Government

Aussies debate creation of DHS-like super-department
Kevin Rudd, leader of Australia’s opposition Labor Party, has proposed the creation of a DHS-like agency to coordinate responses to terrorism and natural disasters; critics say that the current, decentralized Australian first-response system is better
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Main Northern Ireland's Protestant militant group declares "war is over"
The UDA specialized in revenge murders of innocent Catholics after IRA attacks; it killed hundreds of people and extorted vast sums from its own community; in the last decades, many of its members turned to drug dealing and other crimes; leaders say that, as of yesterday, the “war is over” and that the organization will stand down; UDA say it will purge criminals from its ranks
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Foreign students face tightened U.K. security checks
Foreign students applying for graduate study in the U.K. in 41 science and engineering subjects now must pass extra security screening
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Government agencies over-rely on outside contractors
GAO criticizes DHS for profligate use of outside contractors; employees in other agencies write to say their agencies, too, are culpable
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GAO criticizes DHS's reliance on contractors
GAO says DHS spends too much money on contractors who do work which is usually reserved for government employees; as a result, DHS’s decision making may be unduly influenced by contractors
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Checking on immigrants’ paperwork
Checking on immigrants’ paperwork
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Who’s in charge at DHS?
Who’s in charge at DHS?
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Opponnents say Social Security is not the way to track illegal immigrants
Opponents of DHS’s tightening of no-match rule say this is not a good way to control illegal immigration; AFL-CIO estimates that 600,000 of its workers could be vulnerable to firing
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Bush unveils updated national homeland security strategy
President says “The purpose of our Strategy is to guide, organize, and unify our Nation’s homeland security efforts”
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Senate approves defense budget; more money to border security
Senate passes a record $459 billion budget for the Pentagon; budget, even adjusted for inflation, is more than 20 percent higher than the average cold war budget; it has gone up more than 40 percent since 9/11
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Two companies partner on public-safety computer-aided dispatch
The technology of dispatching law enforcement quickly to disaster zones is a growing business, and two specialists will market their solutions jointly to U.S. localities
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DHS big projects offer opportunities for nimble contractors
Some of DHS’s big projects — EAGLE and non-EAGLE — are underway and they offer opportunities for specialists
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U.K. homeland security market earned revenues of $609 million in 2007
U.K. homeland security market to grow steadily until 2012, then contract; emphasis on securing mass transportation, urban areas
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DHS to fund local police counterterrorism squads
Chertoff said DHS would pay the salaries of counterterrorism officers
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Virginia homeland security funds near $60 million
Perhaps it is the state’s proximity to Washongton, D.C., perhaps it is not, but one thing is for sure: Virginia can not complain about being stiffed by the federal government
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The long view

To prevent Iranian nukes, a negotiated deal better than a military strike: David Albright
David Albright is the founder and president of the Washington, D.C.-based non-profit Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), and author of several books on fissile materials and nuclear weapons proliferation. In a testimony before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday, and an interview with Deutsche Welle on Thursday, Albrights says that there is every reason to be suspicious of Iran because it has cheated on its obligations in the past and has been uncooperative on an ongoing basis. Iran has also built many sites in secret, so any agreement with Iran should have extra insurance — a more powerful inspection and verification tool to try to ferret out any secret nuclear activities or facilities that Iran would build. Still, a negotiated deal, if it includes sufficiently robust inspection and verification measures, would be a more effective way than a military strike to make sure Iran does not develop nuclear weapons.
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How to verify a comprehensive Iran nuclear deal
With the negotiation between the P5+1(the United States, European Union, Britain, France, Russia, and China) and Iran resuming yesterday (Wednesday) about a set of parameters for an eventual Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the shape of a final deal about Iran’s nuclear program has emerged. Many important provisions of a final deal, however, remain to be negotiated in the coming months. David Albright, the president of the Institute for Science and International Security, says that a critical set of these provisions involves the adequacy of verification arrangements which would be in place to monitor Iran’s compliance with a deal. Tehran’s long history of violations, subterfuge, and non-cooperation requires extraordinary arrangements to ensure that Iran’s nuclear program is indeed peaceful.
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Fusion centers, created to fight domestic terrorism, suffering from mission creep: Critics
Years before the 9/11 attacks, law enforcement agencies throughout the country, alarmed by the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, began to monitor and investigate signs of domestic terrorism. That increased monitoring, and the need for coordination among various law enforcement agencies, gave rise to the fusion centers. A new report, which is supported by current and former law enforcement and government officials, concludes that post-9/11, fusion centers and the FBI teams which work with them shifted their focus from domestic terrorism to global terrorism and other crimes, including drug trafficking.Experts say that at a time when the number of domestic terrorism threats, many of which are linked to right-wing extremist groups, is surging, law enforcement must refocus their attention on the threats from within.
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Lack of evidence-based terrorism research hobbles counterterrorism strategies
The Global Terrorism Database at the University of Maryland estimates that groups connected with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State committed almost 200 attacks per year between 2007 and 2010. That number has increased to about 600 attacks in 2013. As terrorism becomes more prevalent, the study of terrorism has also increased, which, in theory, should lead to more effective antiterrorism policies, and thus to less terrorism. The opposite is happening, however, and this could be partly due to the sort of studies which are being conducted. The problem: few of these studies are rooted in empirical analysis, and there is an “almost complete absence of evaluation research” concerning anti-terrorism strategies, in the words of a review of such studies.
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CBP IA Operation Hometown reduces violence and corruption: Tomsheck shuts it down -- Pt. 5
Operation Hometown appears to be yet another example in a series of programs at Customs and Border Protection (CBP) demonstrating blatant dysfunctionality and mismanagement within the Department of Homeland Security. Meticulously designed to target border violence and corruption among CBP employees, Operation Hometown was labeled a success in reaching its stated objectives. CBP Internal Affair’s (IA) James F. Tomsheck,however, shut the program down. As Congress and President Obama debate various aspects of a new federal immigration policy,few politicians are willing to acknowledge the serious problems at CBP Internal Affairs – but they should, as these problems may directly impact the success of any or all new immigration reforms.
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California drought highlights the state’s economic divide
As much of Southern California enters into the spring and warmer temperatures, the effects of California’s historic drought begin to manifest themselves in the daily lives of residents, highlighting the economic inequality in the ways people cope. Following Governor Jerry Brown’s (D) unprecedented water rationing regulations,wealthier Californians weigh on which day of the week no longer to water their grass, while those less fortunate are now choosing which days they skip a bath.
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Aussies debate creation of DHS-like super-department

Main Northern Ireland's Protestant militant group declares "war is over"

Foreign students face tightened U.K. security checks

Government agencies over-rely on outside contractors

GAO criticizes DHS's reliance on contractors

Checking on immigrants’ paperwork

Who’s in charge at DHS?

Opponnents say Social Security is not the way to track illegal immigrants

Bush unveils updated national homeland security strategy

Senate approves defense budget; more money to border security

Two companies partner on public-safety computer-aided dispatch

DHS big projects offer opportunities for nimble contractors

U.K. homeland security market earned revenues of $609 million in 2007

DHS to fund local police counterterrorism squads

Virginia homeland security funds near $60 million

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The long view

To prevent Iranian nukes, a negotiated deal better than a military strike: David Albright

How to verify a comprehensive Iran nuclear deal

Fusion centers, created to fight domestic terrorism, suffering from mission creep: Critics

Lack of evidence-based terrorism research hobbles counterterrorism strategies

CBP IA Operation Hometown reduces violence and corruption: Tomsheck shuts it down -- Pt. 5

California drought highlights the state’s economic divide