National Security
A STRONGER AMERICA AT HOME AND ABROAD
“To protect the American people, we must have tough, focused policies to fight threats like al Qaeda globally, as well as strengthen our homeland security and crime prevention strategies in communities across Wisconsin and the country.
It’s clear that our nation faces extremely difficult challenges when it comes to dealing with foreign countries and foreign entities in the years ahead. As a member of both the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Senate Intelligence Committee, and as the first senator to call for a timetable to safely and responsibly redeploy our troops out of Iraq, I’ve worked to end our massive presence there so that we can refocus our resources on what top administration officials acknowledge is the biggest threat facing the United States: al Qaeda and its affiliates around the globe.
At the same time, we must push forward with better security policies here at home by giving strong support to our first responders. Grant programs like COPS, Byrne, and FIRE provide critical support to police, sheriff, and fire departments that are on the front lines to protect communities everywhere.”
- Senator Russ Feingold
Combating Terrorism - The number one national security priority of the United States must be to combat the global terrorist networks that attacked and continue to threaten our country. Al Qaeda is active around the world, including east Africa and southeast Asia, and continues to recruit, train, and develop new strategies to inflict harm on the United States. Russ has worked to strengthen our nation’s focus on these and other threats around the globe.
He passed legislation to force the Bush Administration to present to Congress its global strategy to combat al Qaeda around the world. He has also introduced bipartisan legislation – the Feingold-Hagel intelligence bill – that would establish an independent commission to help improve the way the government collects and analyzes information so that we can better head off emerging threats around the globe.
Russ voted against going to war with Iraq because he understood such a war would undermine our ability to develop and implement a comprehensive global strategy to deal with the real security challenges we face, and could drain America’s military and intelligence capabilities and financial resources.
Russ was the first senator to call for a flexible timeline to safely redeploy our troops out of Iraq. He understood that our indefinite military presence in Iraq was fueling the insurgency and was not creating the conditions needed for a smooth transfer of authority to the Iraqi government. As conditions in Iraq deteriorated, the strain on our military increased and threats to our national security in other parts of the world worsened. Russ led Senate efforts to end funding for this misguided war, thereby safely redeploying U.S. troops and ending our country's ill-advised involvement in Iraq. Majority Leader Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) joined him in introducing the Feingold-Reid bill that would do just that. Russ strongly supports our brave troops who have courageously answered the call to service and performed heroically. He also understands that our continued presence in Iraq will not fix the political problems there and it will not address the global threats we face that are currently being overlooked or neglected.
Russ strongly supported going after al Qaeda in Afghanistan following the attacks of September 11, 2001. However, he also understands that a successful response to the threat America faces around the globe requires a multi-faceted approach – not one that relies on our military alone. While President Obama understands the threat posed globally by al Qaeda – as well as the importance of addressing its current safe haven in nuclear-armed Pakistan – Russ is concerned that increasing our troop presence in Afghanistan will not help and could possibly undermine our efforts to address that threat. Russ has said that we must acknowledge the risks that an open-ended military commitment in Afghanistan carry and pursue a comprehensive strategy to defeat al Qaeda’s global network.
He was the first Senator to call for a flexible timetable for the safe withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. A timetable would bolster our own country’s national security by undercutting the misperception of America as an occupying force in the region. At the same time, it will also remove the tremendous strain on our troops – and their families – as well as our economy. We need to refocus our policies in the global effort against terrorism and aggressively target al Qaeda wherever they operate. We must also heed the lessons of Iraq and recognize that in the long run, regional diplomacy, government reforms, and infrastructure development may be more important to Afghanistan's success, and to our own national security, than committing additional troops.
As Chairman of the Senate African Affairs Subcommittee, Russ has long advocated for a more hands-on approach to the continent. Africa’s many weak and failing states provide safe havens for terrorists and international criminals and in turn, present a serious and far-reaching security threat to the United States. Russ has pressed the Clinton and Bush administrations to play a more active role in helping stabilize the volatile regions throughout Africa and believes that by engaging regional leaders and the international community, we can help build a more stable Africa – one that enhances our own national security.
Russ believes that we must work at the ground level to build relationships with people in other countries so that folks across the globe have a better understanding of America – and so that Americans have a better understanding of other cultures. He has introduced the Global Service Fellowship Act that would direct the Secretary of State to establish and administer a program to fund fellowships to promote international volunteering opportunities. These fellowships would be open to anyone with an interest in building bridges across cultures. In order to fix the number of problems our country faces, we first must understand the people and cultures we’re dealing with, and make sure they understand us.
Protecting the Homeland – Russ has been a tireless advocate for first responders throughout his career. He was successful in enacting legislation that helps Wisconsin and other states respond to attacks involving hazardous materials. His legislation made it possible for Wisconsin to get a full-time Weapons of Mass Destruction – Civil Support Team (WMD-CST). These teams consist of highly trained individuals, serving in the National Guard, who respond to WMD attacks along with firefighters and police officers. These teams are essential to protect our national security, and Feingold has continued to push for full funding of these teams in the years since they’ve been instituted. Wisconsin’s civil support team, the 54th WMD-CST, is now fully certified.
Russ was successful in passing into law the Volunteers for Safe Skies Act. Following a Listening Session in Rock County in 2001, then-Beloit Fire Chief James Reseburg and Beloit Deputy Police Chief Charles Tubbs came to Russ with a suggestion for a program that would help first responders to voluntarily inform the airline crew that they were indeed first responders and had relevant training should their assistance be needed. Feingold’s legislation created a confidential registry that allowed first responders to inform the crew that they were on board and ready to help if called upon. Russ will continue to push for full implementation of this program so that we are another step closer toward ensuring safer skies.
Supporting First Responders - The first lines of defense on American soil are our brave first responders who, day in and day out, rise to the call of duty on behalf of all of us. Feingold was the author of the First Responders Support Act which would give first responders a strong voice in the Department of Homeland Security. He has also sponsored legislation titled the Homeland Security Grant Enhancement Act which would help simplify the grant process emergency responders across Wisconsin and around the country have to go through to apply for grants from the Department of Homeland Security.
Russ has consistently fought for full funding for the COPS, BYRNE and FIRE grant programs which give first responders in communities across Wisconsin critical federal funds so they are able to respond to crises both big and small in a fast and effective manner.
In order to give communities vital information on which crime prevention strategies have worked around the country, Senator Feingold introduced the PRECAUTION Act. This bill would help provide the resources, recommendations, and funding necessary in order to help state and local law enforcement officials enact proven, time-tested crime prevention and intervention programs.
