Corruption and incompetence and politicians pushing mission that changes with the wind is debilitating to conscientious employees. DHS is too big. Tommy Ridge had a lot to do with DHS just as he had a lot to do with putting PA in the dumps fiscally with his govt pension increases. He is living fat on the hog like most pols.
One day it was non-existent....the next day, they had thousands of open billets. They basically hired up cops from around the nation, without much management expertise and background on a national organization like this. These people walked in and took up GS-13/14 slots....within a year a fair number got promoted, and more ‘newbies’ were hired down the line. Rather than finding logical thinking or process-management....these are people with their own agenda....hiring buddies and bringing them to DC. Maybe in fifty years, it’ll work itself out, but presently, you’d have to be crazy to stick around for twenty-odd years and do some career within DHS.