Terror - Again

September 25th

After the most recent (multiple) terror attacks several commentators were quick to point out that the process from ‘explosion to arrest’ took less than 48 hours and that this demonstrated the great strides made since 2001.

The action of the various police and investigative organizations in identifying and tracking down the suspects was excellent police work. But…

It should be remembered that no action of any intelligence or police organization prevented the terrorists from succeeding. That these bombs went off and yet no one died is just a little short of a miracle. But banking on miracles is not a great security strategy.

That various terrorists have failed in their attacks because of incompetence (the ‘Underwear Bomber,’ the ‘Shoe Bomber,’ etc.) is hardly cause for celebration. We can thank God that such was the case. But, besides prayer, what can we do to prevent terror future attacks?

In the short term we can’t completely stop attacks. Whatever we start today won’t yield immediate and comprehensive results. Answers that ‘we need to copy Israel’ (the implication being that Israel has better security than the US) miss the point that the US is physically 400 times bigger than Israel with 40 times the population; the US is a much harder problem then Israel. And it’s a different one; it’s worth remembering that Israel suffers from regular terrorist attacks. The US can learn a great deal from Israel and others, but the US solution is going to be much different.

The US also has the benefit of the Constitution. That is something we absolutely don’t want to ‘throw out.’ But with the rights and freedoms the Constitution guarantees and protects, there is an associated cost. So, any solution must balance our security with those rights and freedoms.

So, how do we do that? Our candidates need to be asked this question. Any reasonable answer needs to address the following points:

First, recognize that any answer is going to be incomplete, that there will always be mistakes and gaps in our security. And, every answer will take time to implement. That we’re 15 years into this war against Islamic terrorists and we’re still asking these questions is a reason for criticism. The first 7 or 8 years or that period we seemed to perform slightly better. But in the past several years we’ve seen multiple successful terrorist attacks. Our security appears to be slipping. That suggests that, at a minimum, the people in charge right now need to be retired and new leadership and new strategies are needed.

Second, immigration reform – and that means better border security and immigration control – is a key element of our internal security. Trying to establish better security while maintaining open borders is nonsensical. We need to establish control first and then move on towards some sort of immigration reform. It is the sine qua non of the security problem. You can’t have open borders and high security. Pick one.

Third, intelligence agencies – working with the FBI, the state and local police and other agencies – can do a lot. They can probably do more then they are doing. Doing so will require intruding on personal liberties from time to time. And there will be mistakes. The intelligence agencies have no right to unchecked activities, or instant acceptance and loyalty from the citizenry. The nation needs more, and more aggressive, Congressional oversight. The intelligence community needs to be more forthcoming with Congress, and Congress needs to be much more aggressive and assertive in establishing detailed and comprehensive oversight.

Fourth, winning this war will require a very aggressive ‘away’ game. The root of this war is Islamic fanaticism. The way to fight them is with our Arab friends and allies who are in the same war as we, and who are suffering far more casualties than we are. We need to work with them to root out existing terrorist cells, but we also need to help them to do what is necessary to reform or stamp out those forces that promote fanaticism that threatens not simply the West, but threatens their own nations.

These are the big pieces: new leadership; immigration reform; meaningful intelligence reform and oversight; and attacking Islamic fanaticism at its roots. There are a thousand details. But whatever we do, every plan must include these elements.