President Bush’s Executive Order 13354 (August 2004) that established the new National Counterterrorism Center and the intelligence reform legislation that he signed in December, the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, P.L. 108-458, have created conflicts in counterterrorism policy that need to be resolved, according to a report...
A classified report by the National Academy of Sciences has challenged the decision by federal regulators to allow commercial nuclear facilities to store large quantities of radioactive spent fuel in pools of water. The report concluded that the government does not fully understand the risks that a terrorist attack could...
A new report published 23 March 2005 by the EPA Inspector General’s Office says that American cities are not getting all the protections President Bush ordered last year to detect a biological terrorism attack as part of the BioWatch Program. The report said the EPA hasn’t ensured the reliability, timeliness...
In a joint press conference today, 23 March 2005, U.S. President George W. Bush, Mexican President Vicente Fox and Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin announced a trilateral security initiative designed “to ensure the streamlined movement of legitimate travelers and cargo across our shared borders.� Called the Security and Prosperity Partnership...
A new report released by the Pew Hispanic Center on Monday, 21 March 2005 shows a 23 percent increase in undocumented residents in the United States over the past four years, from 8.4 million to 10.3 million people. Mexicans remain the largest group of undocumented residents at 5.9 million, or...
The website Cryptome currently houses the draft version of the National Planning Scenarios. These documents may be considered “for official use only.” Developed under the leadership of the Homeland Security Council, the 15 National Planning Scenarios provide parameters regarding the nature, scale, and complexity of incidents of national significance which...
The Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff gave a speech at the George Washington University Homeland Security Policy Institute on 16 March 2005. In his speech, Chertoff called for adopting a risk-based approach in both DHS operations and philosophy. He spoke of a homeland security strategy that manages risk...
The Center on Law and Security at New York University’s School of Law has recently published a review of the legal record against terror. This statistical analysis of current trends in the courts identifies the cases against terrorists since 9/11, and comprehensively outlines the charges, convictions, plea bargains, and sentencing...
Scientists have discovered that the Korean dish kimchi may cure the “bird flu.” The “bird flu” is the common term for Avian Influenza A/(H5N1), a virus that is currently affecting poultry populations in Asia and has killed at least 47 people in South East Asia since December 2003. The World...
