It is strange to go about my business at the U.S. Capitol and see police officers on patrol carrying semi-automatic weapons. The Pentagon also has dispatched anti-aircraft missiles near national monuments in Washington.
These are vivid, unmistakable signs the war on terrorism continues. It’s a matter of when, not if the next strike occurs. That means it’s imperative the federal government wastes no time and leaves no stone unturned to implement security precautions that protect Americans and our natural resources, transportation and health care delivery systems, energy and food supplies.
The terrorist attacks of 9/11 launched America into an era described by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld as the 'most dangerous security environment the world has known.'
And yet, 16 months after the terrorist attacks, the federal agencies charged with screening people entering the United States aren’t measuring up to the job.
As chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, which has oversight responsibilities over the federal customs and immigration bureaucracy, I called for an investigation that would put security procedures at the nation’s ports-of-entry to the test.
Unfortunately, the investigation exposed gaping holes in U.S. border security. Federal border agents and customs inspectors allowed congressional investigators using phony drivers’ licenses, false names and fake credit cards to enter the United States from Canada, Mexico and Jamaica.
At a congressional hearing I conducted in January to examine the problem, witnesses outlined serious shortcomings with federal law enforcement entities charged with patrolling our borders, especially within the National Park System. The internal watchdog for the Interior Department testified there is a 'lack of urgency' and changes designed to improve law enforcement are moving at 'glacial' speed.
That’s not exactly what I wanted to hear. I appreciate the immensity of the task: to patrol 368 air, sea and land ports-of-entry spanning more than 8,000 miles of land and coastal borders.
But it’s simply unacceptable that a U.S. border agent can’t detect a fake ID created with off-the-shelf computer software. It exposes a weakness in our border security at a time of increased risk to homeland security.
On March 1, INS and the Customs Service will fold into the new Department of Homeland Security. Border security is a key element of the federal government’s responsibility to protect Americans. From my leadership position in the U.S. Senate, I’ll keep the heat on to make sure it gets done right.