PADM530Wk7

Overview

Welcome to Week 7.

In this lesson, we are tackling two large policy areas: environmental and energy

policy, and homeland security and foreign policy. While, we could easily spend

weeks on each policy topic, the course is intended to give you a “taste” of each

area and to provide the framework for you to understand the policy process and

to begin to independently analyze policy and its alternatives. 

Course Objectives

01 CO2: Assess the history of various domestic and foreign policies. 

[banner placeholder]

Image Citations

"Diverse group of people carrying a banner down a street that says “Many Faiths” and “One Planet”. There are other people holding signs and

banners about social and political issues." by http://www.google.com/url?

sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.citymetric.com%2Fhorizons%2Fcan-faith-trump-

denial-how-organised-religion-�ghting-climate-change-2480&psig=AOvVaw1XVE5ldbzPM0w9Bbv4kilM&ust=1511369472250446.

[banner placeholder]

Organizations Involved in Homeland Security and Foreign Policy

Many issues fall under the heading of foreign policy. Instead of focusing on individual issues, we will focus on defense policy, which is a part of foreign

policy. Defense policy focuses on national security.

Numerous organizations are involved in creating defense policy and listed below.

• The Department of Defense  (DOD)

• The National Security Council  (NSC)

• The North Atlantic Treaty Organization  (NATO)

• The Central Intelligence Agency  (CIA)

• The Director of National Intelligence  (DNI)

• The National Security Agency  (NSA)

• The Department of Homeland Security  (DHS)

Why Homeland Security and Foreign Policy Is Important

Though the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, were the �rst major attack on United States soil since Pearl

Harbor, they were not the �rst acts of terrorism on the U.S. since that time. The February 26,1993  , attack damaged the World Trade Center, killed

six people and injured more than 1,000 people. While terrorist were arrested and a related plot was uncovered and thwarted, the U.S. did not take the

measures needed to end such attacks.

The August 7, 1996  attack on the US embassy bombings in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salamm killed 224 people and wounded more than 4,500.

Osama bin Laden was connected to the attack.

On October 12, 2000  , the USS Cole was attacked, killing 17 and wounding 38. The two terrorists who made the attack were alleged to be

members of Osama bin Laden’s network. The attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon on September 11, 2001  , killed 2,996 (including the

Shanksville, Pennsylvania crash). This attack �nally sparked the U.S. to create initiatives created to try to avoid such terrorist attacks.

This last attack led to various bills, including disaster relief and H.R. 3162-Uniting and Strengthening American by Providing Appropriate Tools

Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism  (The USA PATRIOT Act) Act of 2001 and the War on Terror began. The act was passed quickly by both

houses of Congress and signed by the President. It used the techniques that were already in place against drug dealers and organized crime against

suspected terrorists. The role of the U.S. in the world impacts virtually every aspect of life from jobs to what is available for purchase within the country.

Environmental and Energy Policy

The United States has a large collection of environmental and energy policies. Some are as simple as encouraging people to walk or ride a bike. Others

are extremely complex.

Laws Guiding Environmental and Energy Policy

Environmental and energy policy encompasses concerns such as alternative energy, the protection of parks and conservation areas, and clean air and

water. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (n.d) is the major agency enforcing policy in the category. Some major environmental and

energy policies are listed below.

The National Environmental Policy Act  (NEPA)•

The Clean Air Act  (CAA) of 1970•

The Clean Water Act  (CWA) of 1972•

The Safe Drinking Water Act  (SDWA) of 1974•

The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act  (FIFRA), passed in 1974 and amended in 1996•

The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act  (RCRA) of 1976•

The Toxic Substances Control Act  (ToSCA) of 1976•

The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act  (CERCLA) of 1980, also known as “Superfund.”•

Conclusion

In this lesson, we looked at some of the national policies made regarding the environment and national security. While the inherent value of policies

to protect the homeland and promote democracy throughout the world is recognized, the most e�ective (and constitutional) ways to do this are still

under debate.