| Eric's Position on Homeland Security |
Homeland Security is more than a military issue. It is, or should be, a balance: equal parts "preventive medicine" and "emergency room." Sadly, our resources for investing in needed Homeland Security initiatives have been diverted to fund the war in Iraq, a colossal misjudgment on the part of the Bush Administration, and rubber-stamp Republican Congressional representatives should be held accountable by voters.
True Homeland Security is more than a military and "intelligence" matter anyway. Hurricane
Katrina showed us all how badly prepared we are for a major disaster. The Administration's reorganization of the Federal emergency response system following the attacks of 9/11 was put to the test in New Orleans -- and it failed. And recovery efforts in the year since have been dismally inadequate. Despite these clear failures of government and leadership, for six years Congress voted repeatedly to reject calls for investigation and oversight, and refused to hold the Administration accountable.
Katrina was a good indicator of what we can expect should another massive terrorist attack
occur -- let alone another season with two or three major hurricanes. This is sheer incompetence, and we can't afford it. I have four proposals for building genuine Homeland Security.
- Fully implement the 9/11 Commission recommendations, ASAP. Failure to implement our country's best thinking here is simply unacceptable.
- Upgrade U.S. infrastructure, especially transportation and communications, to resist terrorist attack.
- Fix FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency), in four steps:
- Staff it. Professional, experienced disaster management is mandatory.
- Elevate it. FEMA should be made a cabinet-level position.
- Fund it. The organization must have sufficient funding to accomplish its mission.
- Move it. FEMA could do its job more effectively located in the mid-West, outside the political context of Washington, D.C.
- Create a Civilian Recovery Corps, to facilitate disaster recovery efforts. We can follow the model of President Franklin Roosevelt's successful public works programs, and draw upon the resourcefulness of the American people and the logistical expertise of our Military, create thousands of jobs, and speed the restoration of devastated areas.
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| Blogs |
If we're "Kicking Ass," What's Osama Bin Laden Doing on TV?Sep 9 by Eric Massa
Today, I want to speak a little bit about the news of the past week. This week we saw President George Bush continuing to make a mockery of our national reputation on a number of different occasions and we saw a brand new Osama bin Laden videotape. Indeed the plot has thickened and the President's wizardry with the spoken word has brought our national dialog to a new high
Globalization, the “War on Terror,” and People-Powered PoliticsApril 24 by Eric Massa
Yesterday there was quite a bit of discussion about globalization. Today I want to just share some thoughts on globalization and how that relates to people-powered politics. Thought number 1: "Free" Trade isn't working in our benefit.I've written about this before ( link) but I just want to reiterate that there is a growing consensus that we need to reevaluate the way we view free trade. You can read Paul Craig Roberts or William Greider for more thoughts on this.
Dubai Ports Deal: The Dark Underbelly RevealedMarch 5 by Eric Massa
Last week I wrote about problems with the Dubai Ports Deal here. I called it a "Shameless Sell Out of American National Security." This morning, on every Sunday morning news show, the firestorm over the Dubai Ports World issue continued to swirl unabated. As a result of this national debate, many Americans now know that some eighty percent of our ports are administrated by foreign-owned companies, and by the time we are done with this discussion, a much larger portion of the American people will come to know just how much of the United States has been sold off piece-by-piece to foreign interests.
Ports Deal a "Shameless Sell Out of American National Security"Feb 26 by Eric Massa
The recently revealed deal to sell control of six major ports in the Eastern U.S. to a state-owned company in Dubai, United Arab Emirates is a shameless sell out of American national security to well-connected foreign corporate interests. This Congress, including my opponent here in New York's 29th District, Randy Kuhl, has already built a record of blindly supporting free trade at a high cost to working Americans and voting against increased security for U.S. ports.
As a former Navy Commander who served in the Persian Gulf, as an Aide to the Commander of Military Sealift Command and, later, as an Aide to General Wesley Clark while Clark led NATO forces in Europe, I am running for Congress in New York's 29th District to end abuses like this that threaten the economic and physical security of Americans.
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