Christmas Bombing Attempt Saved Counterterrorism Center from Budget Cuts
Friday, January 29, 2010
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab is due a belated Christmas card from Michael Leiter. As the man in charge of the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), Leiter and his team of analysts are responsible for sifting through thousands of intelligence tips and warnings each day to determine if the nation is at risk of attack. The NCTC has struggled in the past to keep up with the volume of data that pours into it, and to make matters worse, the Obama administration was planning to cut 20% from the NCTC budget. But that was before Abdulmutallab tried to blow up Northwest Flight 253 on Christmas Day.
In light of the near miss, the administration has decided to forego slashing the NCTC budget, since it might mean laying off analysts and producing even more strain on counterterrorism efforts. The NCTC reportedly receives more than 5,000 pieces of terrorist-related information and reviews 5,000 names of suspected terrorists each day.
http://www.allgov.com/ViewNews/Christmas_Bombing_Attempt_Saved_Counterterrorism_Center_from_Budget_Cuts_100129
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