Homeland Security: The Essentials

by Jane A. Bullock

(informally known as the 9/11 Commission)

Patriot Act, which provides the Attorney General of the United States with significant new authorities relative to civil liberties to fight the war on terrorism.

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), within DHS, and served to remind officials of the exacting toll natural

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Coast Guard (CG) is vigilant in maintaining territorial waters and safety and security at our ports that is of the highest priority to ensure homeland commerce can continue.

On September 20, 2001, just 9 days after the attacks, President George W. Bush announced that an Office of Homeland Security would be established within the White House by executive order. Directing

“Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism,” which would become better known as the PATRIOT Act of 2001.

The decision by the leadership of DHS to focus on terrorism, at the expense of other threats, and to diminish the role of FEMA, led directly to the horrible events and aftermath of Hurricane Katrina

This balanced approach is reflected in the first ever Quadrennial Homeland Security Review (QHSR) published by the Obama Administration and DHS in February 2010.

DHS has defined the following three concepts as the foundation for a comprehensive approach to homeland security: 1. Security: Protect the United States and its people, vital interests, and way of life. 2. Resilience: Foster individual, community, and system robustness, adaptability, and capacity for rapid recovery. 3. Customs and exchange: Expedite and enforce lawful trade, travel, and immigration.

Public safety officials, including police, fire, public health, emergency managers, and border security, will continue to be in the forefront of mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery from the potential threat of terrorism and natural hazards, as well as other man-made hazards.

The sweeping reorganization into the new department, which officially opened its doors on January 24, 2003, joined more than 179,000 federal employees from 22 existing federal agencies under a single, cabinet-level organization.

that increased interagency cooperation between federal intelligence organizations could have prevented the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Based on the findings of several pre-September 11 commissions, it appeared that the country needed a centralized federal government agency whose primary reason for existence would be to coordinate the security of the “homeland” (a term that predated the attacks).

Department of Homeland Security is a massive agency, juggling numerous responsibilities between a staggeringly wide range of program areas, employing approximately 180,000 people, and managing a massive multi-billion-dollar budget

The Three Commissions

Hart-Rudman Commission, to make strategic recommendations on how the U.S. government could ensure the nation’s security in the coming years.

Gilmore Commission

Bremer Commission,

The leadership and staff of each of these agencies now report directly to the Office of the Secretary. Most notable of these agencies are the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and the U.S. Secret Service.

FEMA was originally integrated into one of four original directorates, but after the bungled response to the post-Katrina 2007 reorganization, the agency was reinstated to its standalone status, reporting directly to the DHS Secretary.

The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) was similarly incorporated into a DHS entity in 2002, but restored to its independent status under the DHS Secretary as part of the post-Katrina reorganization. These intact age...