Publication

Ten years after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the US government does not have a single definition for "homeland security". Different strategic documents and mission statements offer varying missions that are derived from different homeland security definitions. Historically, the strategic documents framing national homeland security policy have included national strategies produced by the White House and documents developed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). This report discusses the evolution of DHS-specific strategic documents and their homeland security definitions and missions. It analyzes the policy question of how varied homeland security definitions and missions may affect the development of national homeland security strategy.