Some Good News (And A Little Bad News) On Homeland Security

In my e-mail this morning there were a lot of reports that indicate that there may be some overall improvements in the way we are approaching Homeland Security, at least from the management, logistics and technology perspectives. If we can add in some rational approaches regarding civil liberties and our fundamental principles, that would put us on the right track toward making our nation not only safer, but also in keeping with our status as the "bedrock of democracy and freedom."

THE GOOD NEWS

Departments Get Serious About Border Technologies

The departments of State and Homeland Security have made significant progress toward improving border technologies, according to a summary of accomplishments the government said it made in the last year.

House Panel Aims For Fresh Look At Homeland Security

As the new Congress revs into gear, Democrats and Republicans on the House Homeland Security Committee are likely to take a fresh look at programs dealing with biometrics, cyber security, technology innovation, communications, cargo-scanning equipment and border security, according to sources, aides and lawmakers.

Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson, for example, continues to champion the need for Congress to provide state and local governments with billions of dollars in new funds to purchase and deploy emergency communications equipment that can work across jurisdictions.

Thompson, D-Miss., told the U.S. Conference of Mayors on Wednesday that "the interoperability problem costs well into the billions," and Congress must "be willing to provide the long-term sustainable funding necessary to develop interoperable communication networks."

Republicans on the committee agree that more needs to be done to improve interoperability, but they argue that Congress already established a $1 billion grant program for the effort under the Commerce Department. That program is expected to start awarding grants later this year.

House Member Puts Rail Security At Top Of His Panel's Agenda

I have been ranting and raving about port and railway security issues since just after the events of 9-11, and discussing these issues since the middle of the 1990s. If this is a serious effort to rein in railway security, I am all for it... But if it turns out to be just some political posturing, then shame on the Dems for allowing it.

House Homeland Security Chairman Bennie Thompson Monday laid out a sweeping agenda for the coming months, saying the first big piece of legislation his panel will tackle will be focused on beefing up security on passenger and freight rail systems.

Thompson said the legislation his committee will produce would establish federal standards and oversight for both passenger rail mass transit systems and freight rail systems, especially those that transport hazardous materials.

"We're going to bring the federal government into it to provide the necessary direction," Thompson told reporters. "We absolutely need to move toward having the federal government coming up with some uniform approaches for rail security."

Senate Committee Plans More Homeland Security Oversight

If only it were not Joe Liberman at the helm of this effort. "Connecticut Joe" is more of a Republican than he is a Democrat, as is demonstrated by his support for the Bush Doctrine and the way the Bush administration is conducting NSA spying and operations in Iraq. At least there are other voices on the panel to keep him from running amuck.

Newly minted Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut is off to an active start in his new role.

He already has held a hearing to examine how best to implement unfulfilled recommendations of the commission that investigated the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and plans to pass a bill to address those issues out of his committee by the end of the month.

"We're definitely better protected than we were before 9/11, but we are not as well protected as we want and need to be," he said during the Jan. 9 hearing.

Lockheed Martin To Provide High-Tech IDs At Ports

The Transportation Security Administration has awarded a contract to supply high-tech identification cards at ports to Lockheed Martin headquarters in Bethesda, Md., according to sources familiar with the choice.

The Washington Post reports that the initial value of the contract, which involves issuing ID cards to 850,000 maritime workers, currently sits at $70 million. But the contract could prove to be more valuable if it leads to related deals because ID technology is a fast-growing sector for government contractors.

The ID program was initially supposed to provide transportation workers with cards embedded with microchips by the end of 2003, but it has been bogged down with technology glitches and privacy concerns.

Lockheed has 18 months to finish deploying the cards.

OMB Management Chief Welcomes Democratic Oversight

Key committees involved in oversight of government activities are preparing to hold their first hearings this session of Congress, and the Bush administration's management chief says he is looking forward to working with the new Democratic leaders.

Clay Johnson, deputy director for management at the Office of Management and Budget, said last week that he has met with the chairmen of the House Oversight and Government Reform and the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committees. Both sides agreed there are flaws that need to be addressed, he said.

Coast Guard Modernization Program Faces Increased Oversight

Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Thad Allen told lawmakers Tuesday he would hold agency personnel and contractors accountable for improving performance in the service's troubled modernization program known as Deepwater.

In testimony before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, Allen acknowledged serious problems with the mammoth program to replace its aging equipment. The program is being run by the Integrated Coast Guard Systems, a joint venture of defense contractors Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman.

Allen said he took seriously a withering report on the acquisition of the National Security Cutter, the cornerstone of the Deepwater fleet, by Richard Skinner, the inspector general of the Homeland Security Department, the Coast Guard's parent agency.

AND NOW THE BAD NEWS

GAO: Guard May Lack Gear Needed For Domestic Crises

As a former member of a National Guard unit, I can attest to the fact that the Guard is often an after thought when it comes to equipment and training. The fact that the Guard is not fully equipped or adequately trained raises a lot of concern over deploying these troops overseas in combat areas. The Guard has a reputation of coming up to speed real quick, but not before losing a lot of troops--disproportionately to regular and reserve troops--while engaging in a learning curve. Such was the case in Korea and Vietnam... and quite possibly in Iraq and Afghanistan. None-the-less, the Guard is supposed to be guarding our home front and responding to disasters, violence or threats on our own soil, not overseas unless there is no other choice. We really need to look at the way we deploy our troops and the manner in which we maintain troop levels for active duty and reserves.

Congressional investigators have found that the Defense Department does not adequately track National Guard equipment needs for domestic missions, raising questions about whether the state-run units have adequate supplies to respond to disasters and emergencies on U.S. soil.

In an unreleased reported dated Jan. 26, the Government Accountability Office concluded that defense officials have recognized the need to track the National Guard's stateside stocks of vehicles and other gear available to respond to domestic disasters, but those efforts have not yet yielded reliable information on the equipment units have at their disposal.

"Until DOD reaches agreement on a specific approach for measuring readiness for domestic missions and requirements are defined, it will remain unclear whether the Guard is equipped to respond effectively to the consequences of a large-scale terrorist attack or natural disaster," according to the report.

Over the last several months, many state Guard leaders have complained that their units took their best equipment with them when they deployed to Iraq, leaving the personnel at home short of trucks, radios and other equipment needed for domestic missions.

Former US Contractor Sentenced To 9 Years For Iraq Reconstruction Bribe Scheme

The fact that we have let so much fraud, waste, over-spending, bribery, profiteering, and other criminal activities, including outright theft and embezzlement, to occur on such a grand scale, is the bad news. Convicting the person responsible for the crimes in this case is good news.

A former US contractor working for the US Department of Defense in Iraq received a nine-year prison sentence Monday and was told he must forfeit the $3.6 million he received for awarding contracts to construction companies owned by an American businessman and through money laundering. Robert Stein, Jr., who worked as the comptroller and funding officer for the Coalition Provisional Authority during 2003 and 2004, pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy, money laundering and bribery last year. He admitted to conspiring with US Army officers to steal over $2 million in rebuilding funds and awarding contracts to construction companies owned by Philip Bloom in exchange for more than $1 million in cash and goods.

Stein will also serve three years of probation after his prison sentence ends. Officials from the US Department of Justice said Stein cooperated with the government's investigation, partially mitigating his sentence, which could have reached up to 30 years.

Missteps by Iraqi Forces in Battle Raise Questions
If we truly believe President Bush and company, this news is bad for homeland security... But I add it just to demonstrate that the Bush gang is out of touch with what is an ongoing issue of competence in Iraq and the White House. While we can shake our heads about the incompetence over in Iraq, we really need to worry about the incompetence in the Oval Office (and throughout the administration) because they are the ones that are supposed to be preparing us for homeland security matters and events... Remember, Katrina issues are still plaguing the Gulf Coast.

Iraqi forces were surprised and nearly overwhelmed by the ferocity of an obscure renegade militia in a weekend battle near the holy city of Najaf and needed far more help from American forces than previously disclosed, American and Iraqi officials said Monday.

They said American ground troops — and not just air support as reported Sunday — were mobilized to help the Iraqi soldiers, who appeared to have dangerously underestimated the strength of the militia, which calls itself the Soldiers of Heaven and had amassed hundreds of heavily armed fighters.

Iraqi government officials said the group apparently was preparing to storm Najaf, a holy city dear to Shiite Islam, occupy the sacred Imam Ali mosque and assassinate the religious hierarchy there, including the revered leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, during a Shiite holiday when many pilgrims visit.

“This group had more capabilities than the government,” said Abdul Hussein Abtan, the deputy governor of Najaf Province, at a news conference.

Only a month ago, in an elaborate handover ceremony, the American command transferred security authority over Najaf to the Iraqis. The Americans said at the time that they would remain available to assist the Iraqis in the event of a crisis.

The Iraqis and Americans eventually prevailed in the battle. But the Iraqi security forces’ miscalculations about the group’s strength and intentions raised troubling questions about their ability to recognize and deal with a threat.