Homeland Security Outlook

By Lieutenant General (USA, Ret) Richard A. Hack, and Colonel (USA, Ret) Michael R. Gonzales

The tragic attacks of September 11, 2001, devastation caused by Hurricanes Rita and Katrina, a string of violent murders by drug traffickers on the Southwest Border, and the scourge of pandemic flu demonstrate the severity and diversity of threats that the United States faces in the area of Homeland Security. While these contingencies pose different challenges than those faced in Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom, many military capabilities being leveraged overseas can be adapted to support Homeland Security.

By Michel Marizco, HSO Contributor

It was the first public test for Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano. On Christmas Day, a suicide bomber with suspected al-Qaeda ties boarded a Detroit-bound plane and tried to detonate the military-grade explosives he'd brought on board. Intelligence gathering had failed. Airport screening had failed. Inter-government cooperation had failed. In the end, it was up to the passengers to save themselves.

But rather than acknowledging the failings, Napolitano defended her department, announcing on national television "the system worked really smoothly." The fact that she repeated that message throughout the day, then waited a full day to retract the statement, suggests that the DHS has not yet learned the art of public relations.