Homeland Security stops terrorism...or not

[Hesten]

Just found this over at CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/05/27/ ... topstories

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Claims of terrorism represented less than 0.01 percent of charges filed in recent years in immigration courts by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, according to a report issued Sunday by an independent research group.

This comes despite the fact the Bush administration has repeatedly asserted that fighting terrorism is the central mission of DHS.

The Transactional Records Action Clearinghouse said it analyzed millions of previously undisclosed records obtained from the immigration courts under the Freedom of Information Act.

Of the 814,073 people charged by DHS in immigration courts during the past three years, 12 faced charges of terrorism, TRAC said.

Those 12 cases represent 0.0015 percent of the total number of cases filed.

"The DHS claims it is focused on terrorism. Well that's just not true," said David Burnham, a TRAC spokesman. "Either there's no terrorism, or they're terrible at catching them. Either way it's bad for all of us."

The TRAC analysis also found that DHS filed a minuscule number of what are called "national security" charges against people in the immigration courts. The report stated that 114, or 0.014 percent of the total of roughly 800,000 individuals charged were charged with national security violations.

TRAC reported more than 85 percent of the charges involved more common immigration violations such as not having a valid immigrant visa, overstaying a student visa or entering the United States without an inspection.

According to the report by TRAC, which is affiliated with Syracuse University, the results show that there is an "apparent gap between DHS rhetoric about its role in fighting terrorism and what it actually has been doing."

DHS spokesman Russ Knocke called the TRAC report "ill-conceived" and said the group "lacked a grasp of the DHS mission."

Knocke said that, by clamping down on all forms of immigration, DHS has made it difficult for terrorists to come to the United States.

I could have sworn that the idea about Homeland Security was to stop terrorism, but i guess it not really very good at it.
Or was the plan that Homeland was supposed to take care of overstaying student visas and the like?
When you look at Gitmo and the like, we know that the US dont really bother with anything like due process, so im sure that Homeland could have cooked up some terrorism or suspected terrorist charges or the like, but i guess they didnt bother.
Unless 0.0015% of the cases being with charges for terrorism are supposed to be effective.

[Boogahz]

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Claims of terrorism represented less than 0.01 percent of charges filed in recent years in immigration courts by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security...

Who said they were charging them in immigration courts?

[Animalor]

Soo.. what were most people charged under?

[Boogahz]

Soo.. what were most people charged under?

Charges? What charges?

[Hesten]

Soo.. what were most people charged under?

TRAC reported more than 85 percent of the charges involved more common immigration violations such as not having a valid immigrant visa, overstaying a student visa or entering the United States without an inspection.

[Xatrei]

You shouldn't expect more than a tiny percentage of their activity to actually be focused on counterterrorism since it's truthfully only a tiny percentage of what the DHS constituent agencies are responsible for.

DHS is just a lame attempt at rebranding dozens of preexisting governmental agencies that have various (and quite legitimate) responsibilities. Shifting these organizations into a new department and giving them a spiffy new name doesn't (and cannot, really) change the underlying mission with which each of these agencies is charged. The fundamental roles of agencies like ICE (formerly INS), Customs & Border Protection, TSA, CERT, FEMA, Coast Guard, etc. remain virtually unchanged (and unfocused on "terrorism") no matter where you place them in the executive branch's organizational chart. The lofty title "Department of Homeland Security" is just a useless brand name that the administration can point to and say, "look how much we're doing to get tough on those that hate our freedoms!!" The vast majority of the real action is happening quietly under the banner of the Department of Defense and Department of Justice. You won't see a lot of real stats about anything they're up to, because the administration doesn't want to advertise the various illegal things it does in the name of protecting their faithful citizens, preferring instead to keep all of that stuff behind the scenes. The exception, of course, is when they get lucky and can trot out a high-profile bunch of bumbling wannabes who form "al-Qaeda inspired" terror cells that pose little real threat largely due to their own incompetence.