Homeland Defense and Homeland Security for the Next Administration (Day 2)

Day 2 | Day 1

September 11, 2001 ushered in the largest government reform since World War II, enacting new programs, policies and initiatives. The transition to a new administration in January 2009 will mark the first time the government will take a fresh look at the institutions and programs that were put in place to support our nation’s homeland defense and security. What direction should the next president take? How will and how should the new executive team adapt its policy initiatives to best accomplish any changes to the missions, organizational cultures, and activities of the agencies it inherits?

Please join the Consortium for Homeland Defense and Security in America*, November 19-20, 2008, at the Third Annual Symposium on Homeland Defense and Security: Looking at the Next Administration. From strategy and oversight, to critical infrastructure protection and disaster response, the symposium will take a hard look at the key issues facing the next administration in domestic security.

Agenda: November 20

Audio (mp3, 01:24:07) | Video (wmv, 01:24:14)
8:30am Panel 5 – International Dimensions of Homeland Security

The international dimension must be considered and integrated into our understanding of security for the homeland. Our own security depends upon the stability of other nations. This panel will address three key themes: (1) Building international capacity and partnerships. The next Administration should work to further enable others' counter-terrorism, counter-insurgency and counter-proliferation efforts, including through information-sharing, and training partnerships and programs. (2) Employing all elements of statecraft. The next Administration should expand its appreciation of non-kinetic measures, to include public diplomacy, humanitarian assistance and economic issues. (3) Preventing radicalization. The next Administration should formulate, tailor, re-calibrate and support counter-radicalization, de-radicalization and disengagement programs, while taking note of best practices and lessons learned from abroad in this area.

Panel Members

• The Honorable Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Deputy Coordinator, Programs Directorate, Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism, U.S. Department of State
• Christopher Boucek, Ph.D., Associate, Middle East Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
• William C. Lane, Washington Director for Governmental Affairs, Caterpillar; Member, HELP Commission; Member, The German Marshall Fund of the United States' Transatlantic Task Force on Development
• Jan Lane, Deputy Director, Homeland Security Policy Institute, The George Washington University (Moderator)

10:00am Break

Audio (mp3, 01:26:06) | Video (01:26:17)
10:15am Panel 6 - Congressional Chaos: Oversight in the Next Administration

When discussing Homeland Security one topic that often emerges is the state of congressional oversight of the Department of Homeland Security. Approximately 86 congressional committees and subcommittees have some level of jurisdiction over DHS. As the department begins to take form and develop a single identity, the role of congressional oversight will become more important. This panel will discuss if Congress is fulfilling its oversight responsibilities and whether or not consolidating the committees is necessary.

Panel Members

• Jessica Herrera-Flanigan, Partner, Monument Policy Group; Former Majority Staff Director and General Counsel, House Committee on Homeland Security
• David Olive, Co-Founder, Olive Edwards, & Cooper, LLC
• Mike Russell, Minority Staff, House Homeland Security Committee
• James Carafano, Ph.D., Senior Research Fellow, Defense and Homeland Security, Douglas and Sarah Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies, and Assistant Director, The Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies, The Heritage Foundation (Moderator)

11:45am Concluding Remarks and Observations

12:00pm End

* The Consortium for Homeland Defense and Security in America is a partnership of leading defense and security think-tanks, including the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the U.S. Army War College’s Center for Strategic Leadership (USAWC), The Heritage Foundation (THF), and the George Washington University’s Homeland Security Policy Institute (HSPI).