After five years of getting beaten up routinely by the Congress on a bipartisan basis, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) appears to have found a whole new set of friends in Congress. As sister agencies CBP, ICE and FEMA face increasing scrutiny and oversight, Kip Hawley’s recent testimony shows that Members are almost surprisingly satisfied with the the security aspects of air travel.
Buried deep within extensive testimony given by U.S. Customs and Border Protection Deputy Commissioner Jay Ahern on April 2 before the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee was a brief announcement that CBP has decided not to pursue the Global Trade Exchange cargo shipping risk assessment program. GTX, previously known as the Secure Freight Initiative before that name began being used to describe overseas scanning programs, had ended up being the Spruce Goose of cargo security – oversold and too big a concept for liftoff.
As we look toward November, this will be the first Presidential election in recent times where one of the key issues debated will be immigration reform and the most effective way to secure the border – in particular the southern border. Right now some Members of Congress and allied interest groups are busy framing border security in the political terms most advantageous to their own partisan interests. Specifically, activists who oppose NAFTA and immigration reform have a vested interest in undercutting DHS’s policies and programs that will reduce chaos, enhance security and support increased legal trade.
Getting local law enforcement involved in enforcing the nation’s immigration laws is a controversial but unquestionably effective step in in terms of controlling our borders. Section 287g of the Immigration and Nationality Act was created to authorize state and local law enforcement officers to receive training to enforce immigration laws. The cross designation provision is […]
Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) is hoping that Congress will do away with the Real ID Act of 2005, a law establishing minimum standards for state-issued driver’s licenses and identification cards that are intended to be used for federal purposed (such as passenger screening at U.S. airports). Alexander mimics many of the common critiques and concerts associated with Real ID, yet the criticism is largely misplaced.
It seems somehow fitting that the state that launched the Civil War is once again leading the charge to defy the federal government — though in this case the stakes are far less deadly. Rather than bullets flying, you can expect a lot of curses. And even then only at airport terminals.
For anyone who has never been in a roundtable session like we were having, it’s important to note that the Secretary opened the session with the Bloggers without a note card in his palm or a pile of papers in his hands to reference in typical Washington principal fashion to remind him of who he was meeting with and why, and what he was supposed to say to them. He immediately sat down and you could almost hear the starter’s pistol fire, “BANG!” and he was out of his starter’s block rounding the first curve on the track of information he wanted to convey.
A key development in the aviation security arena occurred yesterday when TSA formally announced the seven airports that will take part in airport employee screening pilot tests as required by the Omnibus Appropriations Act passed by Congress in January 2008. In the formal TSA announcement, TSA Administrator Kip Hawley said that “[t]hese pilots will give […]
On Wednesday, the Department of Homeland Security and the Bush Administration announced a series of proposed improvements to the regulations governing the hiring of temporary and seasonal agricultural workers. The end goal of these modification is primarily to improve the process’ inefficiency – yet it is unclear whether the modifications will really make the process easier for farmers.
The FY 2009 proposal budget focuses and supports a full range of law enforcement operations to combat illegal immigrants, drugs and weapons along the border with Mexico. This drastic increase in funding is a sigh of relief for those who are against a comprehensive immigration bill that supports amnesty. In other words, a “do nothing” bill, with a track record of a flawed and unworkable policy that maintains the status quo. Serious immigration reform is on its way, as already seen in FY 2009 proposal budget, with complete focus on increasing law enforcement and operations. The only thing sensible is opting for a new strategy instead of reviving a failed one.
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