At this moment, she is Tampa Bay's most influential export. A smart, accomplished and powerful attorney making life-altering decisions on an international stage.
But what of tomorrow? And the day after?
When the story of President Donald Trump's border policy is one day written, what will history have to say of Clearwater's Kirstjen Nielsen?
The graduate of Berkeley Prep has been the secretary of Homeland Security for six months, and has been under siege nearly the entire time.
First, it was Trump berating her in Cabinet meetings for failing to stop border crossings, and now it is legislators, religious leaders, a former first lady and observers worldwide condemning her agency's practice of separating children from their parents as they attempt to enter the United States.
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Nilsen, 46, spent a lifetime ascending the D.C. power structure — from Georgetown student, to an aide in Sen. Connie Mack's office, to a special assistant in George W. Bush's White House, to being called a "superstar'' by Trump's chief of staff — only to land atop this ragged cliff.
And, at this point, it's hard to imagine a safe landing.
A recent New York Times report suggests Nielsen has clashed with Trump over the administration's decisions and has contemplated resigning. That, however, is not the public face she has presented.
Nielsen took to Twitter on Sunday to deny the separation of families was a policy. Then she turned around on Monday and defended it as a law-abiding plan.
In reality, all her explanations are disingenuous representations of the truth.
While there may not be an official policy of ripping children from the arms of parents, that is the de facto result of a stance taken by the Trump White House two months ago to prosecute every adult illegally crossing the border.
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And while Trump tries to blame others for the tragedy, his own appointees acknowledge it is part of a broader White House strategy. The attorney general, the president's chief of staff, his senior policy adviser and Nielsen herself have described the tactic as an effective deterrent for illegal immigrants.
In other words, make entry into the U.S. too horrifying to consider.
Is this what we've become? Has win-at-all-costs politics become so pervasive that Trump believes the lives of 3- and 4-year-old children are fair game as bargaining chips?
No one is saying that immigration reform isn't necessary, or that Congress hasn't perpetuated the problem. But in what world is it reasonable to replace an ineffective and toothless border policy with a plan that instead is ineffective and inhumane?
For most of us, this is a theoretical argument.
For Nielsen, it is the moment of truth.
If, as the New York Times reporting indicates, she has tried to be a voice of reason in the administration, it is now clear that the time has passed. The decision was made, and the damage has been done.
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She has lived it, enforced it and defended it for a month, but now the world is awakening to the cruelty and reality of crying babies and toddlers being taken from the arms of parents while the likes of Fox News suggests we're seeing child actors.
If Nielsen continues on this path, her legacy will forever be tied to Trump.
Loyalty or morality.
The choice is hers.