Last year, the Senate twice voted down the Cybersecurity Act of 2012 because of concerns that a regulatory approach might harm U.S. cybersecurity efforts. Despite these concerns, President Obama issued a cybersecurity executive order that uses a regulatory or standards-based approach to require additional security from private-sector organizations. The government,…

Permitting the acquisitions of Sprint by Japan’s SoftBank and Smithfield by China’s Shuanghui is in America’s national interest. Except for narrowly defined security reasons, the default position of the U.S. government should be to keep out of private-sector transactions. The Shuanghui–Smithfield deal is nothing more than one food company purchasing another; there are no…

While the most recent continuing resolution contained a full year of funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the disorder of the overall budget process over the past several years has generally resulted in weak congressional guidance to DHS. It is important that Congress return to a normal appropriations process and express the right priorities to DHS…

The Department of Defense (DOD) is now examining three revised budget options for presentation to the President. All three would impose significant damage. This is because even the highest of the three options would shrink the portion of the economy committed to defense, shrink force structure, reduce the number of people serving in the military, impose slower increases…

In the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2013, the House of Representatives passed an amendment that called for the removal of all four U.S. Army Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs) currently based in Europe. It is likely that a similar amendment will be considered in the upcoming FY 2014 NDAA. The sponsors of the amendment, Representatives Mike…

The federal National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) annually specifies the budget and expenditures of the Department of Defense (DOD). The law can be a vehicle for both good and bad policies. As Congress prepares to craft this legislation, it should seriously consider policy issues that can improve U.S. security and advance international partnerships: 1)     …

Missile defense is a proven technology; repeated tests have proved that the system is so accurate that it can “hit a bullet with a bullet.” The United States should continue to provide and encourage a rigorous missile defense testing program, even if it means that intercepts do not happen. Even “failed” tests, if properly constructed, contribute to the understanding and…

Now that one of the Boston bombers, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, has been apprehended, naturally the discussion has turned to the most prudent way to deal with him given that there are so many unanswered questions about him and any possible ties to the continuing threat of terrorism. Should Tsarnaev be tried by a military commission? Should he be designated as an enemy combatant?…

The act of terrorism in Boston is still fresh in Americans’ minds. The finest law enforcement personnel in the world are working night and day to determine who did this cowardly act and perhaps why. There is no good reason for such barbarism; no one’s faith or political ideology can adequately justify it, no matter how twisted the reasoning. As the nation waits for the…

President Obama’s overall budget request for fiscal year (FY) 2014 and beyond is all but certain to result in the continued application of sequestration to the defense account, which will lead to defense spending levels that are too low to permit the military to protect U.S. vital national interests. They will necessarily result in a force that either is too small, lacks…

In the aftermath of the act of terror in Boston and ricin-laced letters intercepted in Washington, D.C., the U.S. should rededicate itself to homeland security efforts. While the sources of these attacks are still unknown, there are several policies that the U.S. can and should pursue to secure the homeland from a wide spectrum of threats. The Heritage Foundation has…

Congress has begun to consider cybersecurity legislation in earnest for the 113th Congress. The House of Representatives is scheduled to consider shortly H.R. 624, the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA). The bill addresses the growing problem of foreign powers infiltrating U.S. public and private computer systems to steal valuable information. The bill…

As the deadline for the second Quadrennial Homeland Security Review (QHSR) approaches at the end of this year, much attention is being given to the record of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and what the department’s proper role should be. Ultimately, the strategy cannot simply be to maintain the status quo, continuing down the same path for the next 10 years…