U.S. Policy
Advances in medicine have meant many lives saved over the years, but it also has led to weakened immune systems that would leave people vulnerable to the resurrection of an older, incredibly deadly disease: smallpox.
Professor Raina MacIntyre of the University of New South Wales (UNSW) is... Read More »
Dr. Robert Kadlec, Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will present the keynote address during a March 7 seminar in Brussels for members of the European Parliament and will discuss “CBRN — An Invisible Risk. Is... Read More »
Researchers at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) recently published a study that found that the United States is unprepared for the surge in pediatric patients that an infectious disease pandemic could cause.
The paper, which was published in the American Journal of Disaster Medicine,... Read More »
Citing the Las Vegas mass shooting that left 58 concert goers dead in October, Nevada lawmakers called on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to reconfigure the funding formula for its Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) grant program on Friday.
In a letter to Homeland Security Kirstjen... Read More »
Warning that the United States is engaged in or at the brink of cyber war, U.S. Sen. Angus King (I-ME) called for a national doctrine of cyber deterrence during two separate hearings on Thursday.
King spoke about the importance of a national cybersecurity policy during a Senate Armed Services... Read More »
A bipartisan bill announced in the U.S. Senate on Thursday would enable law enforcers and family members to petition courts to temporarily restrict access to firearms for those who are deemed an imminent threat to themselves or others.
U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Lindsey Graham... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Susan Brooks (R-IN) this week maintained her laser focus on improving the preparedness of the United States to respond to a pandemic or chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) threats via formation of the new bipartisan Congressional Biodefense Caucus.
Rep. Brooks and... Read More »
A new bill being considered by the Senate seeks to formulate a concrete strategy against antibiotic resistance and lower the inappropriate use of antibiotics which is fueling the condition’s rise.
The legislation comes from U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and has been dubbed the Strategies to... Read More »
A Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released on Wednesday found that the Department of Defense (DoD) has implemented some — but not all — of statutory requirements outlined in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to address organizational challenges.
The DoD drafted an... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) detailed its progress regarding the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 (TFTEA) in a recent press release marking the two-year anniversary of the Act.
TFTEA aims to reshape, strengthen and modernize how CBP accomplishes its trade mission... Read More »
The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) and Emory University recently hosted a workshop on radiological security in Atlanta, Georgia.
Workshop participants included representatives from the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the Federal Bureau of... Read More »
A bipartisan resolution introduced in the Senate on Wednesday calls for the withdrawal of U.S. forces from conflict in Yemen between a Saudi-led coalition and the Houthis movement that emerged there in the 1990s.
The Obama Administration deployed U.S. military forces to Yemen in 2015 without... Read More »
An effort to ban the sale, transfer, manufacture, and importation of military-style assault weapons and high capacity ammunition magazines alike has been introduced to the U.S. Senate, and Democrats appear to be aligning behind the effort.
Introduced by U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.),... Read More »
Senior justice and law enforcement officials and their diplomatic counterparts from approximately 90 countries and organizations met in Washington, D.C. this week to discuss the evolving threats posed by ISIS.
The U.S. Department of State, the International Criminal Police Organization... Read More »
Individuals who are on the “no fly list” maintained by the Terrorist Screening Center would be barred from purchasing firearms under a bill introduced by a bipartisan group of senators on Tuesday.
The Terrorist Firearms Prevention Act would enable the attorney general to deny firearms sales... Read More »
Twelve A-10s that were delivered to Kandahar, Afghanistan, in January have primarily been used to target Taliban revenue streams like narcotics trafficking, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) Commander Gen. Joseph Votel testified before a House panel on Tuesday.
January marked the first time in... Read More »
With biological threats to America and its interests overseas increasing, waiting any longer to commit federal funds to national biodefense would not be in the best interests of the health and well-being of United States’ citizens, nor the country’s security, the Blue Ribbon Study Panel on... Read More »
Local school districts would have access to federal grant funding to install metal detectors under a bill announced by U.S. Rep. Kay Granger (R-TX) on Monday to help secure schools.
The bill would require school districts that receive grant funding to limit the number of school entrances to... Read More »
Deportation officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) arrested 145 individuals in South and Central Texas during a seven-day enforcement action, which ended Feb. 16.
Of the 145 arrested, 86 had criminal convictions. Thirty-nine were... Read More »
The State Department and Department of Defense (DoD) signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday that will operationalize the Global Engagement Center (GEC), which will be tasked with coordinating the U.S. government’s counter-propaganda efforts.
GEC was established under a provision of... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) lauded new sanctions announced against shipping companies and vessels tied to North Korea on Friday as a necessary move to compel North Korea to engage in “a credible diplomatic process” with denuclearization as the ultimate goal.
The Treasury Department’s... Read More »
Counterfeit goods entering the United States pose challenges for consumers and businesses that need to be addressed by federal agencies that enforce intellectual property rights (IPR), according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).
Counterfeit goods are hard to spot and, with the... Read More »
While the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) tries to grow its pre-check flight security system, members of a House panel on Tuesday raised concerns that the system is not being used properly.
During a hearing of the House Homeland Security Committee Transportation and Protective... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officers in New England, Boston Field Office arrested three subjects in a 24-hour period in two separate instances for narcotics possession and an active warrant.
At the Port of Houlton in Maine, CBP officers encountered two 42-year old male U.S. citizens... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently reviewed the implementation of Next Generation 911 (NG911), which provides improved capabilities over the legacy 911 system.
The GAO report examines state and local progress, challenges in implementing NG911 and federal actions to address... Read More »
Legislation introduced in the House of Representatives on Friday aims to improve information sharing and engagement among the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) fusion centers, which collect and share information on threats with federal, state, local and private partners.
The DHS Field... Read More »
The Treasury Department announced a sanctions package on Friday that targets 27 entities and 28 vessels tied to North Korea, China, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and four additional countries violating earlier U.S. sanctions by engaging in trade with North Korea.
The Treasury Department’s... Read More »
More than 50 groups marshalled by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) seek an act of Congress to rush urgently needed new antimicrobial drugs to market that protect America’s national security and the health of its citizens against biothreats posed by antimicrobial resistant (AMR)... Read More »
Citing North Korean ballistic missile threats, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) called on the Department of Defense (DoD) to include development and deployment of space-based missile defense in the 2018 Missile Defense Review (MDR).
In a letter to Defense Secretary James Mattis, Cruz highlighted... Read More »
More than 80 percent of cybersecurity professionals believe that their employer will experience a “catastrophic” data breach within the next three years, and 66 percent believe that it could “seriously diminish” shareholder value, according to a global study released on Wednesday.... Read More »
U.S. Congressman Scott Peters (D-CA), whose 52nd District in San Diego County encompasses a large military presence that partners in strategic national defense, thinks it’s important the United States find smart solutions to biothreats that include preparedness for any catastrophic biological... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) will use a new Cyber-Digital Task Force to assess its current efforts to combat global cyberthreats and identify areas of improvement, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced on Tuesday.
The deputy attorney general will appoint a senior department official... Read More »
Charles Perez was sworn in as the director of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Santa Teresa Port on Friday and will oversee and manage all officers, agriculture specialists, and canine enforcement officers working in the port area in his new role.
Perez served as the area port director for... Read More »
Al-Qaeda operative Ibrahim Suleiman Adnan Adam Harun, aka Spin Ghul, 47, was recently sentenced to life in prison following his March 16, 2017, trial conviction of multiple terrorism offenses.
Harun was convicted of offenses including conspiracy to murder American military personnel in... Read More »
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has a plan to secure needed inventories of low-enriched uranium through 2038, but a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) review found that longer-term enriched uranium needs haven’t been clearly defined and cost estimates are... Read More »
