Homeland Security nominee gets advice from Ridge on tech issues

As the Senate prepares to debate the nomination of U.S. Appeals Judge Michael Chertoff to head the Homeland Security Department, outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge has a litany of suggestions for his successor.

Ridge said integrating information technology at Homeland Security is a top priority for the incoming secretary, as are procurement, research and development, and creating a single personnel system. Chertoff is expected to win Senate confirmation to replace Ridge in February.

Ridge said the new secretary also must work with other countries to develop common biometric standards for travelers, such as scanned fingerprints, digital photographs or iris scans to confirm identities. And the department should concentrate on making information sharing between governments more transparent and the latest scientific devices "sought and shared."

On negotiating with the European Union for international security initiatives, Ridge said his successor and Congress must understand that directing U.S. laws at some countries within the European Union, but not others, is seen as discriminatory under EU law. Ridge mentioned visa waivers for foreign visitors from key U.S. allies.

Ridge said the United States must "take the lead" on international security initiatives such as requiring that all 10 fingerprints be imbedded in U.S. passports. "It's a lot easier to negotiate with our allies if you've already done what you're asking for," he said.

If confirmed, Chertoff also will have to address e-government initiatives. The White House Office of Management and Budget in September gave the department a "yellow" score for "mixed results" on that front.

To advance the department's technology-centric programs, James Carafano, a Homeland Security analyst at the Heritage Foundation, said the incoming secretary must have honed leadership skills.

"[The secretary] doesn't necessarily have to be a 'wire-head'," Carafano said, but he added that unless the appointee personally helps oversee tech programs, the initiatives often lose focus.

Chertoff served as a federal prosecutor in New Jersey and as the Senate Republicans' chief counsel for the Clinton-era Whitewater investigation. As head of the Justice Department's criminal division in June 2001, Chertoff sought authority for tougher penalties on computer criminals and to investigate computer crimes. He also sought an update to wiretapping law.

In 2003, Chertoff successfully argued the government's case against terrorism suspect Zacarias Moussaoui. And Chertoff played a significant role in developing the anti-terrorism law known as the USA PATRIOT Act, parts of which face renewal in the 109th Congress.

Homeland Security has had management conflicts, budget problems and missed deadlines on initiatives like integrating the watch lists of suspected terrorists, so Chertoff would face those challenges.

The new secretary also will have to help implement intelligence reforms signed into law last month. The law calls for a new national counter-terrorism center that will incorporate the current Terrorist Threat Integration Center and advanced explosive-detection machines at the nation's airports, among other new technologies.

The secretary will take the reins of fledgling initiatives like US-VISIT, a nationwide biometrics program that tracks foreign visitors entering and exiting the country. And Ridge's successor will have responsibility for cyber-security initiatives and for several databases used to share intelligence across law enforcement agencies.