Homeland Security a Failure; Ticking Time-Bomb
By Brad Friedman on 9/23/2004, 12:18pm PT  

The only thing Bush can say for himself is that, aside from the successful Anthrax attacks and the terrorists who perpetrated it who, like Osama bin Laden, run free, there haven't been any "major" terrorist attacks on American soil since 9/11.

It's also a fact that the systematic round-up of hundreds and thousands of "suspected terrorists" have yielded not one successful prosecution that I know of. Yassir Hamdi, who was held for three years in solitary confinement, and considered "too dangerous" to even meet with a lawyer, was freed yesterday without charges.

The military interrogator who was supposedly a muslim spy of some sort, had his charges similarly dropped. Systematically, the Bush/Ashcroft Justice Department has been a failure at catching terrorists in this country, and has shit all over the constitution and "due process" in the bargain of achieving that failure.

But it's not just on that count that they have failed, as the Republican US Congressman from Florida, John Murtha recently pointed out. Murtha, chairman of the House aviation sub-committee, described the screening situation in U.S. Airports as "absolutely horrendous".

The head of Bush's own watchdog group for the Department of Homeland Security, Clark Kent Ervin, called said that "it may take some horrific wake-up call to get attention" on the failures of the Bush Administration to properly screen travellers at U.S. airports for the type of explosives that recently took down two Russian airplanes.

"Some horrific wake-up call?" Pardon me, but didn't we supposedly already get one of those horrific wake-up calls on 9/11? What the hell is still going on here, three years after 9/11?!

And what kind of "horrific wake-up call" are you Bush supporters going to need to figure out how you've been played for chumps?

From USA Today:

WASHINGTON — Undercover investigators were able to sneak explosives and weapons past security screeners at 15 airports nationwide, according to a government report on aviation security.

The government watchdog for the Department of Homeland Security, Clark Kent Ervin, delivered the results of the tests in a classified report to members of Congress. "The performance was poor," said Ervin, the department's inspector general, in releasing a less detailed version Wednesday.

The tests were done during the second half of 2003. But they highlight ongoing vulnerabilities in the nation's aviation security system, particularly in detecting explosives such as those that Russian authorities say were used to bring down two airliners last month.

Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., chairman of a House aviation subcommittee, confirmed that the longer, classified report showed weapons and explosives got by screeners. He said the results on weapons were "bad enough," but the results on explosives were "absolutely horrendous."

An earlier report in 2003 by the Government Accountability Office had found that undercover agents were able to slip guns, knives and box cutters past screeners.

In the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks, the government installed explosive-detection machines in airports nationwide for checked baggage. But it has not installed equipment to check for explosives on all passengers and their carry-on bags. They are sent through metal detectors and only occasionally checked by explosive trace detection equipment.

"Unfortunately, it may take some horrific wake-up call to get attention," Mica said.

...

The lack of explosive-detection technology at passenger checkpoints nationwide "absolutely drives me out of my mind," Mica said. "It's so frustrating."

And Mica is a Republican! From Florida! In an Election Year!

How many more Americans need to die before you Republican Bush Worshippers realize how you are being played? The messages above are almost precisely like those that came out, and were subsequently ignored by the Bush Administration, in the weeks and month prior to 9/11!

Hello??? Is this thing on???

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