WASHINGTON – Roslyn Mazer, the Administration’s nominee to be Inspector General (IG) at the Department of Homeland Security, appeared before the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Tuesday to answer questions about her past experience and vision for the IG’s office.
For the past two and a half years, Mazer has served as IG for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). Before that, she worked as a senior official in the Justice Department’s IG office where she won the Department’s Distinguished Service Award and the President’s Council on Integrity & Efficiency Award for Excellence.
“There is a critical need for DHS to have a strong and effective Inspector General,” Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman, ID-Conn., said. “In nominating Roslyn Mazer, I believe that the President has selected someone who is up to the challenge and will serve effectively in this role.
“I intend to support the nomination,” Lieberman told Mazer. “You have an exemplary record of public service. The Committee has received very strong letters from support from your current and former colleagues, bolstering your lengthy record of experience at the Department of Justice, DNI and in private practice.”
The DHS IG is responsible for overseeing the more than $55 billion in annual Department spending and investigating suspected waste, fraud and abuse of these funds. The IG is also charged with investigating misconduct among DHS employees and recommending ways to improve the efficiency of the Department.
Mazer has received strong support from many figures in the intelligence community, including:
Former Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair
Current DNI James Clapper
DNI Chief Management Officer Mark Ewing
Former White House Counsel and former 9/11 Commission member Fred Fielding
Former Department of Justice Inspector General Glenn Fine
Former Deputy Attorney General and former 9/11 Commission member Jamie Gorelick
Former Acting Attorney General Peter Keisler
Former DNI Intelligence Staff Director LTG John Kimmons (U.S. Army, Ret.)
National Intelligence Council Chairman Christopher Kojm
DNI General Counsel Robert Litt
Treasury Department Inspector General Eric Thorson