 |
EncyclopediaRidge, TomRidge, Tom (Thomas Joseph Ridge), 1945–, U.S. politician and government official, first secretary of the Dept. of Homeland Security (2003–5), b. Munhall, Pa. A graduate of Harvard (1967) and the Dickinson School of Law (1972) who served (1968–70) in the infantry in Vietnam, Ridge worked in private law practice and became active in the Republican party. In 1982 he was elected to the House of Representatives from Pennsylvania and served six terms. Elected governor of his home state in 1994, he was in his second term when President George W. Bush asked him to head the Office of Homeland Security in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks (see Pentagon, the; World Trade Center). Chosen to head the newly established Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) in 2003, Ridge oversaw the integration of the 22 agencies that were consolidated and reorganized in the DHS. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. More on Tom Ridge from Infoplease:
- Tom Ridge, - Tom Ridge, former governor of Pennsylvania, was sworn in as the country's first secretary of ...
- Tom Ridge, - Tom Ridge, former governor of Pennsylvania, was named director of the Office of Homeland Security ...
- October 2001 - October 2001 World Suicide Bombers Kill Dozens in Kashmir (Oct. 1): Car bomb kills at least 38 in ...
- 2001 News of the Nation - 2001 News of the Nation —Borgna Brunner The transition from the 42nd to 43rd president was ...
- This Day in History: November 25 - November 25 Yesterday Tomorrow 1758 The British captured Fort Duquesne (Pittsburgh) in the French ...
|
|
