Thompson: Not Enough Funding to Secure the Borders
Appearing on MSNBC this morning, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said that there simply isn’t enough money available in the federal budget to buy more of the full-body imaging machines that could detect the types of plastic explosives smuggled in a pair of underwear onto Northwest Flight 253 last week.
“„It’s a matter of money. You know, security is an issue, but as we struggle with this economy, there’s only so much money we can dedicate to this particular issue. There are a lot of other issues we’re dealing with. And what we have to do is have a well-planned, well-coordinated approach to the problem.
Thompson’s comments come just a few weeks after Congress passed a $1.1 trillion bill for defense and homeland security in 2010 alone. Which begs the question: How much more than that do lawmakers need to spend before they get this thing right?
