Editing Michael Chertoff (section)

===Secretary of Homeland Security===
[[File:Bush delivers statement at Mexican border.jpg|thumb|President Bush discussing [[Mexico–United States border|border]] security with Chertoff near [[El Paso, Texas]], November 2005]]
In late 2004, [[Bernard Kerik]] was forced to decline President Bush's offer to replace [[Tom Ridge]], the outgoing Secretary of Homeland Security. After a lengthy search to find a suitable replacement, Bush nominated Chertoff to the post in January 2005, citing his experience with post-9/11 terror legislation. He was unanimously approved for the position by the [[United States Senate]] on February 15, 2005.<ref name="newchief">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4165507.stm|title= Bush names new US security chief|date=January 11, 2005|publisher=BBC|access-date=October 15, 2008}}</ref>

[[Hurricane Katrina]] occurred while Chertoff was Secretary of Homeland Security. The Department was criticized for its lack of preparation in advance of the well-forecast hurricane; most criticism was directed toward the [[Federal Emergency Management Agency]].<ref>[http://www.gpoaccess.gov/katrinareport/execsummary.pdf Executive Summary, Select Bipartisan Committee to Investigate the Preparation for and Response to Hurricane Katrina] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120211115815/http://www.gpoaccess.gov/katrinareport/execsummary.pdf |date=February 11, 2012 }}, 2006-2-15, Retrieved June 11, 2007</ref> DHS in general, and Chertoff in particular, were criticized for responding poorly to the disaster, ignoring crucial information about the catastrophic nature of the storm and devoting little attention to the federal response to what became the most costly disaster in American history.<ref>Christopher Cooper and Robert Block. 2006. ''Disaster : Hurricane Katrina and the Failure of Homeland Security.'' New York: Times Books, 2006.</ref>

Chertoff was the Bush administration's point man for pushing the comprehensive immigration reform bill, a measure that stalled in the Senate in June 2007.<ref>[https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10876256 "Chertoff, Bush Look for Next Move on Immigration"], NPR, June 8, 2007</ref>

Chertoff was asked by the [[presidency of Barack Obama|Obama administration]] to stay in his post until 9 a.m. on January 21, 2009, (one day after President Obama's inauguration) "to ensure a smooth transition".<ref>"[https://archive.today/20120717171405/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/01/19/bush_homeland_security_officia.html?wprss=44 Bush Homeland Security Officials to Stay on Till Weds.]", Washington Post, January 19, 2009 (accessed January 21, 2009).</ref>

====Construction of border fence====
Under Chertoff's leadership, the Department of Homeland Security constructed hundreds of miles of fencing along the border between the United States and Mexico. On April 8, 2008, Chertoff issued waivers allowing the Department of Homeland Security to "bypass environmental reviews to speed construction of fencing along the Mexican border". ''The New York Times'' reported that pursuant to the Secure Fence Act of 2006, "the department was authorized to build up to 700 miles of fencing along the 2,000-mile Southwest border, where most illegal immigrants cross". Congress had granted Chertoff waiver authority in 2005,<ref name="auto">{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-mexico-fence-idUSN2348167320080623|title=Court rejects challenge to Arizona border fence|first=James|last=Vicini|newspaper=Reuters|date=June 23, 2008|via=www.reuters.com}}</ref> but the ''Times'' described his actions as an expansion of his waiver authority.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/02/us/02fence.html|title=Government Issues Waiver for Fencing Along Border|work=The New York Times|last=Archibold|first=Randal|date=April 2, 2008|access-date=December 7, 2020}}</ref> According to ''Times'' columnist [[Adam Liptak]], Chertoff's action excluded the Department of Homeland Security from having to follow laws "protecting the environment, [[endangered species]], [[migratory bird]]s, the [[bald eagle]], antiquities, farms, deserts, forests, [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] graves and religious freedom."<ref name="liptack">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/08/us/08bar.html |title=Power to Build Border Fence Is Above U.S. Law|last=Liptak|first=Adam|date=April 8, 2008|work=The New York Times|access-date=October 15, 2008}}</ref> In an editorial, the ''Times'' criticized Chertoff for his use of waiver authority, stating: "To the long list of things the Bush administration is willing to trash in its rush to appease immigration hard-liners, you can now add dozens of important environmental laws and hundreds of thousands of acres of fragile habitat on the southern border."<ref name="op-ed">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/03/opinion/03thu3.html|title=Michael Chertoff's Insult |last=Editorial|date=April 3, 2008|work=The New York Times|access-date=October 15, 2008}}</ref>

A report issued by the [[Congressional Research Service]], the non-partisan research division of the [[Library of Congress]], said that the unchecked delegation of powers to Chertoff was unprecedented:

<blockquote>After a review of federal law, primarily through electronic database searches and consultations with various CRS experts, we were unable to locate a waiver provision identical to that of §102 of H.R. 418—i.e., a provision that contains 'notwithstanding' language, provides a secretary of an executive agency the authority to waive all laws such secretary determines necessary, and directs the secretary to waive such laws.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://graphics8.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/national/20080408_CRS_report.pdf |title=Plaintiffs' Exhibit 2 | work=[[The New York Times]] | access-date=May 12, 2010}}</ref></blockquote>

On June 23, 2008, the [[Supreme Court of the United States]] declined to hear a constitutional challenge to the 2005 law that gave Chertoff waiver authority.<ref name="auto"/>

====Actions regarding illegal immigration====
In September 2007, Chertoff told a [[United States House of Representatives|House]] committee that the DHS would not tolerate interference by [[Sanctuary city|sanctuary cities]] that would block the "Basic Pilot Program", which requires some types of employers to validate the legal status of their workers.<ref>[https://www.dhs.gov/xprevprot/programs/gc_1185221678150.shtm#1 DHS - EVerify] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110309034700/http://www.dhs.gov/xprevprot/programs/gc_1185221678150.shtm#1 |date=March 9, 2011 }} "DHS website" December 1, 2007</ref>

In 2008 it was reported that the residential housekeeping company Chertoff had hired to clean his house employed undocumented immigrants.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2008/12/11/chertoff-used-cleaning-company-hired-illegal-immigrants/ | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081212205723/http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2008/12/11/chertoff-used-cleaning-company-hired-illegal-immigrants/ | url-status=dead | archive-date=December 12, 2008 | work=Fox News | title=Chertoff Used Cleaning Company That Hired Illegal Immigrants | date=December 11, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2008/12/11/Illegal-immigrants-cleaned-Chertoffs-home/UPI-55761229009653/ |title=UPI.com |publisher=UPI.com |date=December 11, 2008 |access-date=August 28, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/10/AR2008121003524.html | newspaper=The Washington Post | title=Cleaning Service Used by Chertoff Calls Immigration Laws Unfair | first=Spencer S. | last=Hsu | date=December 11, 2008 | access-date=May 12, 2010}}</ref>