Homeland Security is a US department responsible for citizens’ security. As a department, its work is divided into various units responsible for primary training and improving the country’s security. They include; immigration enforcement, customs, cybersecurity, border, disaster (natural and artificial), terrorism, and emergency response services (Sedgwick & Hawdon, 2019). This paper will discuss the role of the Department of dense in Homeland Security and their use of local intelligence to improve national security. Local intelligence is crucial in improving the security standards in the US. It is, therefore, vital to always prioritize the safety of US citizens by all means necessary, especially by use of local intelligence. To better understand the role and need for local intelligence, it is imperative to any e the type of information offered by local intelligence and how it can promote national security in the US.
Capabilities of local intelligence efforts
The first capability of the local intelligence efforts in supporting Homeland Security enterprise is collecting information on both local and foreign intelligence. Local intelligence has all the information on US citizens. Therefore, it is easier to collect information from them and collaborate with Homeland Security enterprises to improve national security (Sedgwick & Hawdon, 2019). Homeland Security may have difficulty obtaining some of the information from locals based on the scope of their duties. Local intelligence efforts can easily offer help in that sector by tracking down information from locals, given their range of duties. In addition, they can also collect information on foreign immigrants who illegally entered the country from the local citizens (Smith & Walsh, 2021). Depending on the level of information composed, working in collaboration with Homeland Security can help solve a crime and thus improve the country’s national security.
The second capability to offer counterintelligence information to Homeland Security is protecting data and property that can be important to Homeland Security. Local intelligence efforts after collecting and analyzing data and information received from locals by alerting Homeland Security to any potential threats. Data protection by local intelligence is essential to ensure that Homeland Security enterprise is safe from threats and thus can handle the danger amicably. Data protection can also be done through collaboration with other security agents locally to ensure that threats concerning Homeland Security are well dealt with by offering more intelligence and information as well as extra security networks that local intelligence may not avail. Maintaining and improving security nationally requires a team effort and concise information, thus prioritizing the security of US citizens (Smith & Walsh, 2021)
Local intelligence can offer profiles for leadership positions to the Homeland Security enterprise. Leadership is the cornerstone of a high-performing, credible and transparent enterprise. Firm leaders can help eradicate sloppiness and improve the national security system, thus improving national security. Leadership qualities can be seen in security officials’ profiles. During selection, the profiles can guide the panel on the person showing the most desirable qualities for leadership (Smith & Walsh, 2021). The profiles can only be acquired and done by local intelligence forces, given their work’s nature. Working in line with Homeland Security, local intelligence can help form a strong foundation for leadership before moving on to other security sectors. A well-apt leader adapted to handle the pressures arising from national security threats is vital for progress and development.
The relationship between local intelligence efforts and Homeland Security must be maintained to improve national security. Local intelligence is crucial in analyzing data and delivering the information to Homeland Security to act on any security threat. With enough resources and state backing to analyze information, local intelligence helps bridge the gap between national security and crime. Once the data received has been examined, they can deliver accurate information to Homeland Security to ensure that national security continuously improves. As an intelligence team, they are responsible for handling all the collection, analysis, and delivery of information without delays and with minimal errors to preserve US citizens’ safety. From the report compiled by the 9/11 committee, all intelligence agencies are essential and serve one of the most significant roles in promoting national security (Hofmanová,.2019). The mistakes that were made previously during the attack opened up the importance of local intelligence efforts and why they work to serve the greater good of the US citizen’s safety.
The local intelligence efforts have grown and developed in terms of quality and quantity within the US. Their efforts help improve the quality of services offered by Homeland Security enterprise, and that is why as a department, Homeland Security must invest more in ensuring that local intelligence efforts are well catered for in terms of resources and personnel who can bridge the gap in offering an improved national security status to US citizens (Smith & Walsh, 2021).
Limitations
Local intelligence agencies face limitations in difficulty in obtaining information. Criminal activities are usually secretive, and being able to acquire information is typically based on the willingness of their clients to talk (Smith & Walsh, 2021). Therefore, it is difficult for them to attain certain important information from their clients to provide it in time for analysis and delivery to Homeland Security. This is always attributed to funding issues that make it difficult to obtain information through the proper channels in the required time and ensure that security is maximized and adequately provided.
Another limitation is a roadblock from upper offices and other law enforcement agencies that lead to unnecessary friction and ultimately slows down the services and work to be done by local intelligence agencies. The roadblocks come from a lack of proper channels for obtaining necessary information when analyzing or collecting information, a lack of appropriate funding, and delays in acting upon cases that lead to some intelligence agencies’ sluggish nature (Sedgwick & Hawdon, 2019). All these factors independently affect local intelligence agencies’ output and workflow in collecting, analyzing, and delivering credible information to Homeland Security to promote national security.
Another limitation is the lack of secrecy that constantly hinders the normal operations of intelligence agencies. The constant hindrances affect the output and credibility of information received and analyzed by local intelligence agencies. There is the need to work in private without any constraints from third parties, which has constantly proved to be one of the biggest challenges limiting intelligence agencies’ functions. The hindrances also slow down the research and analysis conducted by local intelligence agencies (Sedgwick & Hawadon, 2019). The collaboration between Homeland Security and the intelligence agencies should create mutual respect between the two parties and thus bridge their interests toward stabilizing the operations of local intelligence agencies.
Regarding the capabilities of local intelligence efforts to work in collaboration with Homeland Security to improve national security, the federal government has a task to ensure that the limitations and challenges facing intelligence agencies are mitigated. The US government is entirely capable of removing the roadblocks that affect the effective functioning of local intelligence agencies. Most challenges facing local intelligence agencies come from the higher ministry departments. The solution would be to reduce the roadblocks facing the intelligence agency’s efforts. The US government is not appropriately structured to ensure that the challenges can be mitigated and solved differently (Smith & Walsh, 2021).
The current structure cannot ensure a steady and smooth transition of information from the intelligence agency to Homeland Security. However, it can be mitigated by accrediting the local intelligence agencies more power and autonomy to ease their work and thus provide credible and well-analyzed information. With the current structures, the local intelligence agencies are fighting their Department of Defense to offer the necessary information to improve local intelligence agencies in the US (Hofmanová, 2019). Allowing local intelligence agencies to work freely without unnecessary outside interference is a start that would help in solving the structural problems. Cooperation from each Department in the Department of Defense helps mitigate the challenges faced by local intelligence agencies. Reducing the challenges creates a better work environment for the local intelligence agencies and Homeland Security as they collaborate to promote national security in the US.
In terms of resources, the Department of Defense has enough resources to ensure that the capabilities of local intelligence agencies are adequately met. In 2020, local intelligence agencies had a budget of $62.8 billion and ended up spending a total of $85.8 billion (Hofmanová, 2019). Providing resources to local intelligence agencies is vital to avoid attacks such as 9/11, which was a devastating moment for the country. With increased funds allocated to the local intelligence agencies, the funds could be used to acquire most of the recent technological machines that would help in data collection and analysis. The Department of Defense through restructuring and reforming the local intelligence, the provision of resources is necessary to ensure that the capabilities are not washed down the drain but fully implemented and put into effect, thus improving national security. There are sixteen local intelligence agencies, and the resources should be cut across each independently and equally without favor or bias (Sedgwick & Hawdon, 2019).
Cybersecurity is one of the main problems affecting intelligence services. Technology is rapidly growing, and new inventions may render the Department of Defense vulnerable to cyber insecurity (Hofmanová, 2019). It is, therefore, imperative and necessary to fully utilize local intelligence agencies’ capabilities by offering them the required funds and resources to avoid occurrences of cyber insecurity scenarios in the future. As a front line in the line of Defense, Homeland Security needs the skillset and capabilities of local intelligence agencies. Therefore they should always prioritize the needs of local intelligence. A threat such as cybersecurity could quickly shake the whole nation’s security system, and it is, therefore, one of the most severe challenges facing the Department of Defense in the future if not handled adequately from the grassroots.
Another future problem facing the US is the changes in scientific technology that have proved highly effective during the war (Hofmanová, 2019). The creation of nuclear weapons has since risen, and as a national security threat, the results are always devastating when used. The threat posed by such attacks leaves the country highly vulnerable in the future if the US government does not fully support the capabilities of local intelligence agencies. Intelligence agencies can quickly gather and analyze such information before disaster strikes. Given the gravity of nuclear weapons, it could leave the country crumbling if they were used in the same manner during the 9/11 attack. It is, therefore, vital to bridging gaps between local intelligence agencies and Homeland Security by providing all the necessary support and resources to intelligence agencies capable of handling data and providing it as required for action by Homeland Security. (Smith and Walsh, 2021). Working in collaboration to meet the national security demand and secure a better future for US citizens is a process that starts by reducing the challenges facing the local intelligence agencies. With adequate efforts and measures in place to improve national security currently and in the future, security threats will no longer be a matter to be dealt with by the problems they face but by strengthening the already available security system (Hofmanová, 2019).
In conclusion, the Department of Defense requires the collaborative efforts of Homeland Security and local intelligence to mitigate the security threats that face the US. Local agencies also can provide the best intelligence data f properly manage, thus solving today’s problems and thus strengthening their core for any future threats. It proves the strength of unity and a better, safer US currently and in the future.
References
Smith, M., & Walsh, P. (2021). Improving health security and intelligence capabilities to mitigate biological threats. The International Journal of Intelligence, Security, and Public Affairs, 23(2), 139–155.
Hofmanová, L. (2019). Cyber Security in the United States of America: Assessing the Role of the Department of Homeland Security.
Sedgwick, D., & Hawdon, J. (2019). Interagency cooperation in the era of homeland policing: Are agencies answering the call? American Journal of Criminal Justice, 44(2), 167–190.
write