Jan. 11 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush named federal appeals court judge Michael Chertoff as his nominee to be the new secretary of the U.S. Homeland Security Department.

``I am confident that he will be a strong and effective leader for the Department of Homeland Security,'' Bush said.

A former U.S. attorney for New Jersey, Chertoff also served as the chief of Justice Department's criminal division. In that post, Chertoff played a central role in developing the U.S. legal response to the Sept. 11 attacks, including the USA Patriot Act, which gave law enforcement new surveillance and investigatory powers.

Chertoff, 51, also headed a team of lawyers who prosecuted the accounting firm Arthur Andersen LLP for destroying documents related to its audits of Enron Corp., the energy-trading company that collapsed after using accounting tricks to inflate results.

The Homeland Security Department, created in November 2002, is charged with preventing terrorist attacks and coordinating the response if an attack occurs. It is responsible for securing U.S. borders and transportation and includes the U.S. Coast Guard and the Secret Service.

To contact the reporters on this story: Holly Rosenkrantz in Washington hrosenkrantz@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: January 11, 2005 10:10 EST