The
idea of Homeland Security is new to many Americans, and
does not always roll easily off the lips. Many have asked
about its origins and meaning.
While
the idea of looking to friends and then local, state and
government agencies for protection takes us back to the
earliest days of our nation's history, the idea that we
might need defense at home was first raised in its modern
context in 1949. A panel of experts completed a review of
potential biological weapons and reported to the Secretary
of Defense the need for "home defense, involving collaborate
efforts of federal, state and private agencies."[1]
The
term was next mentioned prominently in 1997. Concerned that
the Department of Defense might not be moving fast enough
to redesign itself after the Cold War, Congress mandated
an internal "Quadrennial Defense Review" of military
strategy, forces and priorities, with the first of these
to be followed by an independent "National Defense
Panel." In 1997 this NDP reported its conclusions,
to include a concern that terrorist and other threats to
the United States were becoming increasingly likely and
potentially more damaging. They recommended more attention
to the defense of the homeland - soon to be called "homeland
defense."
Over
the next several years, additional reviews and commissions
came to similar conclusions, and discussion of the issue
increased.[2] It soon became clear
that the term "Homeland Defense" - conceived initially
as actions by the Department of Defense -- was not broad
enough to capture all the actions required by a variety
of government and private actors at multiple levels. Gradually,
Homeland Security came to define that boarder set of actions
and initiatives. And the whole preexisting set of actions
already planned and coordinated to provide support by DOD
within the United States in time of natural disasters and
law enforcement crises was identified as a separate sub-set
of the larger concept of Homeland Security.
Now
that the public debate over the organization and bounds
of Homeland Security has been joined, we must be accurate
and consistent in our use of language. The technical terms
as their definitions have evolved over the past several
years, are described below:
Perhaps
the best way to remember the important distinctions, is to
recall that:
- Homeland
Security is the overarching concept, consisting of all
actions taken at every level (federal, state, local, private,
and individual citizen) to deter, defend against, or mitigate
attacks within the United States, or to respond to other
major domestic emergencies.
- Homeland
Defense is a subset of Homeland Security, and
refers only to actions taken to deter or defend against
attack. It does not include dealing with the consequences
of attack, or the attribution and response required to restore
deterrence. It may include non-Federal and non-DOD actions.
- On
occasion, the Department of Defense may be called
upon to provide support within the United States for emergency
and law enforcement purposes that have nothing to do with
foreign attack. These operations, called Civil Support,
are also a subset of Homeland Security.
However,
even these distinctions may still be a bit complex for those
looking at the concept for the first time, and so in its simplest
form we offer the following definition:
"Homeland
Security consists of those private and public actions at
every level that ensure the ability of Americans to live
their lives the way they wish, free from fear of organized
attack."
If
this idea seems very broad, well . . . it is. And it will
no doubt change again as its concepts are translated into
practice.
-Dave
McIntyre, a retired military officer and former Dean of the
National War College, is the Deputy Director for Research
of the ANSER Institute for Homeland Security.
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on an endnote number to return to the article.
[1] For details,
see Germs: Biological Weapons and America's
Secret War, but Judith Miller, Stephen Engleberg,
and William Broad, NY: Simon & Schuster, 2001.
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