and scores of students and faculty members.

Addressing the students in attendance, Chertoff recommended DHS as a career choice with guaranteed job openings. “The threats facing us are not going to go away, and they are likely to become more and more challenging,” he said.

Looking back on President George W. Bush’s term in office, he said that in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, no one would have thought it possible that over the next seven years there wouldn’t be another successful terror attack. “That is no accident, and it is not because of any lack of intent on the part of the extremists and terrorists,” Chertoff said. He cited the so-called “shoe bomber” and the plot to blow up local bridges as examples of foiled attempts at terror.

‘Determined planning’

“Very energetic steps” had been taken to protect Americans at home and abroad, he continued. There had also been administrative steps taken to clear the blocked “stove pipes” between the different agencies, to improve communication, and to still the territorial squabbles between them.

The president has “led in a determined way,” Chertoff said. “That speaks volumes for him. He made these big issues his number one mission, and for that we owe him a debt of gratitude.” There was a wave of applause.

Chertoff said that this year FEMA has dealt with two major hurricanes without a large-scale loss of life, as well as the massive flooding in the Midwest and several tornadoes. Drawing on the lessons of the past, state and local governments were involved in “determined and robust” planning, and FEMA was able to draw on the capabilities, facilities, and training of other agencies. Those were the keys to managing both man-made and natural disasters, he said.

To those who argue that FEMA should be a stand-alone entity, he said, “The last thing we need is to go back to the days of stove-piping, with everybody protecting their own turf.”

Going forward, those responsible for providing security for the United States would be dealing both with “high-probability, lower-consequence” events, like attacks by disturbed individuals — he cited as an example the shooting last year at Virginia Tech — and “low-probability, high-consequence” events, like the 9/11 attacks, the levy collapse after Hurricane Katrina, or the current financial collapse.

He said a biological attack was considered more likely than a nuclear one, and discussed the possibility of pandemic disease outbreaks or cyber-attacks. He added, “I don’t mean to frighten you. I’m just underscoring what we have done” in terms of preparation. Among the department’s achievements, he mentioned the radiation screening of containers coming into the nation’s ports and the posting of inspectors abroad at points of embarkation.

Chertoff said he would urge the incoming administration to focus on long-term investments in security and not to put off preparing for problems that might still be decades away. He said, too, that in foreign affairs, efforts to protect the country should focus on aid and reconstruction, as well as on winning wars.

Chertoff told the crowd that he grew up just over a mile away from Kean, on Westminster Avenue in Elizabeth. His links to the area were underscored by his longtime friend, Assemblyman Jon Bramnick (R-Dist. 21), who introduced him, and later, he grinned broadly as a number of audience members introduced themselves as old acquaintances before asking their questions.

The event ended with a joking exchange about Chertoff’s next job. Though careful how he phrased his answer — given the academics in the audience — he said he would like to do some teaching. But, he said, he has lived such a fast-paced life, he doesn’t think he could handle the more placid pace of a full-time teaching position. “I do intend to speak out from time to time,” he said.

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