This week, a Florida congressman took over a congressional subcommittee concerning intelligence and terrorism.
On Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., the chairman of the U.S. House Intelligence Committee, named U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Fla., as chairman of the U.S. House Emerging Threats Subcommittee.
Rooney will preside over a subcommittee with an increasingly expanded portfolio. The Emerging Threats Subcommittee covers the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the various government bodies under its umbrella: the National Counterterrorism Center, the National Counterproliferation Center and the National Counterintelligence and Security Center. The subcommittee also handled the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) national security efforts and intelligence efforts of the federal Departments of State (DOS), Homeland Security (DHS), Energy (DOE), and Treasury (DOT) as well as the Drug Enforcement Administrations (DEA) intelligence efforts.
Nunes praised Rooneys background and his work on the House Intelligence Committee.
Having served with Rep. Rooney on the Intelligence Committee for four years, I am familiar with the many contributions hes made to the committee, to our national security, and to our ability to track down dangerous terrorists, Nunes said on Wednesday. He is an excellent choice to serve as chairman of the Emerging Threats Subcommittee, and I look forward to working with him.
Rooney said he would work with Nunes and U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill., the ranking Democrat on the subcommittee, during his tenure with the gavel.
Our nation faces dangerous threats from around the world, and this subcommittee plays a vital role in ensuring our intelligence community has the tools and resources to identify, track and defeat these threats, Rooney said. I look forward to working with Chairman Nunes and Subcommittee Ranking Member Quigley to conduct thorough oversight of our intelligence programs and promote policies that will keep our nation safe.
First elected to Congress in 2008, Rooney was in the U.S. Army, where he rose to the rank of captain, as part of the JAG Corps, including teaching constitutional and criminal law at West Point.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
