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CNN Live Sunday

Commission Says Homeland Security Is Losing Momentum

Aired December 21, 2003 - 16:04   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.


HOLLY FIRFER, CNN ANCHOR: Today's announcement comes just days after a federal commission found the government's momentum in the fight against terrorism quote, "appears to have waned." Jim Gilmore is the chair of that panel. He's also the former governor of Virginia. He joins us from Richmond, Virginia. Welcome, governor.
JIM GILMORE, FRM. GOV. OF VA: Thank you, Holly.

FIRFER: With today's events raising that threat level, should we be concerned? Is America safe? Are we as safe as we were or safer than after 9/11

GILMORE: I do think the raising of the level would indicate that the Department of Homeland Security has substantial information that's come out of the intelligence community. Our commission certainly has recommended over the years that there be more intelligence sharing, infusion of information that's manifested itself more and more. So presumably that has yielded information which means that we should go back up on an orange alert.

Is America safer? yes, America is safer than it was during the 9/11 attack, but we still have a long way to go. Our commission pointed out some of those directions.

FIRFER: We talk about safety on the federal level and we raise the the federal level of alert. What about states and local level? We know that Governor Pataki has raised New York's level. But hAre we as safe on the state and local level and is the information getting to state and local governments as well?

GILMORE: That raises a whole series of great questions about the direction that we need to go. The color coded level transmits some generalized sense of concern to the American people but nothing very specific and nothing certainly on a very regional basis. States are beginning to do their own color codes and their own kind of alert things, because the national level doesn't do everything it should do.

The commission has explained that they're concerned that after years and years, we still don't have the states and locals to sufficiently incorporate it into a national strategy that needs to be effecuated. And that I think is a matter of some concern.

But we are safer than we were. A lot of action has been taken place. The president has pushed the perimeter outwards. We put substantial programs in place and more are coming online. We still have a great deal to do to set up a national strategy that really incorporates federal, state local people and the private sector which owns most of the critical infrastructure.

FIRFER: You bring an interesting point, the private sector. And Secretary Ridge did said he'd alert some of the leaders in those area. We have pipelines in the country, the food supply. Are we doing enough to protect in these areas?

GILMORE: We have to do more. We have done a lot, but we have to do a great deal more. Our commission talked about agriterrorism, for example. There's a concern about critical infrastructure: pipelines, electric grids, water supplies, transportation, almost all of it in the hands of private people, and it's very difficult in a free market economy to get all of that incorporated in together. So there's a lot of work that still has to be done but we know how hard the Department of Homeland Security is working.

FIRFER: A big sticky question I guess for many, how do you do this? How do you make sure we remain safe without infringing on civil liberties?

GILMORE: I'm glad you raised the point. Our commission put as a major theme of our report, which was just delivered to the Congress and the president, on abiding concern that we not impinge upon our civil freedoms of the American citizens of this country. And that would be so easy to do as we continue to go forward and manage our way through this and put new programs into place and apply technologies to infuse databases and to watch people on cameras, and to make people reveal all kinds of personal information, it would be so easy to forget what makes us Americans, the freedoms and the privacies that we treasure and have always treasured so much. Men and women have died for centuries in this country to preserve exactly those kinds of liberties. So we simply wanted to remind people as we go forward that we shouldn't give up what makes us what we are.

FIRFER: With the news of events of this week capturing Saddam Hussein a week ago today, Libya's announcement to give up their weapon of mass destruction program, can that be seen as signs of improvement? Should we take that as good news that we will now be more secure?

GILMORE: I think that the president said, and our commission certainly feels that this is a long road that we have to walk. I tend to see this more in a process. This is going to take a long, long time, because there's a lot of events going on and so much of the world right now that's bubbling up, a lot of discontent.

But these are major milestones along the right path. The capture of Saddam Hussein is clearly a milestone that has helped, but it should not allow us to let up here in the homeland. We have to keep momentum going and get the programs in place and communicate well with the American people and make sure that we're doing everything we can do to make this country more secure because the enemy would love to hit us here in the homeland particularly during the holiday season to try to demoralise us and force us to change our policies as a world leader. I don't think they'll do that but the burden is on us to do the job right.

FIRFER: But Governor Gilmore it is important to keep it in perspective as well. I would imagine that we can't live in holes, we can't hide underground. We do have to live our lives as usual but perhaps be more vigilant.

GILMORE: That's absolutely right. And hThat's why our commission has said that we need to have a final vision of where we're trying to go. What are we trying to manage toward? And once we've established that and clear about the directions we're going, then states and locals will know exactly how they're supposed to spend their money. And then American people can have communication about where we're trying get to. And then we can move on and continue to be the kind of decisive, strong, confident people that have made us the envy of the world.

FIRFER: Governor Gilmore, thanks for your time. We appreciate it.

GILMORE: Thank you and happy holidays to your viewers.

FIRFER: You, too.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired December 21, 2003 - 16:04   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HOLLY FIRFER, CNN ANCHOR: Today's announcement comes just days after a federal commission found the government's momentum in the fight against terrorism quote, "appears to have waned." Jim Gilmore is the chair of that panel. He's also the former governor of Virginia. He joins us from Richmond, Virginia. Welcome, governor.
JIM GILMORE, FRM. GOV. OF VA: Thank you, Holly.

FIRFER: With today's events raising that threat level, should we be concerned? Is America safe? Are we as safe as we were or safer than after 9/11

GILMORE: I do think the raising of the level would indicate that the Department of Homeland Security has substantial information that's come out of the intelligence community. Our commission certainly has recommended over the years that there be more intelligence sharing, infusion of information that's manifested itself more and more. So presumably that has yielded information which means that we should go back up on an orange alert.

Is America safer? yes, America is safer than it was during the 9/11 attack, but we still have a long way to go. Our commission pointed out some of those directions.

FIRFER: We talk about safety on the federal level and we raise the the federal level of alert. What about states and local level? We know that Governor Pataki has raised New York's level. But hAre we as safe on the state and local level and is the information getting to state and local governments as well?

GILMORE: That raises a whole series of great questions about the direction that we need to go. The color coded level transmits some generalized sense of concern to the American people but nothing very specific and nothing certainly on a very regional basis. States are beginning to do their own color codes and their own kind of alert things, because the national level doesn't do everything it should do.

The commission has explained that they're concerned that after years and years, we still don't have the states and locals to sufficiently incorporate it into a national strategy that needs to be effecuated. And that I think is a matter of some concern.

But we are safer than we were. A lot of action has been taken place. The president has pushed the perimeter outwards. We put substantial programs in place and more are coming online. We still have a great deal to do to set up a national strategy that really incorporates federal, state local people and the private sector which owns most of the critical infrastructure.

FIRFER: You bring an interesting point, the private sector. And Secretary Ridge did said he'd alert some of the leaders in those area. We have pipelines in the country, the food supply. Are we doing enough to protect in these areas?

GILMORE: We have to do more. We have done a lot, but we have to do a great deal more. Our commission talked about agriterrorism, for example. There's a concern about critical infrastructure: pipelines, electric grids, water supplies, transportation, almost all of it in the hands of private people, and it's very difficult in a free market economy to get all of that incorporated in together. So there's a lot of work that still has to be done but we know how hard the Department of Homeland Security is working.

FIRFER: A big sticky question I guess for many, how do you do this? How do you make sure we remain safe without infringing on civil liberties?

GILMORE: I'm glad you raised the point. Our commission put as a major theme of our report, which was just delivered to the Congress and the president, on abiding concern that we not impinge upon our civil freedoms of the American citizens of this country. And that would be so easy to do as we continue to go forward and manage our way through this and put new programs into place and apply technologies to infuse databases and to watch people on cameras, and to make people reveal all kinds of personal information, it would be so easy to forget what makes us Americans, the freedoms and the privacies that we treasure and have always treasured so much. Men and women have died for centuries in this country to preserve exactly those kinds of liberties. So we simply wanted to remind people as we go forward that we shouldn't give up what makes us what we are.

FIRFER: With the news of events of this week capturing Saddam Hussein a week ago today, Libya's announcement to give up their weapon of mass destruction program, can that be seen as signs of improvement? Should we take that as good news that we will now be more secure?

GILMORE: I think that the president said, and our commission certainly feels that this is a long road that we have to walk. I tend to see this more in a process. This is going to take a long, long time, because there's a lot of events going on and so much of the world right now that's bubbling up, a lot of discontent.

But these are major milestones along the right path. The capture of Saddam Hussein is clearly a milestone that has helped, but it should not allow us to let up here in the homeland. We have to keep momentum going and get the programs in place and communicate well with the American people and make sure that we're doing everything we can do to make this country more secure because the enemy would love to hit us here in the homeland particularly during the holiday season to try to demoralise us and force us to change our policies as a world leader. I don't think they'll do that but the burden is on us to do the job right.

FIRFER: But Governor Gilmore it is important to keep it in perspective as well. I would imagine that we can't live in holes, we can't hide underground. We do have to live our lives as usual but perhaps be more vigilant.

GILMORE: That's absolutely right. And hThat's why our commission has said that we need to have a final vision of where we're trying to go. What are we trying to manage toward? And once we've established that and clear about the directions we're going, then states and locals will know exactly how they're supposed to spend their money. And then American people can have communication about where we're trying get to. And then we can move on and continue to be the kind of decisive, strong, confident people that have made us the envy of the world.

FIRFER: Governor Gilmore, thanks for your time. We appreciate it.

GILMORE: Thank you and happy holidays to your viewers.

FIRFER: You, too.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com