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Senate committee approves Ridge nominationRidge cites 'long struggle' against terrorism
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A Senate committee Friday approved the nomination of Tom Ridge to head the massive new Cabinet-level Homeland Security Department, created last year in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks. The full Senate was expected to vote next week, possibly Tuesday, on his nomination. During the confirmation hearing, Ridge told lawmakers that the country is safer, but there remains "a long journey to undertake" to protect the nation from further terrorist attacks. "In spite of everything we have done, we are only at the beginning of what will be a long struggle to protect this country from terrorism," Ridge told the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, which cleared his nomination on a voice vote with no opposition. For the past 15 months, Ridge -- a 57-year-old veteran Republican politician -- has served as director of the White House Office of Homeland Security. Critics say its principal achievement has been the creation of a color-coded warning system. Ridge, a former governor of Pennsylvania and six-term member of the House of Representatives, noted that border patrols and airport screenings have been tightened and plans to vaccinate "first responders" have been set in motion. Bush originally resisted efforts to form the new agency, and Ridge is credited with persuading him to change his mind. The September 11 attacks exposed security lapses and intelligence failures, and led to calls for sweeping changes to the nation's defense, intelligence and law enforcement sectors. Though the Harvard graduate said it was "premature" to share details of the new department's organization plan, he said it will focus on preventing terrorist attacks, reducing the nation's vulnerability to such attacks, and minimizing the loss of life and delay in recovery from such attacks. The department will combine 180,000 people from 22 departments in "the largest and most significant transformation of government in over half a century," said Ridge, a decorated Vietnam combat veteran. But the department alone "will not in and of itself be able to stop all attempts by those who wish to do us harm," he said, adding that there needs to be a "shared responsibility" between all levels of government "for homeland security to be effective." Ridge said the sprawling department will be divided into four main sections: border and transportation security, information analysis and infrastructure protection, emergency preparedness and science and technology. The Coast Guard and the Secret Service will remain independent. Ridge applauded the work done by the Transportation Security Administration at the nation's airports, but said more progress needs to be made in other areas, particularly ports. The nation's ports are not as vulnerable as they may appear, he said. Though only 2 percent to 3 percent of the 17 million containers that enter U.S. ports each year are screened, "the American people should know that they're inspected not on whimsy," Ridge said. "It is a fairly sophisticated targeting system the Coast Guard has developed over the past couple of years." The department will work "at all levels" with the CIA, the FBI and the National Security Agency "to get the intelligence information we need to get the job done," he said. But the primary responsibility for analyzing foreign intelligence will continue to rest with the CIA, he said. Ridge said he did not support the creation of a new domestic intelligence agency. "There is no need for a new domestic intelligence agency or counterterrorism agency; that's the role the president assigned to the FBI," he said. When a Democratic senator raised questions about whether whistleblowers in the agency would enjoy the same protections that other federal employees enjoy, Ridge promised to work "to clarify that language." Under the president's proposed budget, more than $38 billion will be devoted to homeland security, with nearly $6 billion spent to defend against bioterrorism and about $7 billion on border security enhancements, he said. Critics believe the new department will create needless overlap, borrowing employees from existing government agencies like the Coast Guard and the Border Patrol -- departments which critics believe should simply be strengthened. Proponents say it will focus greater attention and resources on security in the United States, and minimize overlapping or conflicting missions.
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