Bush Signs Homeland Security Bill

Yahoo News ^ | 08/03/07 | Deb Riechmann

[Froufrou]

President Bush signed legislation Friday that intensifies the anti-terrorism effort at home, shifting money to high-risk states and cities and expanding scrutiny of air and sea cargo.

The bill elevates the importance of risk factors in determining which states and cities get federal security funds. That would mean more money for such cities as New York and Washington. It also puts money into a new program to ensure that security officials at every level can communicate with each other.

It requires screening of all cargo on passenger planes within three years and sets a five-year goal of scanning all container ships for nuclear devices before they leave foreign ports.

Bush called it "the largest restructuring of our government since World War II" as he signed the bill into law before going to the FBI to meet and have lunch with counterterrorism advisers and then talk with members of his homeland security team.

He is meeting this weekend at Camp David, Md., with Hamid Karzai, the president of Afghanistan, where South Korean hostages are being held by the Taliban and where the Afghanistan-Pakistan border is considered a haven for the al-Qaida terrorist network.

The measure carries out unfulfilled recommendations that the Sept. 11 Commission made three years ago in the wake of the terror attacks on the U.S. homeland in 2001. It was passed in the House on a 371-40 vote and 85-8 in the Senate. Republicans generally backed the bill while stressing their own administration's success in stopping another major terrorist attack.

[DAVEY CROCKETT]

PING

[John Cena]

Good. This is the George W. Bush that I supported twice for President. Not the guy who supports amnesty.

[TomGuy]

So much for the Bush bluster threat to veto this.

He couldn't even find the veto pen during this first term. He used it once during the first 2 years of his second term.

Now he blusters "veto" at nearly every bill.

That recurring threat from the lame duck just doesn't have much oomph.

On this bill he threatened to veto (last week), Congress had more than enough votes to over-ride a veto.

Bush used up his political capital long ago, and his bully pulpit isn't much of bully pulpit.

The now-too-frequent veto threats are making him appear petty and weak. Someone [Rove or Cheney] needs to clue him in.

[Paladin2]

Where’s the fence?

[unixfox]

I “feel” much safer now.

[mtbopfuyn]

Lemme guess, this will all go into action right after that fence he also signed off on?

[fatnotlazy]

“The measure carries out unfulfilled recommendations that the Sept. 11 Commission made three years ago in the wake of the terror attacks on the U.S. homeland in 2001.”

****

Uh...yeah. Sorry guys but I’m willing to bet that this bill is meaningless...it’s yet another do nothing measure. My guess is that the Department of Homeland Security will blow the money on yachts and nice vacations.

[Diogenesis]

Where’s the fence?

[Quix]

Thanks for all your pings.

[johnthebaptistmoore]

Is the threat of terrorist attacks inside the U.S. now truly gone with the passing of this legislation? Will terrorists now be able to truly plan ahead of time to attack states and cities that have the least amount of counter terrorism monies given to them after such terrorists truly find out ahead of time where these cities and states with the least amount of counter terrorism monies are?

[Guenevere]

I feel so safe now :^

[nw_arizona_granny]

Bump.