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Congress and Politics

Senators Seek Assurances On Accuracy Of Training On Islamist Extremism

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March 30, 2011

Senators Seek Assurances On Accuracy Of Training On Islamist Extremism – HSToday
While the chair of the House Homeland Security Committee has stirred up a lot of attention with a fairly benign hearing on Islamist extremism, the heads of the Senate homeland security committee have largely passed under the radar with their low-key but no less persistent insistence that the federal government address the threat of homegrown terrorism among Muslims.

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Revisiting Immigration

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March 29, 2011

Revisiting Immigration – HSToday
In the closing moments of 2010, congressional Democrats made a last-minute attempt to pass an immigration reform bill that potentially would have provided a path to legalization for millions of young college students and military service members whose parents brought them into the United States illegally. They failed.

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FOIA Foibles at DHS

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March 29, 2011

From my time in government at NASA and DHS, there was an adage I remember: “Don’t put anything in an e-mail or in writing that you are not prepared to defend if it ends up in the Washington Post.” That was healthy advice that I’m sure members of the Napolitano team got when they entered the Nebraska Avenue Complex. But they seem to have forgotten those words and found congressional trouble over FOIA requests.

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F.B.I. Casts Wide Net Under Relaxed Rules for Terror Inquiries, Data Show

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March 28, 2011

F.B.I. Casts Wide Net Under Relaxed Rules for Terror Inquiries, Data Show – The New York Times
Within months after the Bush administration relaxed limits on domestic-intelligence gathering in late 2008, the F.B.I. assessed thousands of people and groups in search of evidence that they might be criminals or terrorists, a newly disclosed Justice Department document shows.

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The Constitution Project Working to Uphold Rule of Law

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March 28, 2011

I recently joined the board of directors for The Constitution Project, a think tank that provides scholarship and bipartisan policy recommendations on constitutional issues in the criminal justice and rule of law arenas. Maintaining an effective criminal justice system and upholding the Constitution requires a collective effort from throughout the public and private sectors, and the Constitution Project supports this.

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Blue-Ribbon Panel Calls For Airport Screening Reforms

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March 22, 2011

Blue-Ribbon Panel Calls For Airport Screening Reforms – HSToday
The current aviation security system is discouraging Ameri­cans from flying and contributing to a decline in productivity among those who do fly, according to a report put together by a blue ribbon panel.

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CBP's Predator UAV Use Raises More Questions, Answers Elusive

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March 22, 2011

Last week, as the world was focused on the crisis in Japan and the military action in Libya, the Associated Press reported on the use of Predator UAVs to help Mexican authorities in their war on drug cartels. Yet, at a conference at MIT’s Lincoln Labs on Homeland Security technology, I learned that the Predator was ineffective for wide-area surveillance during the Deep Water Horizon disaster. It was scrapped after less than two weeks. Congress should look closely at the cost/benefit of UAVs and how their use in Mexico deviates from the DHS mission.

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How Bad Communication Is Undermining Japan's Crisis Response

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March 18, 2011

How Bad Communication Is Undermining Japan’s Crisis Response – David S. Abraham – International – The Atlantic No doubt, the Japanese people are resilient. A mix of perseverance and a resignation to fate has allowed them to look beyond often dangerous uncertainties. But as the tragedy continues to unfold, the lack of clear information could […]

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Japanese Nuclear Disaster Raises Questions Of US Preparedness

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March 16, 2011

Japanese Nuclear Disaster Raises Questions Of US Preparedness – HSToday
US federal agencies must improve response plans in the event of a nuclear disaster, urged private and congressional critics in the wake of emergencies at Japanese nuclear reactors triggered by the 9.0-magnitude earthquake that struck off the country’s coast March 11.

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Former NSA, CIA Chief: Declassify Cyber Vulnerabilities

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March 15, 2011

Former NSA, CIA Chief: Declassify Cyber Vulnerabilities – Wired Threat Level
The former head of America’s most powerful and secretive intelligence agencies thinks the U.S. government classifies too much information on cybersecurity vulnerabilities.

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