White House CT Strategy Paper: Proof in the Funding

By Michael Kraft

The White House today released an updated “National Strategy for Combating Terrorism” that provides a sweeping outline of the problems and some of the necessary countermeasures. But the proof will be in the implementation.

The real test will be whether the rhetoric is backed up by the hard work needed to make sure that the tactics are properly implemented. Setting aside the issue of whether the Administration has it right in its overall analysis of the problem, there are down- to- earth issues. For example, will such relatively straight forward goals of strengthening international coalitions and enhancing U.S. interagency collaboration receive the necessary funding and leadership?

The “indicators” to borrow a phrase from the annual performance reports required by Congress of government agencies but usually ignored, are poor.

For example, take the recent arrests in Britain of a group of British-born Muslims suspected of plotting to use liquid explosives to blow up a dozen U.S.-bound airliners. Reporters did some investigating and learned that funding for the Department of Homeland Security’s counterterrorism research and development program had been deeply cut and had organizational problems. Efforts to develop effective ways of detecting liquid explosives -- admittedly a difficult problem -- had been on the back shelf.

Besides cutting funding, the Senate Appropriations Committee sharply criticized the R&D program as “a rudderless ship” and cut the Fiscal Year 2007 funding request from $1.3 billion to $712 million. The House cut even deeper, appropriating just $668 million for FY 2007.

Meanwhile the Administration is still working out the DHS relationship with the interagency Technical Support Working Group (TSWG), led by the Departments of State and Defense, which has been coordinating counterterrorism R&D programs for two decades.

The new White House Strategy paper has a section called “Enhance government architecture and interagency collaboration.” This is an important and perhaps impossible goal. The paper presents an upbeat picture but as everyone in Washington knows, DHS itself is still trying to get its act together and coordinating and information sharing problems still exist within the intelligence community and the FBI.

Another section labeled “Strengthen Coalitions and Partnerships” says “we are building the capacity of foreign partners in all areas of counterterrorism activities“ through the provision of training and other forms of assistance. Yet, as I have written previously, the White House’s OMB has consistently cut the State Department’s funding request for its Antiterrorism Assistance training program and Congress has inflicted further cuts.

The Administration requested $135.6 million for the program. The Senate Appropriations Committee approved the full amount but the House cut it to $122.5 million. The final figures will be resolved in conference committee sometime this autumn.

The White House paper talks about the need to counter terrorist networks and “hinder their movement across international boundaries.” The State Department’s Terrorist Interdiction Program provides other countries with a sophisticated computer-based system to do just that. But even that program has been cut at the OMB and Congressional levels, down to $8 million in the House bill.

The situation in Afghanistan is another example. The new strategy paper talks about denying sanctuary to terrorists, but the situation in Afghanistan is deteriorating rapidly. The Taliban movement is reviving and the U.S. assistance program is badly faltering.

The new Strategy paper did not mention Bin Laden, whose capture or elimination had been a high priority. The paper says “we are working to prevent terrorists from exploiting ungoverned and under-governed areas as physical safe havens.” Just how this goal will be implemented in Afghanistan, let alone Iraq was not mentioned.

Setting aside the thorny problems of Iraq, a test of the strategy paper will be in other counterterrorism arenas, such as implementing the already existing programs for curbing terrorism finance and providing more and better training to the many friendly nations that need to boost their counterterrorism capabilities.

This is the time of year when Congress works out the current fiscal year funding packages for the various agencies. Autumn also is the season when the government budget gurus start work in earnest on the FY 2008 budget

They and the leadership in the White House will determine whether the Strategy Paper means anything or will be just a one day headline, a possible campaign issue and another administration spin and spam document gathering dust on the shelves and taking up hard drive space.

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