Report warns of influence peddling over DHS.The jumble of congressional committees with oversight of the Department of Homeland Security Noun 1. Department of Homeland Security - the federal department that administers all matters relating to homeland security Homeland Security executive department - a federal department in the executive branch of the government of the United States is more than an inconvenience to those called to testify. It opens the door to undue influence from lobbyists and government contractors, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a panel that was chaired by two veterans of Capitol Hill. "The current situation poses a clear and demonstrable risk to our national security," the report stated. Former Speaker of the House Thomas Foley Thomas Foley and Tom Foley are common names used in reference to:
DHS Department of Human Services DHS Department of Health Services DHS Demographic and Health Surveys DHS Dirhams (Morocco national currency) oversight for the Center for Strategic and International Studies The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) is a Washington, D.C.-based foreign policy think tank. The center was founded in 1964 by Admiral Arleigh Burke and historian David Manker Abshire, originally as part of Georgetown University. . Their report, titled "Untangling the Web", asserted that Congress has "failed to remove a major impediment to effective homeland security" by maintaining too many politicians who have no expertise in the overall strategy, and who are stretched across a multitude of committees and subcommittees. "This fragmentation also creates the conditions for mid-level sub-ordinates to end-run the leadership of DHS and appeal directly to congressional committees with which they have long-standing relationships," the report said. "It allows outside interest groups, single-issue lobbies and government contractors to more easily find champions for parochial interests and pork barrel projects that fall outside the strategic mandate and intent of DHS." The effort to simplify oversight is lagging behind the attempt to streamline homeland security operations that was envisioned when DHS was created. Currently, 79 committees and subcommittees in the House and Senate have responsibility for DHS operations. This compares to the 88 that had oversight before DHS consolidated operations. The Defense Department enjoys a budget 10 times greater than DHS, but faces 36 committees and subcommittees on Capitol Hill. The report recommends a major overhaul of legislative oversight. For subcommittees, the report suggests sticking with DHS'S core mission sectors: intelligence, border and transportation security, domestic counter terrorism, critical infrastructure, defending against catastrophic threats and emergency preparedness. These committees would be stocked with "small, expert cadres of members who can exercise oversight and craft legislation taking into account the full spectrum of homeland security requirements--not simply one narrow element." |
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