Sen. Joe Lieberman – If there are fingerprints on DHS’ creation, soon to be retiring Senator Joe Lieberman’s can be found from top to bottom. The longtime Democrat, turned Independent, four-term U.S. Senator (and former Democratic vice presidential nominee) from Connecticut has been a forceful voice on multiple international and national security matters, and is not shy on what he thinks will work and what won’t in terms of homeland security. He has worked closely with his counterpart, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, to help shape DHS and its mission. Their almost unprecedented partnership (and civility) in providing oversight of DHS is in stark comparison to that of the U.S. House on a number of matters. As a result, the voices that Lieberman (and Collins) offer on DHS matters are probably better heard (and more respected) than those offered by their U.S. House of Representatives counterparts.

The challenge with Lieberman is his ability to take orders and follow them. He marches to the beat of his own drummer, and has spent his last decade in the Senate showing greater solidarity with his good friend Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) on security matters than the Obama White House. An appointment of him in a position such as DHS secretary might make for an interesting capstone for an impressive career, but I would anticipate the frustration between him and the White House (his ultimate boss in the DHS job) would make his appointment highly unlikely.

 

William “Bill” Bratton  – Johnny Cash has a classic song called “I’ve been Everywhere,” that chronicles his well-traveled ways. While he may not have been to as many places as Johnny Cash while a top law enforcement officer, Bill Bratton has been in the top spots as a police officer, with successful and impressive stints in Boston, New York City and Los Angeles. Leading police forces in highly dynamic situations in incredibly diverse communities, Bratton has been at the forefront of using statistics, education/training and community policing to make each place he’s served as top cop a better and safer place. If you look at each place he’s served, he’s been successful in each one of them. As one of the innovators to apply community policing techniques to urban environments; creating CompStat (the internationally acclaimed model used by police departments to measure success); and developing new public safety and communications strategies to better connect citizens with law enforcement, Bratton is known around the world as one of its top cops. His track record and honors prove it too. Can you name any other cop recognized by Playboy magazine as “America’s Smartest Cop?” After leaving the LAPD as police chief in late 2009, Bratton went into the private sector, where he became the Chairman of Kroll, one of the largest security/risk management firms in the world. His expertise as a law enforcement leader and community policing has been called upon by police departments around the world, most notably by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD)/Scotland Yard to review the problems surrounding the London riots in 2011. Rumors even had him even possibly “crossing the pond” to take over the MPD/Scotland Yard, adding even more distinction to the most impressive of law enforcement resumes, but it did not come to pass. Instead, Bratton authored his second book, Collaborate or Perish: Reaching Across Boundaries in a Networked World with Harvard’s Zachary Tumin, heralding the behaviors organizations need to instill and execute if they want to succeed in today’s world. If Bratton were to be tapped for the top DHS job, he would be the best friend local law enforcement could ever have in that job.

Ray Kelly – Ray Kelly is the longest serving commissioner of the New York City Police Department, and as such leads one of the largest ‘armies and intelligence networks in the world.’ While there are many who may not see the NYPD as an army or intelligence network (they are), New York City has one of the world’s most expansive, best trained and well-networked law enforcement agencies. Taking over the NYPD in the months following 9/11, Kelly inherited the responsibilities of safeguarding the number one terrorist target in the world. The retired U.S. Marine Corps colonel previously served as NYPD commissioner in the early 1990s and as commissioner of the U.S. Customs Service and Under Secretary at the Treasury Department, supervising the U.S. Secret Service Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) [which now all belongs to DHS] during the Clinton Administration. Since DHS’ creation, the commissioner has not been shy about pointing to DHS and others the need for improving information sharing and how resources need to be allocated to places facing the greatest threats and vulnerabilities. It just so happens that New York City is always at the top of his list. For all of Kelly’s success, there is no denying the fact that he has bigger ambitions than just being NYPD’s longest serving and most successful cop. Rumors have long circulated that he wanted to run for New York City Mayor, something he publicly denied at the Aspen Security Forumthis past year. Regardless of those ambitions, Kelly has an impressive record of success (as well as critics) for his longtime tenure in protecting the city that doesn’t sleep.

Joseph Bruno – Anyone who has ever been to NYC knows that everything is on a bigger scale. The same is true of the city’s emergency management. While it may be the smallest sibling in the NYC public safety family (when compared to its older brothers the NYPD and FDNY), the Office of Emergency Management (OEM) under Commissioner Joe Bruno has proven to be one of the city’s and nation’s best advocates for planning, emergency coordination, information sharing and more. The challenges of operating in an environment where sharp elbows, ‘turf preservation,’ tough politics and tougher personalities are part of the daily routine have not stopped Bruno or his staff from making a tremendous difference. Like his FDNY and NYPD leadership counterparts, Bruno knows it is not a question of ‘if’ NYC is hit by terrorists or some other event (blackout, storm, pandemic flu, etc.) but rather ‘when.’ He is not waiting for ‘when’ to plan – he’s been doing it non-stop since taking over OEM in 2004. As a former commissioner of the FDNY, Civil Court Judge and New York Supreme Court Justice, he has been able to survive and succeed on the biggest stage the world has to offer. Along the way, he has built new information sharing networks and preparedness practices that speak to every citizen in the multitude of languages that make NYC the ultimate melting pot.