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HISTORY OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Richard P. Lopez
Helms School of Government, Liberty University
HLSC 510: Homeland Security Organization & Administration
Dr. Shannon McAteer
February 5, 2022
Author Note
Richard P. Lopez
By submitting this assignment, I attest this submission representing my own work, and not that
of another student, scholar, or internet source. I understand I am responsible for knowing and
correctly utilizing referencing and bibliographical guideline.
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Introduction
Preparedness programs in the United States have progressed over the years. This includes
Civil defense, homeland security, and all-hazards preparedness programs. Regimes of Presidents
have had significant implications for perceptions of readiness and preparedness both at the
individual and state levels. Homeland security dates back to the early 1900s. This paper briefly
discusses each era and its contribution to present-day 'homeland security.
Pre-Cold War Period (1917-1945)
Germany started its airstrikes on enemy territory in August 1914. Targeted countries
included Belgium, Poland, and France. Germany also continuously attacked London, with seven
airstrikes reported there in 1915. Citizens of these countries had to scamper for safety due to a
lack of organized defense mechanisms. In the middle of these constant attacks, the United States
leadership was reluctant and did not see any danger. The "Council of National Defense" was
formed on August 29, 1916. Its role was to manage properties and businesses for state protection.
It later shifted its focus to demobilization when the war subsided. During the 1920s, the Central
administration did slight mobilization towards national safety.
With the Second World War looming, Roosevelt created the "Council of National
Defense." There was a rise in tension amongst Federal, state, and local governments over
authority and resources. While state governments complained about limited powers in managing
citizen protection in their dominions, their local counterparts accused them of denying urban
areas the necessary attention and funds. The Office of Civilian Defense (OCD) was created in
1941. It was tasked with citizen protection through self-confidence preservation, advancement of
volunteer participation, and diet and corporal edification. This program faced several contentious
issues such as protective services and social welfare services that critics used to fight. When the
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Second World War ended, most U.S. leaders approved that there was a decline in risk of attack
on U.S. soil. OCD was still in charge of citizen protection, and he managed to initiate many
civilian safety mechanisms.
Truman Regime (1945-1953)
The United States did not highly prioritize citizen protection during World War II. Shortly
after taking office, President Truman eliminated OCD because he believed that the immediate
threat from the war had receded. The advancement of the nuclear bomb and the increased
hostility from the Soviet Union unraveled formerly improbable hazards, which then initiated
Truman to reevaluate the national defense structure. Civil defense plans could help mitigate the
effects of tactical bombarding operations by grand Germany and Japan against citizens of rival
countries. The Hopley Report recommended a central office of citizen protection. The report also
recommended that National and resident administrations take care of most functional tasks.
In 1950, Congress enacted the "Federal Civil Defense Act" of 1950, giving the states the
role of citizen protection, and Created the Federal Civil Defense Administration (FCDA). The act
was aimed at safeguarding against the military state. The FCDA sought to promote the
impression that people can escape bomb attacks with training. Policymakers strived to find out
the meaning of state safety and what level of preparedness was required. The association of
citizen protection with catastrophe made self-help readiness a tough sell for many Americans.
Eisenhower Regime (1953-1961)
The decision by Eisenhower to back a mass withdrawal strategy, in place of the housing
strategy introduced by Truman, was partly due to economic concerns, world events, and the fact
that he believed that the military required an enormous economic commitment to continue its
development. The proposal ran contrary to the opinions of top administrators in the Eisenhower
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government, who favored focusing resources on retaliation capabilities and cutting back on
defense spending.
Kennedy Regime (1961-1963)
Kennedy was the first President to appeal to all U.S. citizens to guard themselves and
reinforce the U.S. Army's fight against communism. By 1963, 104 million individual spaces had
been acknowledged; 47 million were approved, 46 million were noticeable, and 9 million had
provisions. President Kennedy decided that by proposing "a nation-wide long-range program,"
this would support his argument that civil defense should be more of a priority because the
nation could be facing an irrational enemy. President John F. Kennedy signed Executive Order
10952 in July 1961, dividing the Office of Civil Defense and Mobilization into two parts: the
Office of Emergency Planning and the Office of Civil Defense, to help him achieve his goal.
Johnson Regime (1963-1969)
The assassination of Kennedy offset a radical decline in resource allocation for civil
defense programs. Secretary McNamara reiterated the benefit of having satisfactory outcome
housings merely because he questioned whether or not solely relying on the ABM defense would
genuinely save lives. It was believed that detonating atomic weapons upwind of large areas could
beat the ABM system. The concept of all risks aid dominated over civil readiness for an attack,
especially in the face of natural disasters. Hurricanes Hilda and Betsy caused damage on the
Southeast, and an earthquake in Alaska triggered by tidal surges from California, as well as a
tornado that rushed through Indiana, putting the civil defense system in jeopardy and forcing the
nation to question the government's judgment.
Nixon Regime (1969-1974)
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Attention towards citizen protection had dropped swiftly from its ultimate in the 1960s.
According to the study, the nation's preparedness for civil protection against natural disasters was
negligible. This all changed during President Nixon's term; his administration made significant
contributions to civil defense policy, adding the preparation for natural disasters. "The first
Strategic Arms Limitation Talks treaty (SALT I)," signed on May 26, 1972, reduced the number
of 'tactical missile launchers' and raised the number of submarines' ballistic missile launchers.' In
addition, the Nixon administration issued National Security Decision Memorandum 184, which
advocated for a "dual-use approach." The Defense Civil Preparedness Agency would take the
place of the civil defense office.
Ford Regime (1974-1977)
Cold War diplomacy's progress impacted the provisional termination of all-hazard
preparation in the mid-1970s. However, this assisted in the policy change for the civil defense
returning from focusing on natural disaster mitigation, the most critical reasoning that the United
States resumed its intelligence surveillance on the Soviets' civil defense. When Ford ruled,
funding towards citizen protection Civil Defense had insignificant deviations from Nixon's
tenure. Emerging concepts substituted the principle of the Military Assistance Division (MAD).
Carter Regime (1977-1981)
The "Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)" became the chief agency for
managing Centralized tragedy reprieve in response to the events on March 28, 1979. They also
were the lead agency that would coordinate all government disaster relief activities; at the time
of FEMA's formation, it was the largest civil defense endeavor. The Carter Administration
continued to advance evacuation as the primary strategy for civil protection. Well-funded and
widespread Soviet resettlement plans concerned crucial U.S. deciders.
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Reagan Regime (1981-1989)
The 'National Security Division Directive (NSDD) 26' outlined the aims of President
Carter's Civil Defense Directive 41. NSDD 26 proceeded beyond P.D. 41 by specifying a
tangible line for strategies to defend the U.S. citizens in the event of an attack, improve natural
disaster preparedness, and reduce the coercion from enemy forces. Congress refused the requests
for $147.9 million in 1983 to meet FEMA's budget, which was nearly 58 percent of the agency's
request. Cold War mediation continued to contribute to decisions concerning national security
under President Ronald Reagan; SDI was labeled "Star Wars" by critics.
Clinton Regime (1993-2001)
In 1993, Congress enacted the National Defense Authorization Act, which requested that
FEMA create a system that would enable the country to detect and respond to possible
biological/chemical weaponry attacks. Mitigation, preparedness, training and exercise, and
response and recovery are the three functional directorates established by President Clinton for
the major phases of emergency management. It allowed FEMA to focus its emergency
preparedness more on an all-hazards approach and focus more on natural disasters. The "Federal
Civil Defense Act of 1950" was revoked in 1994. This finalized the development of citizen
protection into an all-risk’s tactic to readiness.
In 1995 and 1996, a sequence of attacks by terrorists, both external and internal, impacted
U.S. readiness guidelines. After the Gulf War and 9/11, Congress passed legislation to prevent
terrorists from using 'weapons of mass destruction (WMD)' against the U.S. The 'Nunn-Lugar-
Domenici Act' required the Department of Defense (DOD) to train civilians to respond to a
WMD attack. PDD 63 required the establishment of a Cabinet-level National Homeland Security
Agency charged with planning, coordinating, and integrating diverse United States government
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activities related to "homeland security." The legislation was introduced on March 29, 2001, but
hearings continued through April the same year.
Bush Administration (2001-2008)
Before 9/11, the 'Office of Management and Budget (OMB) summarized Homeland
security as the center of counterterrorism, defense against WMD, and infrastructure protection,
according to. The ad hoc interagency working groups that Clinton used to address homeland
security issues were eliminated by the Bush Administration. President Bush announced the
creation of the Office of Homeland Security just 11 days after the 9/11 attacks. Within less than a
month, Executive Order 13228 was issued, establishing two entities that would determine the
policies on Homeland Security. The Homeland Security Advisory System (HSAS) was
established to inform the American public and security officials about the possibility of a terrorist
assault on the President of the United States. All-hazards preparation became a primary emphasis
after George W. Bush established the Department of Homeland Security. Ridge oversaw a large
expansion of the Container Security Initiative, which is designed to protect U.S. cargo entering
and departing the country from terrorist assaults.
Bible Verse
Exodus 14:13; "And Moses said unto the people, fear ye not, stand still and see the
salvation of the Lord, which he will shew to you today." Looking back at history and the nation's
Homeland Security development, this verse relates a lot. If we look at the many administrations
and how they developed the nation's civil defense, they did so just as God would. Their
leadership and decisions to protect the nation and its people show that they not only were acting
as great leaders but executing the responsibilities and guidance that God had provided them
with.
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Conclusion
The past of citizen safety and 'homeland security in the U.S. has been recurrent strategies and
administrative modification. It is evident that U.S. citizens' current defense mechanism has gone
through various phases in the hands of different leaders dating back to the early 1900s.
References
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Bellavita, C. (2019). How to learn about homeland security. Homeland Security Affairs, 15.
Comiskey, J. (2018). Theory for homeland security. Journal of Homeland Security
Education, 7, 29-45.
Evans‐Nguyen, K., Stelmack, A. R., Clowser, P. C., Holtz, J. M., & Mulligan, C. C. (2021).
Fieldable mass spectrometry for forensic science, homeland security, and defense
applications. Mass Spectrometry Reviews, 40(5), 628-646.
King James Bible. (n.d). Exodus 14:13. Retrieved from URL Exodus 14:13 - 14:14
(kingjamesbibleonline.org)
Oliver, W. M., Marion, N. E., & Hill, J. B. (2019). Introduction to homeland security: Policy,
organization, and administration. Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Willis, H. H., Tighe, M., Lauland, A., Ecola, L., Shelton, S. R., Smith, M. L., ... & Gerstein, D.
M. (2018). Homeland security national risk characterization: Risk assessment
methodology. RAND Corporation
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