Biden’s homeland security nominee pledges to tackle domestic extremism and prevent another attack on the Capitol Caitlin Dickson Less than two weeks after a violent mob of Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol, Alejandro Mayorkas, President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee for homeland security secretary, assured senators that, if confirmed, he will “tackle the threat of domestic extremism” and prevent future attacks. “I will do everything I can to ensure that the tragic loss of life, the assault on law enforcement, the desecration of the building that stands as one of the three pillars of our democracy, and the terror felt by you, your colleagues, staff and everyone present, will not happen again,” Mayorkas told members of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee during his confirmation hearing on Tuesday. Mayorkas, who previously served as DHS deputy secretary under President Barack Obama, is the son of Cuban Jews who fled Fidel Castro’s regime and arrived in the United States as a refugee in 1960, less than a year after he was born. If confirmed, he would become the first immigrant and first Hispanic American to lead the sprawling department.