Remembering this article is why I asked the question:
Homeland Security Chief nominee has ties to terrorists as defense lawyer; may have enabled attacks
libertarian oday ^ | 1 22 05 | Melissa Johnson and Sander Hicks
Federal Appeals Court Judge Michael Chertoffs ties to the financiers of the Sept. 11 attacks may prevent his confirmation as Homeland Security Chief.
http://freerepublic.info/focus/f-chat/1327033/posts
He's merely following the precedent established by his predecessor, Tom Ridge, whose highest priority following 9/11 was to assure that NAFTA trucks would continue to cross our southern border unimpeded by national security concerns.