On November 17, the Senate Judiciary Committee took up the subject of cyber security. An FBI witness said his organization considers “the cyber threat to our nation to be one of the greatest concerns of the twenty-first century.” He later said that cyber-based attacks and high tech crime were the FBI’s highest criminal priority.
Once again it is time to revisit the issue of Congressional meddling into the operations of DHS. As has been well established by many commentators, myself included, the only item from the 9-11 Commission’s Report that has yet to be implemented is the consolidation of congressional oversight of the Department of Homeland Security.
Recently, the House Homeland Security Committee held a hearing on the issue of aircraft foreign repair station security. And while the Committee’s oversight on this issue is commendable, the hearing lacked one important item: an updated risk assessment. This omission, along with the testimony of three union representatives, suggests that security at foreign repair stations continues to be a Trojan horse for some.
Why We Should Put Jihad on Trial – NYTimes.com
The Justice Department’s decision to try Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the self-proclaimed mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, in a federal court in New York City has elicited several criticisms. Most are pointless, but one — the idea that it will give a terrorist a platform from which he could stir up support in the Muslim world for his radical views — is well taken.
Axelrod Backs Away from Committing to Immigration Reform in 2010 – Change.org
While we listen to Representative Luis Gutierrez giving yet another talk for immigration reform today, the Obama Administration has slowly backed away from a firm promise, which sends us mixed signals. DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano is confident that Congress can take up immigration reform in early 2010 but David Axelrod, the top political advisor to President Obama, refused to make any such commitment when he appeared on the State of the Union this past Sunday with John King.
Pentagon Budget Stressed by More Than Wars, Experts and Lawmakers Say – CQ Today
Senior members of the House Armed Services Committee expressed grave concerns Wednesday at a hearing that examined the growing pressures on defense budgets. Despite the expansion of Pentagon spending since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the defense budget will have to rise even more to keep pace with increasing costs of military personnel and operations, said representatives of the Congressional Research Service (CRS), the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and think tanks.
GAO: Security agency is making progress, but still falling short – Government Executive.com
The Federal Protective Service is making progress, but must fully implement security best practices to meet its mission, the Government Accountability Office reported on Wednesday. According to GAO, the service’s approach to protecting federal buildings has gaps in three key areas: allocating resources through risk assessments, leveraging technology and sharing information.
The U.S. Chamber held another meeting in the very helpful series of exchanges between Business and Government. The event focused on the nascent strategy for securing online transactions and was sponsored by two of the Chamber’s internal organizations: the National Security Task Force and the Telecommunication and E-Commerce Committee. The government participants were Tom Donahue and Ely Kahn, the Directors for Cyber Policy on the National Security Staff. On the Business side, besides a good presence form the Chamber itself, there were representatives from Telecoms big and small.
On Tuesday night, I had a drink with more than a hundred friends and what I call my extended family. Many of them I knew; others I didn’t but they were still family. We gathered in a bar in Georgetown to celebrate a unique bond we all share – securing our homeland. We were Republicans, Democrats and Independents. We were creatures of the inner Beltway and from every other corner of the United States.
Judge Throws Out Child Porn Found By TSA – KITV.com
A federal judge in Hawaii on Tuesday threw out all the evidence against a man caught with child pornography at Hilo Airport. The judge ruled that screeners went too far in searching the man’s luggage.
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