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Cheney Raises Campaign Cash for Architect of Bush Administration's Homeland Security Failings

July 25, 2006

As the Department of Homeland Security's Undersecretary for Transportation and Border Security, Arkansas Republican gubernatorial candidate Asa Hutchinson oversaw the Bush Administration's failed leadership and misplaced priorities on homeland security. On his watch, the Bush Administration ignored the 9/11 Commission's recommendation on port security and failed to take the steps necessary to secure our borders. Hutchinson was a leading architect of the Bush Administration's dangerous incompetence on homeland security, which garnered failing marks from the 9/11 Commission. [Final Report on 9/11 Commission Recommendations, 12/5/05]

Now, Vice President Cheney is rewarding Hutchinson by heading to Springdale, Arkansas, today to raise money for Hutchinson's gubernatorial bid. In a stunning demonstration of just how out of touch he is with the values and priorities of Arkansas' working families, Hutchinson is bringing in Vice President Cheney despite the fact that the President's approval rating in the state has dropped to a paltry 37%. [SurveyUSA, 7/17/06]

"When Asa Hutchinson and Vice President Cheney share a stage in Springdale today, they should both explain why the Bush Administration has failed to secure our borders, improve security at our ports, and make our communities safer," said Democratic National Committee spokesman Damien LaVera. "The last thing Arkansas needs is a governor who shaped the Bush Administration's dangerous incompetence and misplaced priorities on homeland security."

The following is a fact sheet on the failure of the Bush Administration to improve port security or strengthen our borders:

When Asa Hutchinson served as Undersecretary for Transportation and Border Security at the Department of Homeland Security, he oversaw the Bush Administration's failure to secure our ports, rail systems and borders. Now, as he runs for Governor, Arkansans are right to wonder: Can we afford to bring Asa Hutchinson's failed leadership to Little Rock?

9/11 Commission Gave Bush Administration a "D" Passports and Document Security; "C" On Screening. In its final report card on the implementation of its recommendation's the 9/11 Commission gave the Bush Administration a "D" on "international collaboration on borders and document security," saying that the Republicans in Washington had made "little progress" on the sharing of terrorist watchlists and passport security. The Commission also reported that "border screening systems are not yet employed at all land borders, nor are these systems interoperable." [Final Report on 9/11 Commission Recommendations, 12/5/05]

Hutchinson Oversaw Bush Administration's Failure to Enforce Immigration Law for Businesses. Under Asa Hutchinson's management, there was a 99.3 percent drop in the attempts to take action against employers for the hiring of illegal immigrants. In 2004, immigration authorities issued penalty notices to only three companies. [The New York Times, 3/05/06] By comparison, in Fiscal Year 1999, the federal government attempted to take action against 417 employers for the hiring of illegal immigrants. [Government Accountability Office, "Weaknesses Hinder Employment Verification and Worksite Enforcement Efforts," Report GAO-05-813, 08/31/05]

On Asa's Watch, Apprehensions of Illegal Immigrants Dropped, Deportable Aliens Declined, and Audits of Employers Fell. Despite doubling the number of border agents over 10 years and massive illegal crossings, apprehensions of illegal immigrants have dropped under Bush by 30%. The number of deportable aliens located in states other than TX, NM, AZ and CA declined by 36% under Bush, reaching an all-time low of 21,113 in FY 2004. Under the Bush DHS enforcement rate, it would take 228 years to apprehend all of the illegal immigrants currently residing in the non-border states. Audits of employers suspected of using illegal immigrants have dropped from 8,000 under Clinton to less than 2,200 in FY 2003, and only 46 employers were convicted of illegal immigrant employment in FY 2004. [Third Way, 5/14/06]

Bush Administration and Republican Congress Underfunded Border Security Called For By 9/11 Act. The Republican Congress has broken the promises it made on funding additional Border Patrol Agents, immigration enforcement agents and detention beds. In 2004, Congress enacted the 9/11 Act, which mandated an additional 2,000 Border Patrol agents being hired over each of the next five years, but the Republican-led Congress funded only 1,000 additional agents. The 9/11 Act mandated an additional 800 immigration enforcement agents over each of the next five years, but in FY 2006, the Congress funded only 350 additional agents. The Act also mandated an additional 8,000 detention beds, but in FY 2006, the Congress funded only 1,800 additional detention beds. [Third Way, 5/14/06]

DHS Report Card: Department Scores "C-/D+" on Port Security; Bush Port Policies A "House of Cards;" Containers Rarely Inspected. The Democratic Staff of the Committee on Homeland Security's annual report card on the Department of Homeland Security gave the department a C-/D+ on its port security policies. They called the current port security regime a "house of cards," and noted that containers arriving at American ports are rarely inspected and that the Department "remains unaware of security arrangements at foreign ports and vessels shipping goods to the United States." In addition to the threats millions of Americans face as a result of the Bush White House's failed port policies, it was estimated that "a terrorist attack at a major U.S. seaport would cause $60 billion in economic damages." [Democratic Staff of the Committee on Homeland Security, Annual Report Card, 2/06]

Bush Budget Shortchanges Port Security: President Bush's FY07 budget "eliminates the port security grant program, the only source of funds committed to help ports pay for post-9/11 security requirements." And, instead of funds set aside specifically for ports, the White House "has proposed $600 million in Targeted Infrastructure Protection Program (TIPP) grants, forcing ports to compete with rail, mass transit, and other critical infrastructure for funding." [Democratic Staff of the Committee on Homeland Security, Annual Report Card, 2/06]

Bush Budget Does Not Address Needed Screening For Nuclear Weapons And Dirty Bombs. The Bush Administration has also not done enough to make sure that containers arriving at our ports are checked. Seventy-five percent of our ports do not have the ability to screen a container for dirty bombs or nuclear weapons. But, President Bush "requested only $157 million for radiation portal monitors, which means U.S. seaports will not have the ability to screen containers for nuclear weapons." [Democratic Staff of the Committee on Homeland Security, Annual Report Card, 2/06]