Critical Releases in Homeland Security: September 25, 2019

From the Executive Summary: "The United States faces an increasingly complex, and evolving, threat of terrorism and targeted violence. [...] The Department has experienced clear successes in its mission to thwart foreign terrorist enemies. We have denied them entry, stopping them at our border or even before they reach it. We have integrated and supported the efforts of Federal, state, local, tribal, territorial, private sector, and international partners, gathering and sharing information and intelligence, and providing the resources they require to counter terrorism in their areas of responsibility. We have strengthened our communities. As a Nation, we are more resilient than ever. [...] This Strategic Framework outlines the Department's vision for reinvesting in programs and efforts that have enhanced our security, while incorporating key strategic changes that will allow us to address the threats we currently face. In addition to addressing terrorism, this Strategic Framework encompasses targeted violence, such as attacks on schools, house of worship, public spaces, and transportation systems, and other forms of racially, ethnically, and religiously motivated violence that can overlap and intersect with terrorism. The Strategy recognizes the critical role advances in technology have played in facilitating the spread, evolution, and interaction of violent ideologies and narratives of personal grievance, and the subsequent security implications, both for the Homeland and around the world."

From the Abstract: "The article describes how one can begin to learn about homeland security. Starting with institutionally approved, rather than objectively-tested and validated, foundational knowledge may provide academic order, but the order is achieved at the cost of constraining prematurely what homeland security could become. The method presented in this essay starts with the subjective interests of a learner, and relies on the usefulness of intellectual conflict to transform the learner's ideas. The article outlines several frameworks learners can use to structure their homeland security inquiry. The author argues claims about what constitutes foundational knowledge in homeland security frequently are based on socially- constructed agreement that masks the subjectivity needed to arrive at consensus. Rather than avoiding subjectivity in determining the roots and bounds of homeland security, we can encourage reflective practitioners to construct and share insights derived from their experience -based, research- informed understanding of homeland security."

From the Executive Summary: "The Constitution grants Congress the power of the purse. Specifically, Congress has the sole responsibility to raise revenue and appropriate money to fund the federal government. When Congress and the President fail to reach agreement on legislation to appropriate funds, affected federal agencies shut down and suspend most activities. During this time, federal law prevents most federal employees from working and most are sent home without pay. In recent shutdowns, however, the spending legislation ultimately agreed upon by Congress and the President provided back pay for federal employees. As such, the American taxpayer funded furloughed federal employees' salaries for the duration of each shutdown, even when employees were not permitted to go to work. This report documents the cost to the American taxpayer of the last three government shutdowns."