StormWarning’s Counterterrorism

“Terrorists Through the Front Door” is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to discussing the security of U.S. borders.

But talk about an uninspiring mishmash of chatter when it comes to securing our Nation’s porous border! Our border, especially the Southern border is as porous as a piece of cheap Swiss cheese. Add to that the fact that our President (as I see it), in conspiracy with soon to be deposed el Presidente Vincente Fox, has made a point of promoting this “guest worker” program. Add to that the lunacy of various states, including California, wanting to grant legal drivers’ licenses to illegal aliens so they can drive to their jobs, we have a serious problem here.

The first step toward securing our borders was supposed to be the passage of HR3525 in 2002, the Enhanced Border Security and Machine Readable Visa Act. That was the legislation calling for the revamping of our passport and visa documents so that they would be immediately machine readable. But did it really do that (yet)? I think not. And neither do some of the real experts either.

From the August 29^th
edition of the Homeland Security newsletter.

DHS Reviews Border Strategy in Two States That Declared Emergencies

“The nation’s homeland security chief says he had ordered a review of border security strategy before two Southwestern governors declared an immigration emergency on the U.S.-Mexico line,” reports the Associated Press. “Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told reporters his department recently began mapping out its surveillance equipment, personnel and other assets to combat the hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants who cross into the United States from Mexico each year and the criminal ‘coyote’ groups that smuggle some of them in.”

Time Running Out for Plans to Improve Border Security

“Homeland security and immigration officials are scrambling to meet a White House deadline for fresh ideas for securing the border and speeding the process of removing illegal immigrants in an effort to generate public enthusiasm for President Bush’s guest worker proposal,” reports the Houston Chronicle. “… The Bush administration plans to unveil components of a ‘secure border initiative’ by the end of the year, and has told Department of Homeland Security leader Michael Chertoff to offer ideas by late September.”

More on this subject can be found at the Counterterrorism Blog, written by Michael Cutler (including an article from a recent edition of the NY Times)

http://counterterror.typepad.com/the_counterterrorism_blog/2005/08/changes_in_dhs_.html

August 25, 2005

Changes in DHS Border Security Are Just a Bandage, Not a Strategy

…while many of our nation’s leaders pay lip service to the critical issue of border security, without a cohesive plan that addresses all of the issues, nothing of significance will change. The Secretary of DHS, Michael Chertoff is still not calling for a real, all inclusive strategy that addresses all of the issues in an effective manner. What he proposes, in my estimation, amounts to little more than a bandage for the cancer that the immigration crisis has become. Certainly his proposals would be helpful, but until and unless immigration law enforcement is only carried out proactively rather than reactively, our nation will continue to be plagued by illegal immigration. A truly comprehensive plan would include an effective employer sanctions program that was unfortunately not even discussed by Mr. Chertoff today. Also missing from his statement was any strategy to address immigration fraud.

From Recent History
http://nytimes.com/2005/05/08/national/08screen.html?hp&ex=1115524800&en=4ca27f7c3e91bef3&ei=5094&partner=homepage
NOTE: I saw similar portals/devices shown in the picture shown in this article in 1998 at an ONDCP counter-drug technology conference in a presentation by US Customs (it was presented, I believe by SAIC)! It was under the non-intrusive inspection part of the program.

U.S. to Spend Billions More to Alter Security Systems
WASHINGTON, May 7 - After spending more than $4.5 billion on screening devices to monitor the nation’s ports, borders, airports, mail and air, the federal government is moving to replace or alter much of the antiterrorism equipment, concluding that it is ineffective, unreliable or too expensive to operate.

Many of the monitoring tools - intended to detect guns, explosives, and nuclear and biological weapons - were bought during the blitz in security spending after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

In its effort to create a virtual shield around America, the Department of Homeland Security now plans to spend billions of dollars more…

[<b>My personal experience has been that DHS has taken the "safe" path and not the innovative path...it has taken and given contracts to known contractors instead of procuring innovative solutions from companies, often smaller ones, with innovative solutions.</b>]

…Among the problems:

Radiation monitors at ports and borders that cannot differentiate between radiation emitted by a nuclear bomb and naturally occurring radiation from everyday material like cat litter or ceramic tile.
Air-monitoring equipment in major cities that is only marginally effective because not enough detectors were deployed and were sometimes not properly calibrated or installed. They also do not produce results for up to 36 hours - long after a biological attack would potentially infect thousands of people.
Passenger-screening equipment at airports that auditors have found is no more likely than before federal screeners took over to detect whether someone is trying to carry a weapon or a bomb aboard a plane.
Postal Service machines that test only a small percentage of mail and look for anthrax but no other biological agents.

[NO Congressional earmarks in the Homeland Security budget for 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, and very likely (based on a recent phone call) in 2006. That means that Congressionally sponsored programs will not get funded again in 2006 (come would call that "pork"). That means that the "safe" route will once again be taken...this means that existing contractors will be looked to again to try to solve some of the intricate and very new problems that have faced this country since September 11th, 2001.

IMO, New times, call for new solutions!]

Back to the article…

…Heralded as "highly sophisticated" when they were introduced, the devices have proven to be hardly that.

The portal-monitor technology has been used for decades by the scrap metal industry. Customs officials at Newark have nicknamed the devices "dumb sensors," because they cannot discern the source of the radiation. That means benign items that naturally emit radioactivity - including cat litter, ceramic tile, granite, porcelain toilets, even bananas - can set off the monitors…

…The port’s follow-up system, handheld devices that are supposed to determine what set off an alarm, is also seriously flawed. Tests conducted in 2003 by Los Alamos National Laboratory found that the handheld machines, designed to be used in labs, produced a false positive or a false negative more than half the time…

…The Transportation Security Administration bought 1,344 machines costing more than $1 million each to search for explosives in checked bags by examining the density of objects inside. But innocuous items as varied as Yorkshire pudding and shampoo bottles, which happen to have a density similar to certain explosives, can set off the machines, causing false alarms for 15 percent to 30 percent of all luggage, an agency official said. The frequent alarms require airports across the country to have extra screeners to examine these bags…

…Equipment to screen passengers and carry-on baggage - including nearly 5,000 new metal detectors, X-ray machines and devices that can detect traces of explosives - can be unreliable. A handgun might slip through because screeners rely on two-dimensional X-ray machines, rather than newer, three-dimensional models, for example. The National Academy of Sciences recently described the trace detection devices as having "limited effectiveness and significant vulnerabilities…"

Concerns despite reliability…

Combined with the disbursement formulas used to distribute Homeland Security funds to states and municipalities, the reliance on older and familiar defense contractors has, IMO, limited the DHS access to innovative technological solutions.

Your safety and future may actually hang in the balance. Think I overstate the issue? Think I have a vested interest (which I do!)…OK, fine! Consider the question. Has the DHS actually spent its funds on the most innovative and secure technologies, or has it taken the "safest" path? Taking the "safest path" does not ensure success or the best solutions. Take it from me, the safest path is not the most innovative, and certainly not the path to the "best" solution.

Upgraded Security at U.S.-Mexican Border Has Not Deterred Illegal
Crossing
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A12368-2005Mar6_2.html
“High-tech barricades help U.S. authorities catch more than 3,000 people along the 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border” every day, reports the Washington Post. “Yet despite the unprecedented investment in technology and manpower, illegal immigrants are still coming in waves–and their numbers are increasing.”

Some of what we have been doing previously was training better dogs.

US Customs and Border Protection Welcomes New Puppies Trainees
The US Customs and Border Protection announced last week the arrival of nine new Labrador Retriever puppies who will eventually be candidates for detector dog training. They may not look like it from their picture, but according to Lee T. Titus, Director of the Canine Enforcement Program, "These new Lab pups will be raised and trained in narcotic and concealed human detection looking for potential terrorists as part of the CBP anti-terrorism mission in protecting our nation’s borders." Another liter is expected soon. CBP is looking for foster homes for these and future puppies.

As I remember the presentations I’ve attended on this subject, these dogs serve the Nation in many ways in drug and explosive detection, and now border patrol. Its still a "dog’s nose" that sets the standards for contraband detection and "sniffing." I think that the training center is out Rt66 near Front Royal, Va. (at least that’s what I remember).

PRESS RELEASE: http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/press_releases/05252005.xml
…“These new Lab pups will be raised and trained in narcotic and concealed human detection looking for potential terrorists as part of the CBP anti-terrorism mission in protecting our nation’s borders,” said Lee T. Titus, Director of the Canine Enforcement Program…

How Many British Bombers Might Have Come Here Without a Visa?
http://counterterror.typepad.com/the_counterterrorism_blog/2005/07/michael_cutler__4.html#more
…First of all, it is critical to understand that the bombers who savagely attacked London were British subjects. Consequently, they would have been entitled to hop on an airliner with a valid passport and head for the United States without first applying for a visa…

…This is critical because every year thousands of passports from countries that participate in the Visa Waiver Program are stolen or are reported missing…

Might also want to refer to another post on the Moon Blog here from May 2005: http://moonagewebdream.blogs.com/moonage_political_webream/2005/05/task_force_on_t.html#comments