David Peter Pekoske (born May 5, 1955) is an American government official and retired

U.S. Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mul ...

vice admiral who has served as the seventh administrator of the

Transportation Security Administration The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that has authority over the security of transportation systems within, and connecting to the United States. It was created ...

in the

United States Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the Federal government of the United States, U.S. United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the I ...

(DHS) since 2017. He served as the acting

deputy secretary of Homeland Security The deputy secretary of homeland security is the chief operating officer of the United States Department of Homeland Security, with responsibility for managing day-to-day operations. The department has over 208,000 employees and an annual budge ...

from April to November 2019 and again from January to June 2021. From January 20, 2021 to February 2, 2021 he served as acting

secretary of homeland security The United States secretary of homeland security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the federal department tasked with ensuring public safety in the United States. The secretary is a member of the Cabinet of the U ...

, during the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

confirmation of

Alejandro Mayorkas Alejandro Nicholas Mayorkas (born November 24, 1959) is a Cuban-American government official and attorney who has been serving as the seventh United States Secretary of Homeland Security since February 2, 2021. During the Obama administration, h ...

. Pekoske retired with 33 years of active military service in 2010 as the 26th

vice commandant of the Coast Guard The vice commandant of the Coast Guard serves as the second-in-command of the United States Coast Guard, behind only the commandant of the Coast Guard. Since 1929, 31 officers have served as Vice Commandant, or, as the position was referred to ...

Early life and education

Pekoske was born in

Meriden, Connecticut Meriden is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, located halfway between the regional cities of New Haven, Connecticut, New Haven and Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. In 2020, the population of the city was 60,850.United States Coast Guard Academy The United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA) is a service academy of the United States Coast Guard in New London, Connecticut. Founded in 1876, it is the smallest of the five U.S. service academies and provides education to future Coast Gu ...

New London, Connecticut New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut. It was one of the world's three busiest whaling ports for several decades ...

. He is a 1989 graduate of the

School of International and Public Affairs The School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University (SIPA) is the international affairs and public policy school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university located in Morningside Heights, Manhattan, New York City. It ...

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

with a

Master of Public Administration The Master of Public Administration (M.P.Adm., M.P.A., or MPA) is a specialized higher professional post graduate degree in public administration, similar/ equivalent to the Master of Business Administration but with an emphasis on the issues of ...

degree. Pekoske graduated from the

MIT Sloan School of Management The MIT Sloan School of Management (MIT Sloan or Sloan) is the business school of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT Sloan offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degree programs, ...

with an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

in 1997.

Career

Pekoske served as a member of the United States Coast Guard Academy Board of Trustees from 2006 to 2008. His 33-year career included a variety of operational and staff assignments and command of six Coast Guard operational units. He served on the west, gulf and east coasts of the United States and on the Great Lakes. Pekoske's operational expertise was in the operations ashore community. His staff expertise is in strategic planning, program analysis and budget development. Pekoske served Executive Assistant to the Commandant from 2001 to 2004. From 1999 to 2001, he commanded Coast Guard Group/Marine Safety Office (now Sector) Long Island Sound, based in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

Flag assignments

Vice Admiral Pekoske served as Commander, Pacific Area/Coast Guard Defense Forces West in

Alameda, California Alameda ( ; ; Spanish for "Avenue (landscape), tree-lined path") is a city in Alameda County, California, located in the East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), East Bay region of the Bay Area. The city is primarily located on Alameda (island), Alam ...

. He oversaw the operation of units performing missions in marine safety, maritime mobility, protection of natural resources, maritime security,

homeland security Homeland security is an American national security term for "the national effort to ensure a homeland that is safe, secure, and resilient against terrorism and other hazards where American interests, aspirations, and ways of life can thrive" to ...

and national defense in an Area of Operations encompassing over throughout the Pacific Basin and Far East. Prior to that, he was the Assistant Commandant for Operations at Coast Guard Headquarters. From 2004 to 2006 he was Commander of the First Coast Guard District/Maritime Defense Command One headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.

Vice-commandant

Vice Admiral Pekoske served as

vice commandant of the United States Coast Guard The vice commandant of the Coast Guard serves as the second-in-command of the United States Coast Guard, behind only the commandant of the Coast Guard. Since 1929, 31 officers have served as Vice Commandant, or, as the position was referred to b ...

from August 7, 2009 to May 24, 2010. As second in command to Admiral

Thad Allen Thad William Allen (born 16 January 1949) is a former admiral of the United States Coast Guard who served as the 23rd commandant from 2006 to 2010. Allen is best known for his widely praised"Coast Guard's Chief of Staff To Assist FEMA Head Br ...

and COO, Pekoske executed the commandant's strategic intent, managed internal organizational governance and served as the component acquisition executive.

TSA administrator

On June 5, 2017, President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

announced that he had nominated Pekoske as the seventh Administrator of the

. On August 3, 2017, Pekoske was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

as the next TSA administrator. On August 10, 2017, he was sworn in as TSA's seventh administrator. On May 6, 2022, Pekoske was nominated to a second five-year term by President Joe Biden. On September 15, 2022, Pekoske was confirmed by the Senate by a 77-18 vote. In the interim, Pekoske reverted to an acting status.

Acting deputy secretary of homeland security

On April 11, 2019, Pekoske was designated as the senior official performing the duties of the deputy secretary by Acting Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security

Kevin McAleenan Kevin Kealoha McAleenan (born September 5, 1971) is an American attorney and government official who 2019–2020 Department of Homeland Security appointment disputes, unlawfully served as the acting United States secretary of homeland security f ...

, making him the acting deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. Pekoske remained the TSA Administrator, but day-to-day operations of TSA were overseen by TSA's acting deputy administrator, Patricia Cogswell. On November 13, 2019, with the appointment of Ken Cuccinelli as Acting Deputy Secretary, Pekoske returned to his duties as TSA Administrator. Following Alejandro Mayorkas' confirmation and swearing in as secretary, Pekoske served a second time as acting deputy secretary until the confirmation of the permanent deputy secretary, John Tien.

Acting secretary of homeland security

From January 20, 2021 to February 2, 2021, Pekoske was appointed acting secretary of homeland security by President Joe Biden, during the

confirmation of

to the role. While serving as acting secretary, the senior official performing the duties of TSA administrator was Darby LaJoye, TSA's executive assistant administrator for security operations.

Awards

His personal decorations include, among others, two awards of the

Homeland Security Distinguished Service Medal The Homeland Security Distinguished Service Medal is a military decoration of the Department of Homeland Security, which is presented to United States Armed Forces servicemembers for exceptionally meritorious service. The current version of the me ...

Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal The Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal (CGDSM) is a military decoration of the United States Coast Guard that was established 4 August 1949 and is presented to coast guardsmen for "Exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a dut ...

(2), the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

(2), the

Meritorious Service Medal A Meritorious Service Medal is an award presented to denote acts of meritorious service, and sometimes gallantry, that are worthy of recognition. Notable medals with similar names include: *Meritorious Civilian Service Award *Meritorious Service Med ...

(5), the

Coast Guard Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issues its own version of the Commendation Medal, with a fifth ...

(2), the

Coast Guard Achievement Medal The Achievement Medal is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. The Achievement Medal was first proposed as a means to recognize outstanding achievement or meritorious service of military personnel who were not eligible to recei ...

(4) and the

Commandant's Letter of Commendation Ribbon The Commandant's Letter of Commendation Ribbon is a personal military award of the United States Coast Guard. The award was established in March 1979 by Admiral John B. Hayes. Criteria The Commandant's Letter of Commendation Ribbon is awarded t ...

References

External links

* , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Pekoske, David 1955 births Biden administration cabinet members Living people Columbia University alumni MIT Sloan School of Management alumni Recipients of the Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Homeland Security Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit Transportation Security Administration officials Trump administration personnel Biden administration personnel United States Coast Guard admirals Vice Commandants of the United States Coast Guard People from Meriden, Connecticut Military personnel from Connecticut