On the Southwest Border we are facing an escalating refugee crisis. Since October, 52,000 unaccompanied minors have crossed into the United States from Mexico. Parents are handing over their young children by the thousands to cartels who are profiting by smuggling these kids to the United States. Many are under the age of 10, including some barely old enough to walk. These children with no parents, relatives, or legal guardians risk a perilous and sometimes fatal journey, riding buses or trains from Central America via Mexico. When they arrive at the border, the children are simply turning...

The DHS Science and Technology Directorate was established by Congress to be the primary research and development arm of the Department of Homeland Security. In this role, S&T manages science and technology research and provides acquisition support for the Department's operational components. It works with partners to do basic research and provide technology solutions to first responders. It is no secret that the Science and Technology Directorate has had its challenges since its creation. But despite several restructuring and close Congressional oversight, the S&T Directorate continues to...

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was born out of the tragic events of 9/11. We must remain vigilant in detecting and preventing terrorist threats that may seek to penetrate the homeland from the land, sea, or air. We must continue to build relationships with State and local law enforcement, and the first responders in our communities, to address the threats we face from those who self-radicalize to violence, the so-called "lone wolf" who may be living quietly in our midst, inspired by radical, violent ideology to do harm to Americans-illustrated last year by the Boston Marathon...

The Ebola crisis is unfolding at an alarming pace. Thousands have died in Africa and thousands more have been infected, including four selfless Americans working in Liberia who have been flown home for treatment. Now the virus has begun to spread to other parts of the world, and the American people are rightfully concerned. They are concerned because the Ebola virus is an unseen threat, and it is only a plane flight away from our shores. We have witnessed that with the recent case in Dallas, the first fatality from Ebola in the United States. Thomas Eric Duncan traveled here from Liberia by...

At the dawn of the digital age, our Nation saw endless opportunities to generate prosperity by expanding our networks and connecting to the world. But today, American prosperity depends as much on defending those networks as it does on expanding them. Every day, our country faces digital intrusions from criminals, activists, terrorists, and nation-states like Russia, China, and Iran. The impact of those intrusions are felt everywhere; from our National security secrets to the personal information of Americans. We cannot tolerate acts of cyber vandalism, theft, or cyber warfare, especially...

Before 9/11 we failed to recognize the threat from global Islamist terror when it was right before our eyes. This failure brought us into war with violent Islamist extremism, the perversion of a religion into a deeply insidious worldview. Any attempt to deny the ideological underpinnings of the threat endangers our security. Throughout history we have seen power vacuums filled by violent groups, deranged dictators, and extremist ideologies. Nowhere is this more evident than with the rise of Islamist terror groups, which have spread like wildfire on President Obama's watch because of two...

Today we are here to talk about illegal immigration and the grave consequences of the administration's recent actions to bypass Congress. Immigration reform is an emotional and divisive issue, but the President's unilateral actions to bypass Congress undermine the Constitution and threaten our democracy. Our immigration system is broken, and we need to fix it. America has always stood proudly as a beacon for hope for millions who are seeking a better life, and we should work hard to keep it that way. But regardless of where you stand on this issue, there is a right way to do this and there is...

In Garland, Texas, Elton Simpson fired off a series of tweets declaring his loyalty to the Islamic State and urged others to do the same. Simpson included a hashtag "TexasAttack," previewing his decision to terrorize the Prophet Muhammad cartoon contest that Islamists on social media had singled out as a target. In his final tweet, just minutes before the attack, Simpson told his followers to follow Junaid Hussain or also known as al-Britani, a 20-year-old British foreign fighter embedded with ISIS in Syria, and one of the group's top recruiters who has been linked to the CENTCOM Twitter hack...

In September of 2015, the DHS Office of Inspector General, the OIG, released a report on its 4-month-long investigation into improper access and distribution of information within the Secret Service. Wide-spread violations of the Privacy Act and an agency policy occurred by Secret Service employees who accessed and distributed information on a Member of Congress' past employment application and senior management did nothing immediately to stop it. Inspector General John Roth stated that the episode was deeply disturbing. In addition, Director Clancy announced he had a different account of...