Former U.S. Representative Ron Barber and Tohono O’odham Nation Chairman Ned Norris Jr. have been appointed by Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson to the Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC). According to DHS, the Council is comprised of experts who provide recommendations and advice to the Secretary on a variety of homeland security issues.
The new members announced include Barber, and Norris, who are very familiar with the current border security issues as well as Kayyem Solutions, LLC Founder Juliette Kayyem; and Council on Foreign Relations Adjunct Senior Fellow Farah Pandith.
Kayyem began her legal career in 1995 at the DOJ serving as an advisor to then Attorney General Janet Reno until 1999. She was a member of President Obama’s transition team, she then served as DHS Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental Affairs until 2010. In 2013, Kayyem ran for Governor of Massachusetts, but failed to win support after it was revealed that she lied about her voting record. Before that, she was appointed as Massachusetts’ first Undersecretary for Homeland Security by Governor Deval L. Patrick. Kayyem is former Boston Globe columnist, writing op-eds about issues of national security and foreign affairs.
Pandith is an Adjunct Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, and an advisor to the Institute for Strategic Dialogue. She currently leads numerous efforts designed to counter violent extremism through new organizations, programs, and initiatives. Pandith was appointed the first-ever Special Representative to Muslim Communities at the Department of State in June 2009. From 2004 to 2007, she was the Director for Middle East Initiatives at the National Security Council (NSC).