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...

While the problems with organization were certainly evident just after the September 11 attacks, they are not less so now. Instead, they are now inherent in the Department of Homeland Security's organization. Furthermore, the duties assigned to the department overlap those duties of other agencies and departments. Thus, understanding what departments must respond to which threats or emergencies can be difficult. While the Department of Homeland security is obviously an important and necessary component of America today, a better approach would allow for more pointed direction and delegation.
References

Bush Signs Homeland Security bill. (2002, November 26). Retrieved January 25, 2009, from CNN. Web Site: http://archives.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/11/25/homeland.security/index.html

Department of Homeland Security. (2008). Department of Homeland Security Home

Page. Retrieved January 25, 2008, from the Department of Homeland Security. Web site: http://www.dhs.gov/index.shtm

Eggen, Dan. (2005, December 29). Homeland Security is Faulted in Audit. Retrieved January 25, 2008, from the Washington…