Napolitano: No Credible Super Bowl Threat

Jan. 30, 2009 — -- There are no credible threats to Sunday's Super Bowl in Tampa, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said in an interview Friday with ABC News.

But security for the event will be very tight, with representatives from multiple federal agencies -- including the FBI; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Customs and Border Protection; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Coast Guard -- working to secure the area along with state and local police.

Napolitano, who just finished her first full week on the job as the third Homeland Security Secretary, said of the flurry of intelligence and threat briefings she has been receiving: "It's very sobering."

Asked what concerns her most, Napolitano said, "The greatest threat is the multiplicity of things that could happen, the different ways they could happen and the realization that we can do everything reasonable to protect the homeland but still threats can exist.

"What we need to do as a country is prepare, exercise and not become complacent as we go about our daily business," Napolitano said in the interview. "Part of my job as secretary is to achieve that balance."

Asked specifically about the threat from al Qaeda, Napolitano said, "There has been some impacts on al Qaeda ... but there is no doubt that al Qaeda is still a presence and has multiple forms in different parts of the world."

Napolitano, who was most recently the governor of Arizona -- the state that hosted 2008's Super Bowl -- broke with President Obama, who is rooting for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and was clearly pulling for the Arizona Cardinals.

"I'm a big supporter of the commander in chief," Napolitano said, "I'm his secretary of homeland security, but I think it is my duty and responsibility to advise him when he's just wrong. This is the Cardinals."

Napolitano said that she will remain in Washington for the game, but "will be kept apprised if anything of a security aspect happens."

On a lighter note, she said, "I'll be with some fellow Arizonans cheering our team on."