Thread: Department of Homeland Security

Feds’ Advice for Confronting Mass Murderers: Scissors
Posted on January 31, 2013

Is your workplace getting shot up by a crazed gunman?

No problem — just grab a pair of scissors and fight back!

That’s some of the helpful advice in a new instructional video from the Department of Homeland Security that was posted on the agency’s Web site just a month after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. “If you are caught out in the open and cannot conceal yourself or take cover, you might consider trying to overpower the shooter with whatever means are available,” says the narrator in the video, which shows an office worker pulling scissors out of a desk drawer.

Seriously ?? http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=oI5EoWBRYmo

The video, titled “Options for Consideration,” also advises that people who get caught in an “active shooter” situation should run away, hide under a desk or take cover out of the line of fire.

The nearly four-minute-long video opens with chilling scenes from the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre, the 2009 mass shooting at Fort Hood in Texas, and the 2011 attempted assassination of Gabrielle Giffords.

But the video quickly shifts to hokey footage of office workers scampering under desks, crouching in corners and racing into closets to hide from a rampaging gunman on the loose.


DUCK AND CUTTER: A Homeland Security video shows these scenes as helpful advice to workers on what to do if a mass killer strikes their office — grab any weapon at hand, and hide under a desk.

“To protect your hiding place, lock the door if you can. Block the door with heavy furniture,” recommends the male narrator, speaking in measured, authoritative tones.

Other survival strategies promoted in the video include hiding “behind large items such as cabinets or desks. Remain quiet. Silence your cellphone or pager. Even the vibration setting can give away a hiding position.”

Richard Feldman, president of the Independent Firearm Owners Association, said he has a better option for consideration than a pair of scissors when confronting an armed mass murderer — a legal firearm.

“That’s why I prefer a gun, and I usually do carry a gun when it is lawful to do so,” said Feldman. “Clearly, you use whatever you can” to fight for your life, he said.

So if scissors are all you’ve got, grab them by all means.

The video is part of the Obama administration’s ongoing campaign to reduce firearm violence in the wake of the horrific mass murder last month of 20 children and six teachers in Newtown, Conn., said a Homeland Security official.

Homeland Security has operated an active-shooter preparedness-training program for years, and the “Options for Consideration” video was in production prior to the Dec. 14 shooting in Newtown.

The video was released to coincide with President Obama’s sweeping proposals to curb gun violence in America, said the official.

Obama’s most controversial proposals include a ban on military-style assault rifles and high-capacity ammo clips, as well as expanded background checks for firearm purchases.

Security consultant Andrew Scott called the information in the video “adequate.”

He conceded that Homeland Security was correct in recommending that people use scissors to attack a gunman but only in a “last, worst-case scenario.”

“Just the suggestion [to fight back] is a positive move,” said Scott, a former SWAT commander in North Miami Beach. “You don’t want to be sheep for the slaughter.”

But if you do arm yourself with shears, the narrator warns you to drop them when cops arrive. “Put down any items. Immediately raise your hands,” is the closing advice.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/nationa...puVezePd6trYoM

comments

.... but weren't we taught not to run with scissors? This goes against everything I was taught and mama was not wrong!

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Everyone knows rock beats scissors.

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that's right! And always carry the scissors with the point facing you!!

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OB will foster a bill to confiscate all illegal scissors

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I heard in their first video their advice was to "RUN". HAHA

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Kinda like taking a knife to a gunfight???????

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You'll have to sign a waiver to ensure you don't run with your new scissors

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Oh My... This is the most absurd response from our government I have ever heard. I think actually a better way to defend yourself is to grab spaghetti. Yeah, lets just dose the intruder in spaghetti noodles. I think that would stop them!!

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So if there is scissor abuse, will they ban scissors????

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Why not grab the fire extinguisher if there is one? Maybe we need personal CO2 fire extinguishers?

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or maybe I can knit him a sweater with my needles?!

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Maybe you can buy a pair of ASSAULT scissors from Dick's Sporting Goods
.. Oh wait, I think those were banned also.

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scissors against a gun. guess who wins


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NEVER bring scissors to a gun fight!

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Is this "The Onion"?

You think we are kidding? As DHS tells us to combat armed assailants with scissors, they add another 200,000 rounds to their existing stockpile of 2 billion....


(Examiner) Last year, it was reported that the Department of Homeland Security had purchased 1.6 billion rounds of hollow point ammunition of various calibers for reasons that the agency refuses to reveal. On Wednesday, the DHS announced that it would acquire another 200,000 rounds from a company known as Evian Group, Inc.

The DHS put out a solicitation for the purchase on the FedBizOps.gov Web site on Dec. 17 for the agency’s Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, requesting .40 caliber hollow point rounds, Federal Ammunition of 1,000 rounds in 200 cases.

Not only is the reason for the agency’s stockpiling of nearly 2 billion rounds of ammo shrouded in mystery, but so too is the Evian Group. James Smith of Prepper Podcast did an investigation into the company and found some odd facts which he reported in an article on Thursday

Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2013/01/dhs-adds-...uK4iSb6rhsB.99

DHS adds another 200,000 rounds to stockpile

Agency has already purchased 2 billion bullets
January 4, 2013 By: Ryan Keller

Last year, it was reported that the Department of Homeland Security had purchased 1.6 billion rounds of hollow point ammunition of various calibers for reasons that the agency refuses to reveal. On Wednesday, the DHS announced that it would acquire another 200,000 rounds from a company known as Evian Group, Inc.

The DHS put out a solicitation for the purchase on the FedBizOps.gov Web site on Dec. 17 for the agency’s Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, requesting .40 caliber hollow point rounds, Federal Ammunition of 1,000 rounds in 200 cases.

Not only is the reason for the agency’s stockpiling of nearly 2 billion rounds of ammo shrouded in mystery, but so too is the Evian Group. James Smith of Prepper Podcast did an investigation into the company and found some odd facts which he reported in an article on Thursday.

For one, “It seems that the Evian Group was formed on December 12, 2012, just 5 days before the announcement of the solicitation,” writes Smith.

The price that the agency paid for the rounds is suspect too, according to Smith.

“The contract for 200,000 rounds was $45,758, which boils down to about $0.21 per round. And to be quiet (sic) honest, that (is) a really good price. As in, unheard of good price.”

After comparing the prices for the rounds from Evian and other companies on two different Web sites, Smith found “that the price was less than half of what the other guys are charging.”

Also suspicious is the company’s address of 105 South Eastern Ave, Las Vegas, Nev. After searching Google Maps, Smith found that the building at the listed address doesn’t appear to be the kind of place that could produce that much ammunition and then ship it anywhere. Smith proclaims, “There’s not even a MailBoxes Etc to accept mail! 105 S Eastern Avenue looks like the parking lot for a bodega.”

Further, the people supposedly running the company don’t seem to exist.

“The listed principles, Grace Hodge and Larayne Whitehead, are director and president respectively. Nowhere can they be found attached to Evian Group, Inc, which is unusual as they (sic) whole purpose of running a business is to create a steady stream of revenue. They cannot be found on LinkedIn, where people network to get more business, or even in Google as a website. Eviangroup.com is parked by GoDaddy.com for a future site, and Bravenet is hosting Eviangroup.net.

Furthermore, no property or telephone records exist for principles. The people do not seem to exist.

In reviewing the DUNS (Dun and Bradstreet) record, when the telephone number was called, it was not a business line, but a rather unusual phrase was used, “…[P]lease download line 2”.

As mentioned, the DHS has stockpiled nearly 2 billion rounds of ammo. This is an unusually large amount for a federal agency to be stockpiling. The agency has refused to give an explanation for these purchases, going so far as to black out information on another solicitation, which is illegal without Congressional authorization or in response to national security issues. http://www.infowars.com/dhs-classifi...g-controversy/

The typical response from the media has been that the rounds are for target practice; however, hollow points are not used for target shooting. Hollow points are too expensive and not designed for target practice; instead, full metal jacket rounds are used for training.

The other purchases by the DHS include 200 million rounds of .223 and .308, 450 million rounds of .40 caliber, and another 750 million rounds of various calibers including .357 magnum.

Even though government agencies are arming themselves to the teeth, the politicians continue to tell Americans that they shouldn’t be allowed to own guns.

http://www.examiner.com/article/dhs-...ound-stockpile

comments

couple this with the fact the POTUS has stated there should be a civilian armed force as large as the military AND the issues going on with gun control.....Its enough to be very concerned about.

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It's all for 'domestic use'...

They're using government money to dry up the civillian supply...

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Still confused by why they would need that many rounds. I am not sure we (US Military) used that many rounds in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Makes me a bit paranoid

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I don't trust a government that is arming itself and trying to disarm me.

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they are probaby buying all these bullets for the same reason the give no-bid contracts to defense contractors at outrageous costs.. or that they subsidize enormous multibillion dollar oil companies.. Doing favors for their friends.. you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours. after all they paid for their re-election.

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Doesn't the Geneva Convention ban hollow point ammunition for use by governments?

Homeland Security Now Armed With Enough Ammo for 24 Year-Long Iraq War
Posted by Jim Hoft on Saturday, February 16, 2013

The government reportedly repositioned several of their Homeland Security ammunition containers recently.


The containers (like those pictured) are usually painted olive drab and are unmarked except for indistinguishable numbers/letters probably for inventory, routing, etc.

Investor’s Business Daily reported: http://news.investors.com/politics-a...-purchases.htm

In a puzzling, unexplained development, the Obama administration has been buying and storing vast amounts of ammunition in recent months, with the Department of Homeland Security just placing another order for an additional 21.6 million rounds.

Several other agencies of the federal government also began buying large quantities of bullets last year. The Social Security Administration, for instance, not normally considered on the frontlines of anything but dealing with seniors, explained that its purchase of millions of rounds was for special agents’ required quarterly weapons qualifications. They must be pretty poor shots.

But DHS has been silent about its need for numerous orders of bullets in the multiple millions. Indeed, Examiner writer Ryan Keller points out Janet Napolitano’s agency illegally redacted information from some ammunition solicitation forms following media inquiries. http://www.examiner.com/article/dhs-...ound-stockpile

According to one estimate, just since last spring DHS has stockpiled more than 1.6 billion bullets, mainly .40 caliber and 9mm. That’s sufficient firepower to shoot every American about five times. Including illegal immigrants.

To provide some perspective, experts estimate that at the peak of the Iraq war American troops were firing around 5.5 million rounds per month. At that rate, DHS is armed now for a 24-year Iraq war. http://www.infowars.com/dhs-purchase...of-ammunition/

Mark Levin told his audience the government is buying the vast amounts of ammo to prepare for the collapse of our financial system and our society. http://www.therightscoop.com/prepari...ounts-of-ammo/

Obama’s Homeland Security Department has purchased 1.4 billion rounds of ammunition – that is not a typo — during the last six months.
http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/...mmunition.html



ATK is one company that won a contract with the Department of Homeland Security to provide 450 million rounds of .40 caliber ammunition in 2012. http://blog.executivebiz.com/2012/03...tion-contract/

Guess Who Is Featured on New DHS Targets? YOU!
Written on Friday, February 22, 2013 by Ralph Barker



The Department of Homeland Security has purchased $2,000,000 worth of new targets. These are not just any targets either. They are not the ones that most of us think of with the concentric circles and a bulls-eye. These targets feature real people, like you.

Some feature photos of pregnant women, little boys and girls, and senior citizens. All of these people, even the children, are pictured brandishing a gun. I wasn’t aware that people, people like you and me, are now the suspects of future violence. We are now apparently a major concern of DHS. Why?

Remember that recently many government agencies purchased millions of rounds of ammunition. Even unlikely agencies such as Social Security, the National Marine Fisheries Service, Department of Education, and the Internal Revenue Service are stocking up. We have to at least suspect that the federal government is anticipating some kind of civil unrest. If that occurs law enforcement may be called upon to shoot citizens.

This may seem unthinkable, but shooting American citizens has already happened quite a few times that I recall. There was Ruby Ridge, David Koresh and his followers in Waco, Texas, and the Kent State massacre that happened in Kent, Ohio. In my estimation most of these were mass executions. Obviously, the courts don’t agree with me. Regardless, American citizens were shot and killed by our government.

There is another aspect to this story too. These “no more hesitation” targets, as they are called, are also brainwashing tools. They are tools that will help desensitize law enforcement officers so they won’t hesitate when called upon to shoot American citizens. That time may be nearer than we think. I hope you have not been desensitized. I hope you are as shocked and outraged as I am that our government is doing this.

WND, previously Worldnet Daily, has a video on their site that features an interview with a representative of the company, Law Enforcement Training, Inc, that manufactures the targets. It is located here. http://www.wnd.com/2013/02/company-s...s/?cat_orig=us The company admits they are selling these targets to government agencies. This is not a hoax.

There is some good news. Due to the pressure from the public and even the law enforcement community, the company, Law Enforcement Training, Inc, has apologized and taken down the targets from the Internet. It is still unclear whether or not they will continue to be sold to DHS and other agencies. But, this is a start and shows public pressure still counts.

The American people have already been desensitized to so many things. What was considered porn in the 1950s and 60s is now displayed on family time television and on the front of mainstream magazines. Nudity doesn’t get much attention anymore. Neither does living together outside of marriage, extramarital sex, drug use, homosexuality, or the most bloody violence.

Yes, we’ve been desensitized. We live in the new normal that, at least according to biblical standards, is abnormal, destructive, and sinful.

It is a victory to see the targets exposed and withdrawn from the Internet, but this doesn’t change the agenda and we still don’t know who will continue to get the targets. The plan probably still is to desensitize our law enforcers even further. To shoot a pregnant woman or child should cause no more hesitation than shooting the bulls-eye on a traditional target the thinking goes. We no longer have to have a bulls-eye on our backs. We are the bulls-eye.

Life is getting cheaper by the day in this country.

All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent. – Thomas Jefferson.






Read more: http://patriotupdate.com/articles/gu...#ixzz2LvzS8OHo

Company selling targets of kids got $2 million from DHS
'If we start to desensitize law enforcement officers, what kind of society have we become?'
Published: 5 days ago

(Infowars) The company behind controversial shooting targets that include images of children, pregnant women and elderly gun owners received almost $2 million dollars in contracts from the Department of Homeland Security.

Minnesota-based Law Enforcement Training Inc., which brags of its close relationship with the DHS and thousands of law enforcement agencies, has stoked outrage after producing shooting targets which feature “non traditional” threats amidst banal environments such as a pregnant woman in a nursery, a mother in a school playground and a little boy.

Listen to a representative of the company defend the controversial products:

Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2013/02/company-s...bzeqSwDY6Pm.99

Company Behind Shooting Targets of Children Received $2 Million From DHS
Contracts were for “training aids” and “paperboard”
Paul Joseph Watson - Infowars.com - February 20, 2013

The company behind controversial shooting targets that include images of children, pregnant women and elderly gun owners received almost $2 million dollars in contracts from the Department of Homeland Security.

Minnesota-based Law Enforcement Training Inc., which brags of its close relationship with the DHS and thousands of law enforcement agencies, has stoked outrage after producing shooting targets which feature “non traditional” threats amidst banal environments such as a pregnant woman in a nursery, a mother in a school playground and a little boy.

The company reacted to the furore by asserting the products helped override “hesitation on the part of cops when deadly force is required on subjects with atypical age, frailty or condition,” and to “break that stereotype on the range, regardless of how slim the chances are of encountering a real life scenario that involves a child, pregnant woman, etc.”

Following concerns that the issue could be linked with Homeland Security’s purchase of around 2 billion bullets over the last year, which many fear is linked to preparations for domestic disorder, it has now emerged that Law Enforcement Training Inc. has racked up contracts worth almost $2 million dollars with the DHS over the last three years.

The vast majority of those contracts were for “training aids” and “paperboard,” according to the USASpending.gov website, which lists numerous different contracts each in the region of $150,000 and $180,000 dollars stretching back to early 2010 and running through to July 2012.

While it is not known whether the DHS purchased the “no hesitation” targets, a company representative admitted to a customer that law enforcement agencies had “requested” at least one of the images which depicted a pregnant woman as a “threat”.

A customer who called Law Enforcement Inc. yesterday told Infowars that the company informed him the targets were, “strictly for Department of Homeland Security and other law enforcement agencies.”

The story has prompted widespread condemnation on the Internet, with Law Enforcement Inc. being slammed by Facebook users after it issued a statement.

Retired City of Houston police officer T.F. Stern reacted to the issue by remarking, “There’s something wrong, seriously wrong here. If we start to desensitize law enforcement officers, have them disregard humanity, to feel nothing’s wrong in shooting a pregnant lady or an old man with a shotgun inside his own home…then what kind of society have we become? How will police officers react after they no longer believe they are part of the society which they have been charged with policing, when they have become used to shooting pregnant ladies and old men?”

View all the “no hesitation” targets, which are still available on the company’s website, below.

http://www.infowars.com/company-behi...lion-from-dhs/





Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2013/02/company-s...bzeqSwDY6Pm.99

Company selling targets with images of Americans to DHS for firearms training
examiner.com ^ | Feb 19, 2013 | BY: RYAN KELLER

Law Enforcement Targets, Inc., a company that sells law enforcement and federal agencies “realistic” paper targets for firearms training, is providing the Department of Homeland Security with images of “non-traditional threats.”

The people in these images are most likely Americans, with such images as “’pregnant woman threat,’ ‘older man with shotgun,’ ‘older man in home with shotgun,’ ‘older woman with gun,’ ‘young school aged girl,’ ‘young mother on playground,’ and ‘little boy with real gun,’” writes Paul Joseph Watson on Tuesday.

Law Enforcement Target's Non-Traditional Threat targets It would appear as if this company is trying to help police and law enforcement prepare for fighting Americans. As Watson points out, there would have to be a demand among the agencies to which the company sells in order to put these products on the market.

Law Enforcement Target’s Web site declares that these targets are “designed to give officers the experience of dealing with deadly force shooting scenarios with subjects that are not the norm during training,” and are “meant to help the transition for officers who are faced with these highly unusual targets for the first time.”

The line of images is called "No More Hesitation," implying that law enforcement shouldn't hesitate to kill these people just because they're Americans.

Speculation that the DHS is preparing for fighting within the United States has abounded for some time. Over the last year, the department has purchased nearly 2 billion rounds of hollow point ammunition of various calibers, enough to fight a 30 year war and shoot every American man, woman and child four times.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2990028/posts

Obama DHS Purchases 2,700 Light-Armored Tanks to Go With Their 1.6 Billion Bullet Stockpile
Posted by Jim Hoft on Sunday, March 3, 2013, 9:55 PM

This is getting a little creepy.

According to one estimate, since last year http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2013...long-iraq-war/ the Department of Homeland Security has stockpiled more than 1.6 billion bullets, mainly .40 caliber and 9mm. http://news.investors.com/politics-a...-purchases.htm

DHS also purchased 2,700 Mine Resistant Armor Protected Vehicles (MRAP).


Modern Survival Blog reported: http://modernsurvivalblog.com/govern...street-sweeper

The Department of Homeland Security (through the U.S. Army Forces Command) recently retrofitted 2,717 of these ‘Mine Resistant Protected’ vehicles for service on the streets of the United States.

Although I’ve seen and read several online blurbs about this vehicle of late, I decided to dig slightly deeper and discover more about the vehicle itself.

The new DHS sanctioned ‘Street Sweeper’ (my own slang due to the gun ports) is built by Navistar Defense (NavistarDefense.com), a division within the Navistar organization. Under the Navistar umbrella are several other companies including International Trucks, IC Bus (they make school buses), Monaco RV (recreational vehicles), WorkHorse (they make chassis), MaxxForce (diesel engines), and Navistar Financial (the money arm of the company).

DHS even released a video on their newly purchased MRAPs. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pS9a...layer_embedded
Via Pat Dollard: http://patdollard.com/2013/02/dhs-mrap-combat-vehicle/

The MRAP featured in this video is was in Albuquerque, New Mexico for Law Enforcement Day which was held at a local area Target Store. This MRAP is stationed in El Paso, Texas at The Homeland Security Investigations Office. MRAP is a Mine Resistant Armor Protected Vehicle. http://www.youtube.com/redirect?q=ht...AxMzYyMzY1MzA5

http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2013...let-stockpile/

It's hard to not become a paranoid conspiracy theorist when you read news reports about the DHS buying thousands of these things and billions of rounds of ammo...

America is swiftly turning into a kind of Left-wing socialist totalitarian police state...

Drones overhead, all of your webernetz activity databased forever, the DHS and other government agencies morphing into domestic military forces, checkpoints everywhere you travel, the president worshipped, etc.

The founders are rolling in their graves...

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Are they going to fly a drone over each and every local Democratic Party headquarter in all 16,000 counties? Or over each and every local union office? Over each city hall? America is not a country of ragheads living in the mountains. We have large cities in which to hide. We have a large country with a large, well armed, population.

There are not enough drones in the world to treaten ALL of us. Obama and Napolitano are engaging is psyops - an attempt to cow us with reports about magic armored cars and magic drones (they only carry 2 hellfire missles) - assuming that Congress funds them and allows them to operate in America. Which is not a done deal.

The message to send to Obama is HELL NO! We will not obey. We will commit acts of civil disobedience and dare them to open fire - the way that Gandhi did in India. The way that MLK did in the 60's.

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He has to create enough chaos before the 2016 election, so that he can start enough civil unrest to declare marshal law and suspend the election. His goal is to become supreme dictator with no one stopping him. Every day a step closer.

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No, this is for the protection of the ruling class, they dont need to start a false flag. America of our founders is dead (or at least on life-support) and we will quickly revert back to the surfs and peasants fighting for our lives (never mind our rights) against the ruling class. And since they cant control the economy and bring prosperity to the average American (just look what they have done the past 12 years and their plan is to do more of the same) they will find themselves increasingly ruling over a ever more disgruntled populace. Oh sure they will have a lot of prosperity for themselves (just like today with Obama crony capitalism and Obama policies which has increased the wage gap extensively, but for the rest of us, for-get-about-it.

We better wake up soon or all the sci-fi movies we watched growing up where the evil government was at war with the “terrorist” in the streets of America may turn into reality.

Louis Farrakhan (the black racist) is calling on his people to buy land and get armed to protect themselves against the evil Federal Government, maybe we ALL should do the same.

Even as Big Sis continues to cry poverty and use the phony "sequester" argument to releases criminal illegal aliens and furloughs border agents, the DHS is on a spending spree - hiring big salaried new staff and funding questionable projects having little to do with 'national security'. Yesterday, we saw the outrageous $50 million TSA purchase of new uniforms - enough to cancel planned furloughs on 1/3 of the Border agents being cut. As Napolitano complains of "budget cuts" DHS just posted help wanted ads for 100 new positions many paying well over $100,000 plus mega benefits. TSA is also going ahead with numerous conferences, none of which will even be scaled back.
And documents released show just how "wisely" Big Sis has spent your tax dollars. Here's an example: over the past 4 years, DHS has spent $184 million on new FURNITURE. Those purchases include the hiring of a New York interior designer and upscale furniture retailer purchases. The inmates are truly running the asylum at DHS.

**CLICK LIKE if you think keeping criminal aliens off the street and keeping Border Agents at their posts is more important than posh conferences and designer furniture.**

Department of Misplaced Priorities

DHS hires staff, spends money on questionable projects even as it releases illegal immigrants and furloughs border agents
BY: Mary Lou Byrd ~~ March 13, 2013 1:59 pm

The Department of Homeland Security’s release of thousands of illegal immigrants from detention centers and plans to furlough tens of thousands of border agents comes as the agency continues to hire and spend money on what congressional critics say are questionable projects.

The Free Beacon found that DHS has embarked on a hiring spree even as it releases “low risk” detainees. More than 100 job openings were listed for DHS on the government’s job board site as of March 13. https://dhs.usajobs.gov/JobSearch/Se...dvancedResults

A sample of the full-time jobs the DHS is looking to fill include three regional director positions, with a salary range of $118,846 to $155,500; two emergency management specialists for FEMA, who can earn up to $100,859; and several supervisor federal air marshals, whose salary ranges are $119,554 to $172,550. Several personnel security specialists are also being sought and employees can earn up to $97,333 a year.

The part-time jobs listed for the DHS include many Transportation Security Officers who can earn up to $43,697 per year working part time. The agency is also seeking to fill several child and youth assistant positions.

The salaries of all the future employees at DHS do not include other costs, as the Federal government also offers health insurance, a thrift savings plan, a retirement plan, life insurance, and long-term care insurance. Additional perks could include uniform allowance, tuition reimbursement, and transportation subsidies.

FEMA also continues to fund training exercises with a UFO-zombie theme. One such session is planned next month in Moscow, Idaho, according to a local newspaper account. http://dnews.com/local/article_747aa...8103e1fe9.html

The DHS is also planning numerous conferences, http://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/fil...-over-100k.pdf many of which could cost more than $100,000. They include the 30th Annual Flood Conference from May 5-8 at the Hilton in Anaheim; the U.S. Coast Guard National Convention, Aug. 18-25; and the GFIRST National Conference Aug. 25-30.

The DHS may also realize cost savings in furniture purchases this fiscal year after a four-year binge purchase exceeding $180 million. The Free Beacon found the DHS has spent $184,624,540 on new furniture from 2008 to 2012. Those purchases include the hiring of a New York interior designer and upscale furniture retailer purchases.

Additionally, DHS continues to tout a new grant on its website authorized by President Barack Obama’s FY 2013 budget. http://fema.ideascale.com/a/ideafact...ussionID=58377 It is looking to the public for suggestions on how to spend the new grant money.

DHS did not comment on why it continues hiring during the sequester, why it continues to fund questionable training exercises, or if it plans to cancel any of its conferences due to the sequester.

According to reports, more than 40 lawmakers have sent letters to DHS secretary Janet Napolitano demanding answers for the agency’s choice of budget cuts. http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2013/0...ed-immigrants/

Sen. John Cornyn, (R., Texas) questioned Napolitano’s leadership in a letter: “Border security and the detention of those who violate our laws are at the core of DHS’s mission.” Cornyn urged her to renew “efforts to eliminate wasteful and duplicative spending not aligned with core missions.” http://www.cornyn.senate.gov/public/...8-c5df1c4313a4

The senator has not yet received a response from Napolitano, he said in a statement to the Washington Free Beacon on Tuesday evening.

“When the secretary of homeland security decides to pull thousands of border patrol agents from their posts instead of making already identified, common-sense, administrative cuts, there can only be one motive: Using fear to make a political point,” Cornyn said.

“Her homework’s been done for her; it’s time for Sec. Napolitano to target real excess in her department and trim her budget without putting our national security at risk,” Cornyn said.

Asked by the Free Beacon for a response to the many senators who have questioned their cuts, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) responded by email, saying they would “respond to the senators directly.”

ICE spokesperson Gillian Christensen sent the following statement: “As fiscal uncertainty remained over the continuing resolution, and with the strong possibility of sequestration, ICE officials identified and released detained individuals who posed the least threat to public safety, were not subject to mandatory detention, and who were appropriate candidates for supervised release.”

The statement added that ICE officials reviewed each case prior to release and does not “maintain records on whether an individual was released primarily for budgetary reasons.”

The agency is now indicating that the release of illegal immigrants is not necessarily due to the sequester.

ICE stated it has funding from Congress to detain an average daily population of approximately 34,000 and over the “course of this fiscal year, ICE detention levels have exceeded 36,500. As of February 25, ICE’s annual average daily population for FY ‘13 was 33,925.”

ICE must reduce its expenditures by $294 million across all of its programs, the statement said.

The Office of Management and Budget referred the Free Beacon to the DHS when asked what recommendations it made to the DHS regarding sequester cuts.

http://freebeacon.com/department-of-...ed-priorities/

FEMA wants to hear your ideas and suggestions, to explore concerns as well as thoughts on how to move forward with this new grant program.

http://fema.ideascale.com/a/ideafact...ussionID=58377

Whistle Blowers: Obama Releasing Violent Illegal Aliens Onto U.S. Streets

By John Hill on March 15, 2013

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) division of DHS released nearly 2,400 criminal illegal aliens in February – including over 300 in a single county in Arizona. And the rationale given was that these were “necessary cuts” because of “looming” sequestration – a claim DHS Chief Napolitano made that we now know to be false. Napolitano lied when she insisted only “hundreds” were released, after the AP reported “over 2,000″ were set loose.

We also found out that DHS did not need to make these cuts to alien detention, given that the department is scheduled to have $8 billion in “surplus funds” available to it at the end of the fiscal year. And also that – while slashing funds for housing criminal aliens – DHS spent lavish amounts at the same time for brand new uniforms for TSA agents.

But now another falsehood has been revealed. ICE had insisted that “only non-violent individuals” were released last month. Thanks to whistle blowers within ICE, an Arizona Sheriff has discovered that ICE LIED about the released detainees being “low risk”, and that several individuals were in fact charged with crimes ranging from manslaughter, robbery and aggravated assault on a police officer. Sheriff Paul Babeu is outraged: http://ktar.com/22/1615770/Babeu-ICE...sed-immigrants

“Drug smugglers with cartel ties, forgery, aggravated assault on police officers, convicted child molesters. Everything these whistle blowers have said has checked out almost completely.“

The sheriff said he has also been informed that some of those who were released were facing manslaughter charges and several of those who were released were convicted of extreme DUI.

“What happens when they get into a head on collision with a family? Who will be responsible? Certainly not me or the governor. It’s Janet Napolitano and whomever was involved in this.”

Starting on February 15, 2013, ICE began releasing suspected illegal aliens from a number of ICE facilities including one in Florence, Arizona, which is located in Pinal County. “Sheriff Babeu has requested repeatedly a list of released detainees from the ICE facility [in Florence, Arizona] and a list of the charges they currently face and have faced in the past along with their threat levels. This has been met with constant refusals (by ICE) to provide the information,” said Pinal County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Tamra Ingersoll in an email.

Amber Cargile, a spokesperson for ICE in Arizona, initially attempted to blame the sequester for the administration releasing these illegal aliens from custody. When pressed to explain why nothing about these individuals was shared with the Sheriff’s Office in Pinal County, Cargile said the generic statement was all she was authorized to release. “The statement and background are all I’m authorized to provide at this time,” Cargile said in an email.

Starting in the middle of February, the administration began releasing suspected illegal aliens from a number of ICE facilities at about one thousand detainees per week. According to an internal ICE document, ICE plans to release one thousand detainees per week until the end of March, when the total number held will be just below 26,000. ICE facilities can hold a bit more than 34,000 detainees.

The move sparked outrage from many in Congress. Matt Salmon of Arizona, whose 5th District includes Pinal County, was one of 37 members of Congress to send a letter to Napolitano angry that the sequester would be used as an excuse to release criminal illegal aliens.

But none of this should come as any surprise to anyone familiar with the history of released detainees under the Obama Administration. According to a study by the Congressional Research Service, nearly 47,000 illegal aliens flagged for deportation between 2009 and 2011 were instead released by the Obama Administration, and 16% of them went on to commit further crimes, including 19 murders, 3 attempted murders and 142 sex crimes, according to CRS and the House Judiciary Committee.

The gross incompetence and willingness to put partisan, ethnic politics above national security merely underscores why the DHS cannot be trusted to implement ANY version of “immigration reform” being considered by Congress.

PLEASE TAKE THE FOLLOWING ACTIONS IMMEDIATELY:

(1) Call Your Representative Now:

* Find your elected officials HERE http://www.contactingthecongress.org/

DEMAND Your Reps Oppose ANY version of Illegal Alien Amnesty (aka “Comprehensive Immigration Reform”) – either the Obama plan or the “Gang of Eight” – both of which defer to DHS to carry it out – including certifying whether the border is “secure enough”. ICE’s release of dangerous criminal aliens – putting the public at risk and making a mockery of the rule of law – before any budget cuts have even gone through – demonstrate that the DHS is compromised by politics to be trusted to implement ANY immigration “reform” plan.

(2) Contact Reps. By E-Mail message:

* Direct contact your House Rep. HERE https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml

(3) By Social Media:

FACEBOOK: Go to SWA’s Facebook Page and urge your friends to “LIKE” it. http://www.facebook.com/StandWithArizona
TWITTER: Share our Twitter Page and use the hashtag “#noamnesty” in your tweet). https://twitter.com/standwithaz
AND “Like” or “Share” this article everywhere you ca on the web as well. Send it to your local media and elected official.