U.s. Defense Of Homeland Security - 3756 Words

After 9/11, the United States completely revamped its entire system of defense, policy prescription and stance with regards to terrorism; both foreign and domestic. The Department of Homeland Security was created, direct militaristic action was taken against these terrorists and domestic and foreign policy was changed in order to combat the new threat. While much of this â€Å"war on terror† was fought far away from U.S. soil, that did not stop these new policies from affecting the lives of U.S. citizens directly. The most noticeable, controversial and powerful of these policies was the U.S.A. PATRIOT Act (Breinholt, 23-25). While the PATRIOT Act has drawn the ire of many U.S. citizens due to its far reaching effects, lack of jurisdictional or†¦show more content†¦This paper will argue that not only has the PATRIOT Act been successful in its goal of stopping and deterring terrorism, but that it will continue to do so as it continues to evolve in the future. First, a s hort overview of the PATRIOT ACT is necessary, briefly describing what each of the ten titles in the USA PATRIOT Act is intended to do. During the Overview, this paper will emphasize the importance of specific Titles that directly halt or deter specific terrorist acts, as well as their methods of operation. Second, American citizen complaints and direct violations to the constitution will be noted as well as if and when those violations have been rectified within the act after revisions. Afterwards, previous and ongoing issues and concerns will be explained and assessed. Finally, the Act’s overall success and future policy prescriptions for continued success will be laid out. Title I of the PATRIOT Act contains six sections and establishes funding for counterterrorist measures within the United States Treasury, establishes powers provided to the executive office and basically lays the groundwork for battling the threat of terrorism at home. It establishes and provides funds t o specific agencies such as the FBI, prevents discrimination against Arab Americans, allows networking surveillance by the director of the Secret Service in order to prevent terrorist attacks (USA PATRIOT Act Section 105). The final section of this Title of the