Is there any good reason why Homeland Security SHOULDN'T be disbanded?

[derby378]

They didn't act to help out Hurricane Katrina victims fast enough. Their rebuilding efforts in New Orleans are laughable. All that DHS seems capable of doing is shaking down grandmothers and little kids at airports, wasting huge amounts of taxpayer money at posh retreats, and creating racist e-mails denigrating Barack Obama.

Really, why can't we split up the Department and reassign all the divisions to their pre-2001 hierarchy?

[hobbit709]

1. I can't even think of a semi-good reason.

[onehandle]

2. "Democrats are weak on security and this is why."

Sorry. Ain't happening.

[derby378]

7. How does doing away with DHS make Democrats look weak on security?

It would strengthen FEMA and empower our first responders. Scrap DHS.

[onehandle]

15. Story Headline: "Democratic President Obama does away with Department of Homeland Security."

body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy, body copy...

[derby378]

24. Sub-headline: "City of New Orleans Citizens Rejoice in the Streets"

They will not be missed in Katrina territory, I can tell you that.

[Gman]

3. Katrina is the reason Mary Landrieu has become more conservative

many in her base have yet to return to NOLA. And, NOLA became a social experiment for the conservatives trying to rid the area of Blacks. They succeeded to a large extent and changed the political dynamics of Louisiana.

For this reason alone Homeland Security should be disbanded and the different departments returned to where they where before this failed GOP policy.

[Name removed]

4. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[obliviously]

5. They could disband them and the DEA tomorrow

and the world would be a better place!

[tularetom]

6. Remember the hidden motive for forming the Dept. in the first place?

They did away with all the civil service protection and ability to organize for all federal employees encompassed by the Fatherland Security Dept.

The whole deal was just a way to get around public labor unions.

[spanone]

8. the democrats would be crucified as terrorists

[Advocatus_Diaboli]

9. I color code my ensemble to match the threat

How would I know how to dress if Homeland Security didn't provide the cue? And what would I do with all this yellow and orange clothes?

[Quantess]

26. Remember when they advised everyone to store cans of tuna under our beds?

Welcome to DU, by the way. :hi:

[lpbk2713]

10. The very name always made me think of the Third Reich.

I think it should be reconsidered.

[Hippo_Tron]

11. It's probably a good idea for the FEMA director to report directly to the President

Given that it is the President who will suffer the political fallout of a disastrous FEMA response and thus have an incentive to make sure that they are doing their job. Adding a layer of bureaucracy between FEMA and the President makes little sense.

[gleaner]

12. I can't think of any reason at all...

They were formed to give Bush yet another police arm and to pull the teeth out of FEMA and other federal agencies covered under their umbrella.


Department of Homeland Security should be disbanded and the workers returned to agencies which formerly handled their functions with commensurate pay and benefits.

FEMA should definitely be independent and reporting directly to the president. Homeland Security is like the Patriot Act. Fascist, ineffective and serving no good purpose other than trying to scare people.

[TexasObserver]

13. No. It wasn't needed when created, and sure isn't needed now.

[KT2000]

14. In truth? No.

But now that they are part of the military industrial complex, they are here to stay.

I live in the community the terrorist Rassam was caught(on his way to blow up LAX). He was stopped by the border patrol agents before there was such as thing a Homeland Security. Now there's oodles of money here for HS and they spend hours sitting on the side of the road in their vehicles watching Hispanic agricultural workers. They board buses checking citizenship and set up checkpoints where all cars must pull over and be "examined" by "trained personnel."
Last I heard they were looking for a bulding to house all the new employees.

[Stinky The Clown]

16. I've mulled this over for a while ......

..... and have concluded that if a Democrat dismantles it, he'd be crucified by the media and most people to the right of ....... I dunno ...... Joe Biden.

So here's what I suggest.

Break it apart slowly.

FEMA becomes a cabinet level agency.

Coast Guard goes back to some other agency. I'm thinking commerce or Interior, or some such.

Secret Service goes another cabinet agency. Maybe Justice. Maybe Treasury (where it started).

TSA goes to Transportation.

And slowly we reassign. Until TSA is pretty much marginalized.

[omega minimo]

17. Yes if only to get rid of Bushco's fascistic name for it.

:evilfrown: and then all the other reasons. :thumbsdown:

[BlooInBloo]

18. Because Lieberman is TEH BESTEST oversight committee chair EVAH!!!

[bridgit]

19. It was a clearing house for war profiteering republican no-bid cronies from the GitMo...

Dissolve them or absorb them striking their charter and rewriting them into their new role as collective bargainer on behalf of the America people, we the people, in the course of ferreting *out* pernicious/corrosive corporatism global, foreign, and domestic =

[tooeyeten]

20. not one

Putting FEMA in was one of the worst ideas ever.

[rhett o rick]

21. Ask President Obama. nm

[tavalon]

22. Not one reason I can think of

Time to get the jackboots off of our backs.

[Flaneur]

23. Don't forget the Pentagon, either.

[merh]

25. There is a need to combine the efforts of the federal agencies.

The problems exist not because DHS was established but that it was established under bushco's corrupt administration.

I don't know if the Obama administration has realized how screwed up DHS really is and it may take time for them to get a handled on it. Folks need to remember, bush had 8 years to destroy things and the repair won't happen overnight. There are also far too many of the bush cronies left in office and yes, I do believe they are their to sabotage any effort made to make things better.

[keep_it_real]

27. The name should be change to United States Security