Homeland Security Advisor

Deputy Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism
Incumbent Doug Fears since June 1, 2018
Executive Office of the President Homeland Security Council staff
Appointer	The President
Constituting instrument	The post is defined by executive order.
Formation	2001
First holder	Tom Ridge
Deputy	Deputy Homeland Security Advisor
Website	The White House

The Deputy Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, commonly referred to as the Homeland Security Advisor and formerly holding the title of Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, is a senior aide in the Executive Office of the President, based in the West Wing of the White House, who serves as the chief in-house advisor to the President of the United States on homeland security and counterterrorism issues. The Homeland Security Advisor is a statutory member of the Homeland Security Council. Serving at the pleasure of the President, the Homeland Security Advisor does not require Senate confirmation for appointment to the office.

History

In the immediate aftermath of the September 11 attacks, President George W. Bush created the interim Office of Homeland Security as a cabinet-level office in a speech to a joint session of Congress. He appointed Tom Ridge as its first Director. The Homeland Security Council was formally created on October 5, 2001, replacing the Office of Homeland Security.

Under the George W. Bush administration, the Homeland Security Advisor was independent of the National Security Council, residing within the Homeland Security Council. Under the Obama administration, while the Homeland Security Council remained, the Advisor held the title of Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, subordinating the position to the National Security Advisor.

At the start of the Trump administration, the position of Homeland Security Advisor, occupied by Tom Bossert, was elevated to the rank of Assistant to the President, making it equal in rank to the National Security Advisor. However, after clashes with the National Security Advisor, John Bolton, the position returned to the rank of Deputy Assistant to the President and was subordinate to the National Security Advisor.

The current Homeland Security Advisor is Doug Fears, who was announced on June 1, 2018.

List of Homeland Security Advisors

  Democratic   Republican   Political Independent / Unknown

  Denotes an Acting Homeland Security Advisor

No.	Portrait	Name	Term		Days served	President served under
			Start	End
rowspan="2" style="background:Template:Republican Party (United States)/meta/color;" |1	Official title: Assistant to the President for Homeland Security					rowspan="8" style="background: Template:Republican Party (United States)/meta/color;" |	George W. Bush
	Tom Ridge	September 20, 2001	January 24, 2003	491
rowspan="2" style="background:Template:Independent (politician)/meta/color;" |2	Official title: Assistant to the President for Homeland Security
	John A. Gordon	April 30, 2003	May 28, 2004	394
rowspan="2" style="background:Template:Republican Party (United States)/meta/color;" |3	Official title: Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism
	Frances Townsend	May 28, 2004	March 30, 2008	1402
rowspan="2" style="background:Template:Republican Party (United States)/meta/color;" |4	Official title: Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism
	Kenneth L. Wainstein	March 30, 2008	January 20, 2009	296
rowspan="2" style="background:Template:Independent (politician)/meta/color;" |5	Official title: Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism					rowspan="4" style="background: Template:Democratic Party (United States)/meta/color;" |	Barack Obama
	John O. Brennan	January 20, 2009	January 25, 2013	1466
rowspan="2" style="background:Template:Democratic Party (United States)/meta/color;" |6	Official title: Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism
	Lisa Monaco	January 25, 2013	January 20, 2017	1456
rowspan="2" style="background:Template:Republican Party (United States)/meta/color;" |7	Official title: Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism					rowspan="6" style="background: Template:Republican Party (United States)/meta/color;" |	Donald Trump
	Tom Bossert	January 20, 2017	April 10, 2018	414
–	Official title: Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism
		Rob Joyce Acting	April 10, 2018	May 31, 2018	51
rowspan="2" style="background:Template:Independent (politician)/meta/color;" |8	Official title: Deputy Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism
	Doug Fears	June 1, 2018	Incumbent	2176

See also

• Homeland Security Council
• National Security Advisor
• United States National Security Council
• Executive Office of the President