It is clearly evident both the FBI and the Secret Service are in dire need of reform.
There are those who might advocate defunding both agencies, but I don’t know if
it will come to that. At any rate, both of these agencies need to do away with DEI, wokeness, etc.
In addition, there needs to be some restructuring regarding federal law
enforcement.
Let’s begin with the Department of Homeland Security, established in the
aftermath of 9/11 to help combat terrorism. It consists of the following agencies: the United States Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS), the United States Coast Guard, the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Secret Service, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the Management Directorate, the Science & Technology Directorate, the Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office, the Office of Intelligence and Analysis, the Office of Homeland Security Situational Awareness, the Office of Health Security, and the Ombudsman Offices. All of these agencies should be transferred to the Justice Department, with the following exceptions: the Coast Guard (which can be transferred to the Defense Department), FEMA (which can be transferred to the Department of Health & Human Services), and the TSA (which needs to be abolished and replaced by private security companies).
Then there is the Justice Department, of which the following changes can take
place:
- First, there is the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (a.k.a. BATF, a.k.a. ATF). Although the ATF might have a meaningful purpose, it has had a history of corruption and blunders, including the botched Waco Raid and Operation Fast and Furious. In addition, is it necessary to have a police-type agency to regulate alcohol and tobacco products? The best thing to do with the ATF is to divide up into two divisions: the Bureau of Alcohol and Tobacco (which would be transferred to the Department of Agriculture, as well as not being a police force) and the Firearms Division (which would become part of the FBI).
- Next, there is the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Despite having a well-intended purpose, it too has had its share of corruption. Plus, is it necessary to have an agency for the sole purpose of combating the drug trade? Some people might advocate its elimination (and possibly turning its duties over to the FBI), although it might be better to put it under the FBI. As for any regulation of legal drugs, that duty already falls under the jurisdiction of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
- Should the Justice Department ever acquire Homeland Security, there are a few agencies that would undergo changes. One of them is the Secret Service. In addition to protecting the President and other individuals (e.g. First Family, Vice President and Family, former Presidents), the Secret Service also investigates financial crimes (counterfeiting and fraud). My suggestion would be to turn its financial crimes investigations over to the FBI, or perhaps transfer its financial crimes division to the FBI. Either way, its sole purpose would be to provide protection for the President and other designated individuals.
- Then there are Homeland Security’s immigration agencies. As I mentioned in my May 13 article, the Immigration and Naturalization Service should be brought back to the Justice Department, thus replacing its successors: Citizenship & Immigration Services and the United States Immigration & Customs Enforcement. In addition, the duty of enforcing customs would lie solely with United States Customs & Border Protection.
- The Justice Department could also obtain the following Independent Agencies, Boards, etc.: Commission on Civil Rights, Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Federal Election Commission, National Indian Gaming Commission, and the State Justice Institute. In addition to these changes, I feel that with the exception of having security guards in their facilities, the only government agencies that should have any armed personnel would be the State Department (e.g. Diplomatic Security Service), Justice Department, Defense Department, Department of the Interior (e.g. Park Rangers), and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
If only such changes could take place.
