Recently released information from the 9/11 Commission reveals that its original recommendation to condense and consolidate congressional oversight for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has yet to be implemented. This leaves homeland security at risk and bound by its own committees. In 2003, DHS was subject to oversight by 86 congressional committees and subcommittees. Today there are more than 108. Compare that to the 36 committees and subcommittees with oversight for the Department of Defense, which has a budget 10 times greater than DHS and millions more employees. This …
Earlier this week at Heritage, a Bush-era deputy assistant attorney general shared the stage with a former president of the American Civil Liberties Union. It’s not exactly the type of combination you might expect talking about terrorism 10 years after 9/11. But for John Yoo and Nadine Strossen, it was an opportunity to discuss the future of national security. Yoo is the co-editor of a new book with Dean Reuter that features essays from 22 contributors spanning the ideological spectrum. The compilation, “Confronting Terror: 9/11 and the Future of American …
While opinions about America’s post–9/11 policies come and go, facts remain: The U.S. has thwarted 40 terrorist plots through an aggressive and prioritized plan of offense to protect America. That is not a plan to abandon now, in an age of increasingly high-tech terrorism. As John Yoo, a former official in the U.S. Department of Justice between 2001–2003, said yesterday at The Heritage Foundation, “The most important thing to happen in the U.S. in the last 10 years was nothing… the most important question to ask is why and whether …
Last week, Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York City made headlines when he expressly excluded clergy-led prayer from the planned 10th anniversary 9/11 Memorial Service at Ground Zero. It troubled many Americans that a prominent public official would ignore the profound role the faith community played in the aftermath of 9/11. Yet, thanks to the intervention of two American Presidents who were invited, the memorial service ultimately did reflect our nation’s religious heritage. Following remarks by Mayor Bloomberg, President Obama stood to offer solace to the families of 9/11 victims …
After 9/11, an event that Americans and their allies will never forget, the United States focused on a war on terrorism. There is, however, a threat that has been largely ignored—the threat of an electromagnetic pulse (EMP), noted by Investor’s Business Daily. In 2004 and 2008, the Commission to Assess the Threat to the United States from Electromagnetic Pulse Attack (also known as the EMP Commission) released its reports on how to protect the United States from an EMP. Despite its recommendations, little progress has been made in protecting the …
With the 10th anniversary of 9/11, some touching remembrances have been written, but also an increasing number of op-eds, editorials and blog posts, the theme of which are “let’s stop looking back at 9/11 and start moving forward.” The second response is bad advice for several reasons. While I appreciate the need to move ever forward, we must not forget the vicious attacks of ten years ago. We must not forget that it was a calculated attack on Americans and a strike at our way of life. We must not …
On the 10th anniversary of the tragic 9/11 attacks, we must remain vigilant and avoid losing the advances we have made in the long war to keep America safe and secure. Today, as we remember the nearly 3,000 fellow citizens who lost their lives in the attack, Heritage offers tributes about 9/11. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), actor Gary Sinise and tea party activist Billie Tucker are among those who share their thoughts on the horrific events that unfolded on Sept. 11, 2001, and how America responded. View more at our …
Today, we join America in honoring the anniversary of September 11, 2001, when terrorists killed nearly 3,000 of our fellow citizens. In the days after 9/11, Americans stood together as one, setting aside partisan fervor and recognized a common enemy in Islamist terrorist groups, particularly al-Qaeda. National security was rightfully restored as our nation’s highest priority. Ten years later, Osama bin Laden is dead, delivering to victims’ families and the rest of America a bit of justice for the heinous acts we all witnessed. But one terrorist’s death does not …
Five years ago ABC aired “The Path to 9/11,” a five-hour docudrama that explained how terrorists plotted to attack America on that frightful September morning in 2001. The movie sparked protests and attempts to stop ABC from showing it. Former President Bill Clinton was among those most displeased. As America marks the 10th anniversary of 9/11, the movie remains under lock and key at ABC. The network never released it on DVD. In fact, last week’s screening at The Heritage Foundation was the first public showing of the film since its …
This is a guest post by Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) for our special blog series on 9/11. Like every American, I will never forget where I was on the morning of September 11, 2001. As a Member of Congress from Indiana, that day my duties took me to Capitol Hill and to sights and sounds I will never forget. I witnessed the U.S. Capitol literally hemorrhaging with people running in every direction. I heard the deafening sounds of sirens all around and thunderous booms of military aircraft going supersonic at …
