We’re spoiled. There is no other country that demands
that other countries prevent terrorists from crossing its borders. We don’t even protect our neighbor
Mexico from weapons smuggling from the U.S. We do enforce weapons export laws, but not even close to the
extent that we enforce imports.
Yet we still expect everyone else to protect us.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has had officers in several countries for several years, both screening cargo and doing pre-clearance of passengers. DEA has been overseas for decades. ICE performs foreign investigations. FBI has some foreign-based investigators, and on-and-on. What many people who make public statements seem to overlook is that none of these Americans has any law enforcement powers in those countries. They operate with the permission of the host governments, and do not have the power to arrest anyone. If they find a violator, they can ask their host agency to perform a search, or seize contraband, or make the arrest. The host country will then decide what to do based on their own laws and priorities.
With airline travel, the FAA has some clout. The law says that they have to approve foreign airlines who travel to the U.S., and they have to approve of the airports where U.S. planes land. That is what gives us the leverage to make other countries screen people who are leaving their jurisdiction.
The Dutch are responsible and conscientious, but put yourself in the shoes of a foreign official who learns of a radical that is leaving your country. This bad apple is going to a place that has greater resources than your country, and where government employees are paid much more that you. Not to mention that the tourists from that place complain about everything in your country. And their corporations overrun your local businesses. Then there is the way their military threatens smaller countries like yours. How eager would you be to keep the dangerous passenger in your country? Let him go and good riddance.
On the homeland side of the ocean, our enemies come here with a working command of English. How many TSA officers, CBP officers, Border Patrol agents, etc. do you think speak Arabic, Farsi, Pashtun, or Korean? Very few, and those few are native ethnic speakers. How many U.S. border control officers are taught any of these languages (or anything other than Spanish) to help them intercept terrorists? None.
That is the kind of change we need. We don’t need new rules. Someone puts a bomb in his shoe, so everyone has to take off their shoes at check points. Someone puts a bomb in his underwear, so we have to go through scanners that look under our skivvies. Did you read about the guy who had a bomb inside his body so he could get close to a Saudi government minister? There is no machine that will make us safe.
The problem is that in a bureaucracy, there are no points given to the guy who says, “Let’s do the job better.” We need more people, better trained and managed, but we won’t get them. The only promotions and bonuses are for new programs.
Congress, meanwhile, hasn’t done anything about preventing the next round of banking excesses. Don’t for look them to do anything meaningful about terrorism either. Happy New Year.