Security Debrief contributor Asa Hutchinson generated a number of national headlines recently when he went before the U.S. Senate to testify in favor of ending the disparity between sentencing guidelines for crack and powder cocaine.
An important decision is revealed in the dense budget language of the DHS 2010 budget: the decision to move the Federal Protective Service (FPS) out of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and place it in the National Protection and Program Directorate (NPPD).
This document is a DHS Reference Aid created by the Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A) to “provide operational and intelligence advice and assistance to other elements of DHS, as well as state, local, and regional fusions centers.”
Last week, I argued that the new Secretary of DHS, Janet Napolitano, would need to avoid common problems that have plagued so many border projects over the past year. Long ago, it was thought that all problems had their source in one of the seven deadly sins, sloth, gluttony, lust, wrath, envy, and pride. This week, we look at gluttony, defined as an insatiable appetite, gulping down without thought or need, and the compelling desire for instant gratification.
Unfortunately, the United States has already missed the boat and time has run out for any “catching up” in policy and tactics in dealing with Pakistan. Today, the world faces the stark and real possibility of Pakistan becoming a failed state and a haven for terrorism with potential nightmarish consequences. Can this be stopped and what should the U.S. do about it?
On March 31, Washington took its first step toward engagement with Tehran through a diplomatic encounter with the Iranian government at the Afghanistan conference in the Hague. Even though the initial contact was awkward, it was clearly a step forward for the Obama administration, and both countries agreed that the opium/heroin trade was a destructive force in both the region and the world. As such, the United States should consider using collaboration on counternarcotics as an effective means to jump-start diplomacy with Iran.
The private sector owns 85 percent of the nation’s critical infrastructure, and the government simply cannot protect it all. The latest hazard, Swine Flu, has the potential to become a pandemic. There are protocols and trained personnel to support an international effort to contain a pandemic in its earliest stages, including the release of Tamiflu and Relenza from the Strategic National Stockpile. Local, state and federal authorities, however, cannot effectively prepare for and respond to a pandemic without significant help from the private sector. If your company has not already conducted a pandemic drill now is the time to do so.
Here’s the question – who pays for the protection afforded to private companies engaged in protecting America’s critical assets? The answer is: it depends.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a webpage dedicated to the latest information, updates and safety measures the public can take related to Swine Flu.
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