Fairfax, Va. – In a letter to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the IAFC today expressed support for the nomination of General John Kelly to be Secretary of Homeland Security. Chief John Sinclair, IAFC president and chair of the board, said, “General Kelly will provide the necessary leadership to help the nation be prepared to respond to all hazards.”
The full text of the letter to Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), chairman, and Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), ranking member, is below:
Dear Chairman Johnson and Senator McCaskill:
On behalf of the nearly 12,000 fire and emergency service leaders of the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), I express our support for the nomination of General John Kelly to be Secretary of Homeland Security. General Kelly has the broad leadership abilities required to manage the various missions of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including the vital mission of ensuring that the national preparedness system has the capability to provide effective response to all hazards.
General Kelly has demonstrated his leadership skills over the years in a variety of postings. He has served as the Marine Corps liaison to Congress and as an aide to two U.S. Secretaries of Defense. He also has held combat commands and served as the commander of the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM). In his leadership of SOUTHCOM, General Kelly provided leadership through a number of diverse missions including disaster response. I believe that General Kelly’s leadership experience will help him to improve coordination of the various components of DHS and help the department to provide better service to its various stakeholders, including the nation’s local fire and emergency service personnel.
The IAFC looks forward to working with the committee to ensure that General Kelly’s nomination is considered in a timely manner. As the terrorist threat evolves, it is important that DHS have experienced leadership to respond to such threat. It also is important to have a leader experienced with responding to the consequences of natural disasters and other risks and challenges. I believe that General Kelly will provide the necessary leadership to help the nation be prepared to respond to all hazards.
Sincerely,
Fire Chief John D. Sinclair
President and Chairman of the Board
