who is the current director of homeland security
United States Secretary of Homeland Security The current Secretary of Homeland Security is Kirstjen Nielsen following the appointment of the then-incumbent secretary, John F. Kelly, to the post of White House Chief of Staff by President Donald Trump.[6] It was announced on October 12, 2017, that Kirstjen Nielsen was nominated as Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security by President Donald Trump. She was confirmed by the Senate on December 5, 2017.[7]
United States Department of Homeland Security During a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing on the reauthorization of DHS, Elaine Duke, deputy secretary of DHS, said there is a weariness and anxiety within DHS about the repeated congressional efforts to agree to a long-term spending plan, which has resulted in several threats to shutdown the federal government. "Shutdowns are disruptive," Duke said. She said the "repeated failure on a longtime spending plan resulting in short-term continuing resolutions (CRs) has caused "angst" among the department's 240,000 employees in the weeks leading up to the CRs."[33] The uncertainty about funding hampers DHS's ability to pursue major projects and it takes away attention and manpower from important priorities. Seventy percent of DHS employees are considered essential and are not furloughed during government shutdowns.[33]