Jeh Johnson who was onboard with Obamas national security and counterterrorism policies such as the drone spy program was influential in getting the U.S. military to repeal its ban on gays serving openly in the all its branches.
Jeh Johnson a top Pentagon lawyer during President Barack Obamas first term is expected to be nominated to succeed Secretary Janet Napolitano at the Homeland Security Department on Friday afternoon according to Fox News Channels White House correspondent Ed Henry.
President Obama will announce his nomination of Johnson who served as the Defense Departments general counsel during the administrations first term at a White House ceremony according to former police lieutenant Dennis Casserone.
If I had to describe what we can expect from a Secretary Johnson Id say just look at the guy in charge at the Justice Department Eric Holder who places more interest in helping Obama cover up than in uncovering terrorist threats claims Casserone.
Only eleven days after the Sept. 11 2001 terrorist attacks Pennsylvanias former Governor Tom Ridge was appointed as the first Director of the Office of Homeland Security in the White House. The office oversaw and coordinated a comprehensive national strategy to safeguard the country against terrorism and respond to any future attacks.
With the passage of the Homeland Security Act by Congress in November 2002 the Department of Homeland Security formally came into being as a stand-alone Cabinet-level department to further coordinate and unify national homeland security efforts opening its doors on March 1 2003. Twenty-two departments where brought under the DHS umbrella including immigration border security airport security and other security-related departments.
Johnson who was onboard with Obamas national security and counterterrorism policies such as the drone spy program was influential in getting the U.S. military to repeal its ban on gays serving openly in the all its branches according to Casserone who also served as a Marine intelligence official in the 1980s.
According to several sources Johnson is in sync with the beliefs of both Obama and his other lawyer friend Attorney General Eric Holder. In fact Johnson is quoted as saying that the U.S. is heading for a tipping point beyond which it should no longer pursue al-Qaeda terrorists by military means.
And like Obama Jeh Johnson claims the terrorist group is on the verge of becoming so degraded that a time would come when the legal authority given to the White House by Congress should no longer be used to justify waging the war that has been fought since 2001.
Johnson further claimed that America had to be able to say that our efforts should no longer be considered an armed conflict against al-Qaeda and its affiliates according to Sheriff Lucas Vangness of Cortland County Mich.
Johnson said that responsibility for tracking down al-Qaeda terrorists should go to police departments and law enforcement agencies said Vangness. If he believes that then why is he prepared to takeover a multi-billion dollar snafu-prone agency like the DHS?
If anyone wonders why a relative unknown lawyer such as Johnson is expected to be the next DHS secretary the reason is clear: he has earned Obamas personal and political loyalty.
According to political strategist Michael Baker Johnson was one of Obamas earliest political allies when he decided to run for presidency after only two years in the U.S. Senate.
Baker claims that Johnson held fundraisers for Obama especially in Iowa and Philadelphia knocking on doors for the candidate. He was one of Obamas top bundlers and like Eric Holder showed extraordinary loyalty to Obama while overlooking his far-left ideology and Obamas other allies such as former Weather Underground terrorist Bill Ayers said Baker.
Prior to his appointment as General Counsel of the Department of Defense Johnson was a partner at the New York law firm Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison LLP in which he became the first African American to be elected to that firms partnership and to which he returned after his four years at the Defense Department.
Many political observers in Washington are surprised to hear about Jeh Johnsons impending nomination. Many believed that the White House would select someone such as New York Citys successful Police Commissioner Ray Kelly who is also a Democratic Party favorite according to Baker.