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USA TODAY SPECIAL EDITION
LEADING THE MISSION
JUSTIN SULLIVAN/GETTY IMAGES
Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke gives a briefing at a news conference in September at Ellington Airport in Houston on response and recovery efforts in the region after Hurricane Harvey devastated the southern part of the state. Duke will continue to helm the agency until a permanent secretary is confirmed.
CONSTANT VIGILANCE Elaine Duke tackles tough issues in top job at DHS By Patricia Kime
C
AREER CIVIL SERVANT ELAINE Duke was sworn in as deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security in April and began serving as acting secretary in late July, when then-Secretary John Kelly moved to the White House as chief of staff. In her short tenure, Duke has overseen cleanup from three major hurricanes, the response to a terrorist
attack in New York City, an announcement to end temporary residency for 5,000 Nicaraguans living in the U.S. under a hurricane relief program and a new ban that restricts travel to the U.S. from eight countries. Duke spoke to USA TODAY in November to discuss these issues and others facing the 15-year-old department, which employs more than 240,000 people and is responsible for protecting the homeland from threats on the ground, in the air, along the borders and in cyberspace.