U.S. Policy
President Donald Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard to the southern border on Wednesday was lauded by the leader of the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee as an important step to keep the country safe.
Citing legal loopholes, asylum fraud, immigration court backlogs and... Read More »
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officials said the agency is working to address instances of germs with unusual antibiotic resistance genes in the United States.
A CDC Vital Signs report referenced health departments working with the CDC’s Antibiotic Resistance (AR) Lab... Read More »
Lessons learned during the 2017 hurricane season will highlight Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) 2018 National Level Exercise, which will bring government agencies, the private sector, non-profits, and individuals together from April 30 to May 11.
The biennial national exercise... Read More »
U.S. Border Patrol agents from the Swanton Sector apprehended 20 individuals in four incidents for entering the country illegally over the past holiday weekend in New York, Vermont, and New Hampshire.
“The men and women of the United States Border Patrol work diligently to protect the border... Read More »
After fielding white papers from 436 academic institutions seeking federal funding through the Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) program, the Department of Defense (DoD) announced on Monday that it will issue 24 awards totaling up to $169 million over five years.
The MURI... Read More »
In response to reports that President Donald Trump has directed Pentagon to explore diverting a portion of military funding to construct a border wall, U.S. Sens. Jack Reed (D-RI) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) asserted on Monday that the Pentagon lacks legal authority to build a border wall.
In a... Read More »
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel recently joined two other agencies as a means following up on a program designed to bring closure for Mexican families missing loved ones in southern Arizona.
CBP agents paired with U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers from the Tucson Field... Read More »
Fellows of the Study of Terrorism and Response to Terrorism (START) Community Resilience, Engagement and Dialogue (CRED) initiative will discuss more than a year of research into responses to hate bias incidents at the University of Maryland at a “Dialogue Dinner” planned for Wednesday.
As... Read More »
Atlanta-area nuclear regulators, researchers, medical providers and first responders to discuss their roles in the event of a “dirty bomb” attack relying on a radiological dispersal device in a recent workshop.
The workshop was hosted by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)... Read More »
Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick M. Shanahan recently discussed the priorities of the Evolving the Future Force project while speaking at an event sponsored by the Center for a New American Security on March 29.
The multiyear initiative examines steps the joint force can take to adapt to... Read More »
Chicago O’Hare International Mail Facility Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers are using a hand-held device to screen packages that may contain common drugs and industrial chemicals.
Officials said the Gemini uses analytical techniques to screen packages using either the Raman... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) highlighted the need to reform U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) National Protection and Programs Directorate (NPPD) on Wednesday.
Legislation introduced by McCaul to restructure and rename the NPPD the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure (CISA) agency... Read More »
A group of senators called on Wednesday for the U.S. State Department to counter anti-Semitic Russian propaganda, train diplomats to recognize disinformation and collaborate with U.S. allies to advance a unified response on Wednesday.
In a letter to U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan,... Read More »
The Alliance for Biosecurity recently commended congressional leaders for a “historic increase” to Project BioShield as well as significant increases to accounts such as the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS), Pandemic Flu, and the Biomedical Advanced Research Development Authority... Read More »
During a trip by Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen M. Nielsen to Mexico City, Mexico, the United States and Mexico entered three agreements regarding trade and customs.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Kevin McAleenan and the Tax Administration Service (SAT) signed a... Read More »
A pair of lawmakers recently touted the benefits of an increase in the U.S. – Israeli missile defense programs federal funding bill.
Senate Minority Leader Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) said the omnibus spending bill provides $705.8 million in funding to the... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) introduced Monday the Ammunition Background Check Act of 2018, which would require instant background checks for the purchase of gun ammunition.
“Ammunition sales should be subject to the same legal requirements... Read More »
New technology acquired by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Field Operations (OFO) at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport, as well as draft legislation introduced by Senate health committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN), could help CBP prevent opioids from entering the United... Read More »
The Trump Administration’s announcement on Monday that 60 Russian diplomats would be expelled from the country, and the Russian consulate in Seattle would be closed, in response to chemical weapons attacks on British soil met applause from U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ).
The United Kingdom has... Read More »
The federal spending bill signed into law by President Donald Trump on Friday maintains or increases funding for a number of U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) grant programs that help protect against and respond to terrorist threats and natural disasters at the state and municipal levels.... Read More »
United States preparedness against terrorist attacks from chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) agents includes prep and planning for the public, as well as for the first responders who will be on the front lines during a catastrophic emergency event.
Dr. Robert Kadlec, Assistant... Read More »
Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently announced a proposed rulemaking from the Department of Justice that would clarify that bump stocks fall within the definition of “machinegun” under federal law.
The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) would amend the regulations of the Bureau of... Read More »
Nine Iranian hackers have been charged by the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) with leading a four-year campaign of cyberattacks on universities and professors, private businesses, and the U.S. government on behalf of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, according to an indictment unsealed on... Read More »
The U.S. House Homeland Security Committee approved eight bills last week that seek to enhance the nation’s cybersecurity, surface transportation security, and air travel and cargo security.
U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), the committee’s chairman, said America must “continue to evolve... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives recently advanced an omnibus spending bill, which includes the largest increase in defense funding in 15 years.
The bill, advanced with a vote of 256 to 167, includes funding to fight terrorism, secure borders, enhance first responder capabilities, improve... Read More »
Penalties for distributing the synthetic opioid fentanyl would be enhanced under a bill introduced in the U.S. Senate on Thursday, and the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) would be given new tools to intercept drug shipments from overseas.
The bill would lower the amount of fentanyl or fentanyl... Read More »
The omnibus federal spending bill that gained approval in the U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday contains provisions that would increase support for border security, local police departments, and firefighters.
U.S. Sens. Jon Tester (D-MT) and John Boozman (R-AK) secured $85 million in... Read More »
With U.S. Senate approval of a bill that would end civil and criminal protections under current law for websites that take part in online sex trafficking on Wednesday, the measure will advance to the president’s desk.
The Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act (SESTA), S. 1693, would amend the... Read More »
More individuals working for organizations that promote foreign interests in the United States would have to register as foreign agents under a bill introduced in the U.S. Senate on Wednesday.
Under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) of 1938, individuals working for foreign-supported... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) has been researching ways to minimize risk from a dam failure while improving response capability of stakeholders.
Officials said the Kentucky Division of Water and S&T’s Flood Apex program are working together... Read More »
Army Secretary Mark Esper’s decision to dismantle the 1-285th Attack Reconnaissance Battalion (ARB) in Marana, Arizona, met resistance from U.S. Rep. Martha McSally (R-AZ) on Tuesday.
McSally, the former commander of the 354th Fighter Squadron at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, voiced her... Read More »
The U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence has concluded that the country’s election infrastructure remains resilient despite Russian attempts to hack state voting systems, but the committee released recommendations on Tuesday to better defend against future attempts to undermine... Read More »
The United States is part of the international plan to prevent the naturally occurring, accidental or deliberate spread of infectious diseases, but remains among many countries hampered by the inadequate or underprepared systems around the world that can’t effectively deal with rapidly emerging... Read More »
As the spring tourism season looms, members of Washington State’s congressional delegation called on the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) on Monday to deploy five temporary passenger screening canine teams to the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac).
In a letter to TSA... Read More »
In response to reports that Cambridge Analytica exploited the private information of more than 50 million Facebook users during the 2016 presidential campaign, U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) called for an official investigation by the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday.
Feinstein,... Read More »
