Homeland security: concepts, policy, and applications

Homeland Security

The Department of Homeland Security:

Criticism of Organization

In the following article, the Department if Homeland Security is considered, including a brief history and description of the organizational structure, along with responsibilities or duties. The Department of Homeland Security, which was formed in 2002, was the result of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and critiques of the government's response. Thus, the motivation behind the department is briefly explained in the following article, followed by the assertion that while this may be the positive intention of the department, it is not necessarily the goal that the department has achieved. This critique is based both on the complex structure of department components, as well as widespread responsibilities featured in the department. The essay concludes with the ways in which the Department of Homeland Security may be improved.

Formed in 2002, after the United States was attacked for only the second time in history, the Department of Homeland Security's "overriding and urgent mission is to lead the unified national effort to secure the country and preserve our freedoms" (Department of Homeland Security 2008). Indeed, the department "is a direct result of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, which exposed security lapses and intelligence failures" ("Bush Signs Homeland Security Bill" 2002). Thus, the intention behind the department was to serve as a barrier of protection against terrorists and other forces that might attack the United States militarily. In the face of national disasters and other threats, however, the Department of Homeland Security will prepare for mobilization (Department of Homeland Security 2008). As a reaction to the slow mobilization of different departments during the September 11, 2001 attacks, the Department of Homeland Security "leverages resources within federal, state, and local governments, coordinating the transition of multiple agencies and programs into a single integrated agency" (Department of Homeland Security 2008). Through an examination of the organizational structure of the department and its purposes, one can become convinced that the Department of Homeland Security consists of a complex structure and overwhelming list of duties that may prove exhaustive in the event of an emergency.

When viewing the department components that make up the Department of Homeland Security, one must remember that the department was created in order to advance its "comprehensive national strategy," which "seeks to develop a complementary system connecting all levels of government without duplicating effort" (Department of Homeland Security 2008). Thus, over 87,000 jurisdictions on the federal, state, and local level receive "responsibilities" from the department (Department of Homeland Security 2008). Thus, the department involves police, emergency management, and other departments are all involved in the Department of Homeland Security. The department is headed on the executive level by a secretary and chief of staff, along with an executive secretary and a military adviser. On the next level are departments for management, science and technology, policy, general counsel, legislative affairs, public affairs, inspector general, health affairs, intelligence and analysis, operations coordinator, citizenship and immigration services, privacy, civil rights and liberties, counter-narcotics enforcement, federal law enforcement, domestic nuclear detection, and national cyber security. In addition to this, the transportation security administration, customs and boarder protection department, citizenship and immigration services, immigration and customs enforcement, secret service, federal emergency management, and coast guard are part of the Department of Homeland Security (Department of Homeland Security 2008). This organizational structure, while certainly extensive, is rather complex. Although the department has undergone serious transformations since its creation, the Washington Post called it "hampered by severe management and financial problems" in 2005 (Eggen 2005). A specific attack on the Department's organizational structure, the article suggested that the Federal Emergency Management Department was "overburdened" because of its Department of Homeland Security responsibilities (Egen 2005).

As a result of this complex structure, the Department of Homeland Security has taken upon itself duties that were already allocated to other branches of the government and government departments. Some of the duties of the Department include "assessing the nation's vulnerabilities" through information sharing and analysis, prevention and protection against "acts of terrorism, natural disasters and other emergencies," and providing a "coordinated, comprehensive federal response" and "swift recovery effort" (Department of Homeland Security 2008). Those who survived Hurricane Katrina, however, would not call this response coordinated or comprehensive. In fact because "the Department assumes primary responsibility for ensuring that emergency response professionals are prepared for every situation" (Department of Homeland Security 2008), Eggen (2005) suggests that the Hurricane Katrina emergency resulted in poor organization and financial issues.