The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has failed to meet a wide range of its promises, a house committee has claimed.
Prepared for the Democrat-leaning House Committee on Homeland Security, the report names 33 promises dating back to 2002 it says have not been fulfilled.
These range from preparedness for a range of possible terrorist attacks at the country’s ports and airports, to a failure to make progress in formulating a plan for protecting critical national infrastructure.
Furthermore, the US, has no means for assessing or identifying cyber-attacks, leaving it open to the risk of failures of critical computer systems. The report urges the U.S. Government to appoint an Assistant Secretary for Cyber & Telecommunications, as promised in the summer of 2005.
“There are many security gaps that leave out nation at risk,” the report states. “From critical infrastructure protection to border security, more work needs to be done to protect the homeland.”
“It’s our job in Congress to hold the Department of Homeland Security accountable for the work that it does and doesn’t do. It would be one thing if the Department didn’t identify security lapses in the first place, but a more troubling situation when they make promises to the American people and then leave them unfulfilled,” Democrat ranking committee member Bennie G. Thompson was quoted as saying.
