Department of Homeland Security

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'Virtual Fence' Cleared For Arizona Border

Troubled system already operational

(Newser) - The government has just given the green light to a 28-mile “virtual fence” along the Arizona/Mexico border, the AP reports. The system, which uses cameras, radar, and other sensor devices to detect border jumpers, is already partially constructed, and working. Last week Border Patrol caught 38 would-be illegal immigrants...

Families Battle Feds Over US Border Fence

Many resist federal efforts, but judges order them to give up

(Newser) - Americans on the southern US border are fuming over a federal fence that threatens to cut their properties in two, the Washington Post reports. The feds have erected about 165 miles of fence in the West and southwest, but some families, protecting land they have held for generations, are turning...

FBI Bails on Immigrant Probes as Backlogs Mount

Backlog means immigrants will be granted residency before background checks

(Newser) - Immigration officials are expected to grant green cards to tens of thousands of aliens before required FBI background checks, because the Department of Homeland Security is struggling under a ballooning backlog, McClatchy Newspapers reports. Background checks would be performed after immigrants are granted residency, which could be revoked if problems...

US to Admit More Iraqi Refugees
US to Admit More Iraqi Refugees
Feb 5, 2008 3:47 AM CST

US to Admit More Iraqi Refugees

Speeds up glacial pace of resettlement

(Newser) - The State Department plans to admit 12,000 Iraqi refugees into the US by September, despite resettling only 375 so far this year, CNN reports. Ambassador James Foley, charged with the task of accelerating resettlement, vowed to reporters that the pace will pick up in the coming months. The US...

Mont. Governor Calls for Rally Against Real ID

Asks 17 other states to 'join me in resisting'

(Newser) - Montana's governor firmly rejected new federal ID legislation yesterday, urging 17 other states to join him in battling the DHS Real ID program, which requires citizens to reapply for ID, Wired reports. "If we stand together either DHS will blink or Congress will have to act to avoid havoc...

New ID Rules Look to Shore Up US Borders

Proof of citizenship now needed; 'Time to grow up,' says Chertoff

(Newser) - All travelers entering the US, including Americans, will face tough new ID requirements beginning in two weeks. "It's time to grow up and recognize that we've got to take determined steps to getting better security," homeland security chief Michael Chertoff told the AP.

US Faces 'Terror Attack Threat From Europe'

Security chief envisions stricter safety measures

(Newser) - Americans face a "real risk that Europe will become a platform for terrorists," US Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff told the BBC yesterday. America will likely boost security measures to protect the country from such a threat, but will also make an effort not to unduly hinder travel...

Congressional Report Blames TSA for Botched Website

Site lacked basic security features

(Newser) - The TSA awarded a website design and maintenance contract to a firm with whom an administration official had close personal and professional ties, ComputerWorld reports. The site, meant to handle individual requests to have names removed from the TSA’s no-fly list, lacked even rudimentary encryption mechanisms and was not...

New Fed ID Law Puts States in Costly Bind

Homeland Security pushes back deadline for revamped licenses

(Newser) - A new federal ID law has 17 states in an uproar over the cost of new driver's licenses and a rushed timetable, the AP reports. Michael Chertoff laid out final details of the REAL ID program today, including an extended timetable with one short deadline: Residents of states that don't...

Feds to Unveil New ID System
Feds to Unveil New ID System
Jan 11, 2008 8:22 AM CST

Feds to Unveil New ID System

States get more time to phase in more secure licenses

(Newser) - Homeland Security officials will unveil plans today for new super-secure drivers' licenses but will give reluctant states more time to comply, the AP reports. Every American under 50 will have to switch to the new licenses by 2011 and those older by 2018. The licenses will be linked to a...

Anti-Missile Devices Set for Testing on US Airliners

Laser jammers slated for cross-country flights

(Newser) - The Department of Homeland Security will equip three American Airlines passenger planes with anti-missile laser jammers this spring, USA Today reports. The devices, designed to confuse shoulder-launched projectiles, will be mounted on planes flying between New York and California to assess overall maintenance concerns, how the system works on routine...

Cheating Is No Longer Child's Play
Cheating Is
No Longer
Child's Play
Dec 26, 2007 8:24 PM CST

Cheating Is No Longer Child's Play

Jobseekers flock to web for answers to professional exams

(Newser) - Crib sheets have gone high-tech, the Boston Globe reports, as legions of job seekers from would-be medical technicians to school bus drivers resort to the Web for a leg-up in passing professional qualifying exams. The result is a booming black market for “braindumps,” or exam answers. Some are...

Iraqi Officers Going AWOL in America

About a dozen have skipped out while here for military training

(Newser) - Nearly a dozen Iraqi military and law-enforcement officials have fled specialized training programs in the US, the Washington Times reports. The men are either seeking asylum in this country or are still missing—leading a high-ranking congressman to warn of the national-security implications. An Army spokesman says none of the...

Citizenship Delays Will Impact Election

Hundreds of thousands will miss chance to vote due to backlog

(Newser) - Hundreds of thousands of immigrants who have applied for US citizenship will not have those applications processed in time to vote in the 2008 election. The Department of Homeland Security failed to fully prepare for a massive increase in applications filed to beat a widely publicized fee increase that took...

Airport Screeners Miss Bombs
Airport Screeners Miss Bombs
Nov 14, 2007 8:29 PM CST

Airport Screeners Miss Bombs

Investigators smuggle in explosives in undercover test

(Newser) - Airport screeners fared poorly in an undercover test in which government investigators smuggled liquid explosives and detonators past checkpoints, the AP reports. As a troubling bonus, the investigators learned how to make the explosives on the internet and bought the parts for less than $150, showing that would-be terrorists could...

Anthrax Probe Finds US ‘Poorly Prepared’

Security firm says new vaccine, better detection needed

(Newser) - The US is ill equipped to deal with anthrax threats, a consulting firm said today, and must improve vaccines, drugs for victims of exposure and detection methods. The group, which includes a former CIA director, used several outbreak scenarios—in subways, movie theaters, theme parks and the Oscars—to illustrate...

Bushies Break Records in Rush to K Street

More than 150 White House staffers have switched to lobbying

(Newser) - Departing staffers of lame duck presidents have long filled the ranks of lobbying firms, but the Bush White House is providing K Street operatives in particularly high numbers, the Politico reports—raising a series of ethics questions about the revolving-door phenomenon. The key industries hiring outgoing Bushies are homeland security—...

Red Tape Grounded Copters in California Fires

Residents pick up the pieces after blaze

(Newser) - Firefighting helicopters sat idle as wildfires broke out across California, an AP investigation concludes, thanks to a web of bureaucracy. By the time Navy, Marine, and National Guard aircraft got clearance, up to a day after blazes started, it was already too dangerous to fly. Others were missing crucial equipment...

Bush Declares Calif. Emergency
Bush Declares Calif. Emergency
Oct 23, 2007 12:16 PM CDT

Bush Declares Calif. Emergency

(Newser) - Federal aid will soon be pouring into Southern California: President Bush today declared a state of emergency for the fire-scorched region. Wildfires ripping across seven counties have forced half a million people to evacuate. “We extend our prayers and our thoughts” to them, Bush said. Homeland Security chief Michael...

Judge Blocks Crackdown on Immigrant Workers

Nixes plan to track Social Security numbers

(Newser) - In a major blow to the Bush Administration, a federal judge has blocked a controversial program to find illegal immigrants in the workplace by tracking discrepancies in their Social Security data. A US district judge ruled the crackdown by the Department of Homeland Security would "subject employers to greater...

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