Homeland

1 Pages 174 Words

President Bush officially unveiled the nation’s first strategy for homeland security on Tuesday in a document that broadly outlines how government and the private sector should counter the threat of terrorist attacks.
“This comprehensive plan lays out clear lines of authority and clear responsibilities; responsibilities for federal employees and for governors and mayors and community and business leaders and the American citizens,” Bush said at a White House ceremony.
The much-anticipated document comes almost five weeks after Bush proposed a new Cabinet-level department to lead the government’s homeland security effort. Critics in Congress and academia have questioned why the reorganization proposal preceded the strategy.
The 88-page plan seeks to organize the government’s far-flung security activities around a few strategic goals and spells out what agencies must do to protect the country in the future. It provides the first federal definition of “homeland security” and outlines current and future efforts in six mission areas: intelligence and warning, border and transportation security, domestic counterterrorism, critical infrastructure protection, defending against catastrophic terrorism and emergency preparedness and response....