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The next U.S. secretary of Homeland Security

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What are the chances that the new Obama administration will push for a comprehensive approach to immigration reform at the federal level? The first clue arrived yesterday with the nomination of Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano. Although Napolitano, 51, signed the Arizona illegal worker law that employer groups, including nursery groups, have bitterly opposed, she has also consistently been on record in favor of comprehensive reform and guest worker programs. Coverage:

Also of note is an opinion column by Mary Sanchez of the Kansas City Star, in which Sanchez praises the appointment:

Under the Obama administration, the secretary of Homeland Security will be well positioned to encourage the necessary shifts in attitude, so that policy begins to match some of our nation’s most cherished beliefs about ourselves. Such as that we are “a nation of immigrants” and the “land of opportunity.”

If confirmed, Napolitano will replace current DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff.

  • From President-elect Barack Obama’s prepared remarks: <BR/><BR/>"Janet Napolitano offers the experience and executive skill that we need in the next secretary of Homeland Security. She has spent her career protecting people – as a U.S. Attorney, an attorney general, and as governor of Arizona. She understands the need for a Department of Homeland Security that has the capacity to help prevent