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Brookings Institute: Government Must Take Several Steps to Handle Threat of Terrorism

Aired April 30, 2002 - 06:05   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: A report on homeland security from a Washington think-tank says the government has a lot to do to handle the threat of terrorism. The Brookings Institute says the government must take several steps.

Our Jeanne Meserve tells us what those steps are.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Toughening up airport security, stockpiling antibiotics and vaccines are all well and good, but a comprehensive report on homeland security from a Washington think-tank says the federal government has a lot more to do.

MICHAEL O'HANLON, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: It's not enough just to think about what terrorists did to us before. We have to be creative and think about what they might do to us next.

MESERVE: A suicide bombing is rated more likely than some scenarios, but the report gives attention to the most catastrophic possibilities. An efficient attack with a biological weapon, like smallpox or rubella, could kill as many as 1 million. The detonation of an atomic bomb in a major city could take 100,000 lives. A successful attack on a nuclear or a chemical plant could result in 10,000 deaths.

O'HANLON: I think you have to say, listen, some things are so bad that even if the chances of their occurring are quite low, we have to do everything we can within reason to stop them.

MESERVE: Among the most urgent steps that must be taken, according to the report, improving port security, reducing the vulnerability of building air intake systems and more background checks for drivers of trucks carrying hazardous materials. The estimated cost of these and other measures: $45 billion a year, $7 billion more than the president has proposed for 2003.

In a speech Monday, Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge mentioned some of the same vulnerabilities and goals in talking about his efforts to craft a comprehensive national strategy.

TOM RIDGE, HOMELAND SECURITY DIRECTOR: Well, we can do the best job protecting America if we marshal our resources to achieve maximum protection of lives and property, targeting them at the most critical areas and strengthening the weakest points in our defenses.

MESERVE (on camera): But Ridge's plan is not expected to be completed until next summer or fall. Democratic Congresswoman Jane Harman called it long overdue, and suggests it would have been better if the Brookings report supplemented the administration's plan, rather than stood in its place.

Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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