Adfero Group HSPI

I had the privilege this past weekend to do several non-Beltway speaking engagements in Michigan. I spoke about 9/11, the war in Iraq and Afganistan, my old boss (Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld), terrorism and cybersecurity. These groups proved to be articulate, well educated and positively starving for information they expected to come from their government. But that did not surprise me as much as the fact that by far I received the most questions about cybersecurity.

If you wanted an example of Congressional oversight gone amuck, all you had to do was watch the April 27 hearing of DHS Secretary Napolitano in front of the Senate’s Judiciary Committee. I had hopes the hearing might possibly tackle the cumbersome issue of Congressional oversight. My hopes were quickly crushed as the hearing did not come close to dealing with this issue. Instead the hearing ended up being a potpourri of questions fired at the Secretary on the issues du jour that were on each of the Senators minds.

Secretary Napolitano has spent considerable time of late getting in front of higher education leaders and students. From her speech at Harvard’s Kennedy School on resilience to meeting with nearly ten university presidents, a significant portion of her valuable time has been spent talking about DHS and the homeland security community’s critical needs that will have to be satisfied by the next generation’s workforce. We cannot hope to build a resilient society and create a culture of preparedness if we do not look after the roots of our nation’s educational system, and investing in America’s K-12 teachers is a way to do it.

A couple of weeks ago, right after the final Health Care Bill vote, I was asked by some friends and business colleagues what I thought the chances were for Congress to tackle immigration reform this year. I looked at them, laughed and said, “Are you kidding?” Regardless of what political prognosticators and TV pundits may say, to me this was a no-win issue for Democrats and Republicans and both sides would avoid it at all costs before November’s mid-term elections. But the Arizona Governor’s signature last week of the toughest immigration bill in the country is literally forcing the hands of both political parties to skate on perilously thin ice in an election year when it comes to their political bases.

The determination to proceed with the Prompt Global Strike (PGS) weapon system by the Obama Administration, as reported by the New York Times, raises interesting questions about the long-term future of nuclear weapons. PGS is effectively a tactical nuclear weapon without the messy nuclear after-effects. The system definitely has its advocates and detractors, its good points and bad. However, in a world the President is determined to make nuclear free, it is a step in the right direction.

Last week the Arizona legislature voted for, and Governor Jan Brewer signed, a strict new anti-illegal immigration law that, among other things, requires law enforcement officers in the state to arrest people they encounter in official efforts who are illegally present in the United States. Tossing aside potential federalism issues with the state law, the fact that a state has felt the need to adopt legislation for what we all agree is a basic federal government responsibility – protecting our borders – is alarming and telling of the paralysis in Washington.

On March 29, two suicide bombings targeting Moscow’s subway system killed dozens and injured many others. The bombs reverberated here in the United States. New York immediately beefed up its subway security. Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CN) warned all Americans to be extra-vigilant on buses and trains. However, the American response to the Moscow bombings misses the real terrorist threat to the United States. U.S. intelligence should prioritize and focus on America’s most dangerous enemies. Here is a list of the groups posing the most immediate threat to the United States.

I thought you might be interested in an editorial I wrote for a CNBC special report on marijuana, money and the issue of legalization.

Today we need to remember one of the major acts of terrorism that happened here at home – the bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building. The truly scary part is that these terrorists were Americans and they killed Americans – homegrown domestic terrorists who were mad at the government and took the lives of 168 American men, women and children. I hope that others join me in remembering those who died that day. Let us not ever forget that day, as it marks the first awakening and a change in our way of life.

There are instances in crowd management situations where force is appropriate, but simply because it’s a crowd management situation doesn’t mean that force is automatically appropriate. The University of Maryland incident last month wasn’t a riot; it was a celebration, but a college student was severely beaten by police officers nevertheless. The long-term implications of the ongoing investigation must be a rethink of crowd management in the United States, because the current systems predispose police officers towards violence and the abrogation of First Amendment rights where neither is appropriate. The most urgent capability gap is an understanding of, and means to manage, people who are non-violent and non-compliant.

It is a curious thing that the mainstream media seems largely unaware of – or perhaps uninterested in – a major new benchmark in the air cargo security realm that is two weeks away. As of May 1, passenger airlines must screen 75 percent of all air cargo before it can be boarded. This benchmark is meant to wake the industry up to the approaching congressionally mandated requirement that 100 percent of all air cargo transported on passenger planes be screened. To ratchet up to 75 percent, airlines will have to start breaking down the large pallets of cargo and screen each piece individually. This is not an easy task, and it certainly is not a quick one.

Cybersecurity remains a key issue in the nation’s security. Numerous stories in the news show that while big things are happening, we badly need them to move in a positive direction, and soon. We have passed this ball between the branches of our government for far too long. Decisions need to be made and action taken. As an optimist by nature, I believe that we are now more secure than we were a few years ago. Unfortunately, the threats are growing faster than we can react to them. All of the imagination and intellectual power of this great nation must be unleashed on this problem.

Here is what is wrong with the Nuclear Security Summit. It reminds me of the old joke about the drunk looking for his keys under a lamppost when he actually lost them around the corner, but he looked under the lamppost because “the light was better.” If it seems like I am arguing the whole thing was for show…to suggest that the President’s road to zero is going somewhere rather than no where…well yes, that is where I think it is going.

The BioDefense Conference will be held on May 3rd and 4th at the Capital Hilton in DC.

For the next couple of days, downtown Washington is the literal capital of the world. With over forty heads of state in town for President Obama’s Nuclear Summit, discussing ways to enhance the planet’s overall nuclear security interests, more eyes are upon the National Capital Region than usual. While it is certainly historic and honorable to host this many leaders, it is also a tremendous cost and disruption to those of us who live and work in the area. While NSSE’s have existed for years, they cause tremendous disruption to the day-to-day life and operation in the communities where they take place.

In only a few years, cybersecurity has developed from a concept that sounded like science fiction to one of the federal government’s major concerns. The threats are real, they are pervasive, they are persistent and they are sophisticated. The overarching nature of the issue – affecting nearly every aspect of our highly networked lives – makes it the ultimate strategic issue for Washington. While cyber is a strategic issue for Washington’s leaders, for the embattled leaders of our cities, cyber is local and very tactical. That said, how do the leaders of our municipalities look at this issue?

By Chris Krebs
Over the weekend, the Houston Chronicle added some fuel to the smoldering chemical security legislation fire with an article claiming that DHS has inspected only 12 of 6,000 facilities requiring special security measures. But DHS’s chemical security activities take a multilayered approach to protection and resilience that relies on public private partnerships and interagency coordination.

Unanimous praise is being lavished on the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) for its announcement last Friday of enhanced passenger screening protocols for all passengers traveling to the U.S. from abroad. While this appears to be a step in the right direction, this provides an excellent opportunity to step back and take a look at the real threat TSA faces – the threat from inbound international flights. With that in mind, it’s telling to examine what TSA is doing and spending on its international efforts.

I was privileged to attend a super event at the Center for Strategic and International Studies on Monday. They hosted Vice Adm. Barry McCullough, Commander of U.S. Fleet Cyber Command and U.S. 10th Fleet (both Navy cyber organizations). It was in the main a normal “command brief,” but McCullough’s forthrightness made it much more. McCullough opened his remarks by telling the industry audience that after several months, he is beginning to understand the problem set. He emphasized that anyone who thinks there is a quick technological fix to our cyber challenges is dreaming.

The Department of Homeland Security released new international aviation security directives. In Washington, a Friday (especially Good Friday) release always raises red flags. Even more curious, the press statement also announced the release of a “Surface Transportation Security Assessment.” Why the two initiatives were released at the same time is baffling. With most of the country’s attention on how the Administration is improving international security screening protocols, this announcement is a bit like hearing from your doctor that he’s found a cure for your cancer and your athlete’s foot too.