Secretary Noem Issues Statement of Support to Create a Secretary of the United States Coast Guard

WASHINGTON – Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem publicly endorsed a letter delivered by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth supporting the creation of a Secretary of the United States Coast Guard.

The Coast Guard’s broad and specialized mission gives it duties as both a federal law enforcement agency and a branch of the U.S. military. The Coast Guard has lacked a civilian Service Secretary to lead its force, direct policy, and set strategic goals. As part of a full-scale effort to revitalize the Coast Guard, Secretary Noem is requesting Congress to create a Secretary of the Coast Guard.

“The Coast Guard is the tip of the spear in the fight to protect our Homeland,” said Secretary Noem. “Every day, they are taking down drug smugglers, going toe-to-toe with our adversaries in the Arctic and the Pacific, and saving lives. Having a Secretary of the Coast Guard will be essential for President Trump’s mandate to rebuild the Service into the finest maritime fighting force in the world. I emphatically endorse and support Secretary Hegseth’s recommendation and look forward to working with him, President Trump, and Congress to make this a reality.”

The other five branches in the Armed Service are led by civilian Service Secretaries, who direct policy, represent the Service to Congress and other branches of government, and carry out the President’s agenda.

Having a service secretary will better equip the Coast Guard to conduct its already successful joint operations with other branches of the armed forces. Under Title 14, Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachments (LEDETs) provide powerful law enforcement authority and capability against Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Transnational Criminal Organizations, to include vessels engaged in illicit drug and human trafficking. LEDETs are the Coast Guard's interdiction boarding experts that expand the Service’s law enforcement capability to naval and partner nation assets who lack organic authority. Recent examples of this coordination include LEDETs embarked on the USS Cole and USS Minneapolis-St. Paul, on the USS Sampson, on the USS Gravely, and numerous others.

"We recognize and deeply value the Department of Homeland Security’s stewardship of the Coast Guard’s multi-mission character and its unique homeland security capabilities,” said Secretary Hegseth in his letter to Secretary Noem. “The Department of War believes that the establishment of a Secretary of the Coast Guard can complement and reinforce these strengths while ensuring that, in times of peace or war, the Service is postured to support the full spectrum of national security operations.”

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