Homeland Security Assignment

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My current perspective and assumptions about homeland security are largely related to my experience as an Army officer and Department of Defense contractor. My time on active duty service began during peace time in 1998, then transitioned to war. When I entered active duty President Clinton was in the later part of his second term. The first time I heard the name Osama Bin Laden was in Korea 99’ during a security briefing. Prior to 9/11 I had assumed that all federal agencies communicated and shared information together in order to protect the homeland. I never considered how federal agencies not only worked with each other, but how they communicated with state and city officials. As a young officer I also did not have a clear understanding …show more content…

We only used a small special operations footprint and managed not to deploy thousands of conventional forces. Then we abandoned the RMA concept, and went purely conventional in both Afghanistan and Iraq. This could have occurred for a myriad of reasons, some of which are highlighted in Donald Skuskind’s book, “The 1% Doctrine”. It is my understanding that our protracted war in Afghanistan and Iraq has created more instability and more terrorist groups than existed 16 years ago. Due to our inability to nest the mission of the Department of State with the capabilities of the Department of Defense, we made catastrophic mistakes that subsequently jeopardize the …show more content…

Is this an example of an agency not being able to keep up with operations, or was it a byproduct of an administration not willing to clearly define the problem? This year (2018) the DHS is preparing another QHRS, and I would imagine that several areas will be addressed for moving forward. The first to come to mind is the privatization of TSA. From a budget perspective, this could save significant money and allow for greater innovation when protecting vital transportation lines. Aviation security has not only cost more money, but has been designated an area of weakness, and a priority of targeting for Al