Texas Representative Mike McCaul has emerged as a leading candidate in the White House’s search for a homeland security secretary, according to three people familiar with the conversations, Politico reports.
The White House hasn’t rushed to fill the post, which was vacated in July when President Donald Trump tapped John Kelly, who was then serving as DHS secretary, as his chief of staff, but the hurricane that slammed Texas last month as well as the one expected to hit Florida in the coming days have given it increased urgency.
McCaul worked with the White House on its response to Hurricane Harvey, which affected parts of his district, and greeted the president on the tarmac when he touched down in Texas last weekend.
The Texan was considered for the same post during the transition and is eager to serve in the administration, according to people familiar with his thinking. Neither McCaul’s office nor the White House immediately responded to a request for comment, Politico writes.
McCaul would bring a deep background in both domestic and national security to the job. He serves as chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security and was a government prosecutor focused on counterterrorism before his first congressional run in 2004.
Be the first to comment