Napolitano to stay for second term as Homeland Security secretary

FILE: November 2, 2012: U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano greets a American Red Cross volunteer while touring storm-damaged Staten Island, N.Y. (REUTERS)

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano will stay in her post for President Obama’s second term, officials said Monday.

Napolitano, who joined the administration in 2009, is a former Democratic governor of Arizona.

Her department oversees such agencies as the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Border Patrol, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Citizenship and Immigration Services. And Napolitano is expected to play an important role in the president’s expected plans for comprehensive reform of laws on illegal immigration.

The announcement that Napolitano would stay had been expected.

“The Department of Homeland Security faces many challenges in maintaining its ability to protect the American people,” said House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas. “From the threat of cyber attacks to securing our border and transportation systems, DHS plays a critical role in developing and executing domestic policy.”