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U.S. Southern Command Doral, Florida 1:28 P.M. EDT  THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you very much, everybody.  Thank you very much.  (Applause.)  And thank you to our great Admiral Faller.  Thank you also to all of the exceptional leaders and talents that we have in this room.  U.S. Southern Command is just an outstanding group of people.  Thank you very much — very much, Admiral.We’re here today to discuss our vital effort to keep deadly drugs out of our country and away from our children.  And, wow, are we making progress in a short period of time, thanks to you.  (Applause.) ...

WASHINGTON — The administration of President George W. Bush wants to expand the scope of U.S. military aid to Colombia in 2003 beyond counterdrug assistance to help the Colombian military safeguard the nation's infrastructure and stabilize its struggling democratic government, Army Maj. Gen. Gary Speer, acting commander of the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), told lawmakers March 5. Of the $373 million in military aid for Colombia contained in Bush's $26 billion State Department budget request for 2003, $98 million would go to train and equip indigenous military units to protect the nation's Cano Limon-Covenas oil pipeline, "one of the most ...

Corroborating what Judicial Watch uncovered years ago, a U.S. military intelligence report discloses that Muslim terrorists are being smuggled into the country through Mexico. The government calls them Special Interest Aliens (SIA) and Latin American smuggling networks are helping them cross the border, according to information obtained from a U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) Intelligence dispatch. Located in Miami, Florida SOUTHCOM is one of nine unified combat commands in the Department of Defense (DOD). It’s responsible for providing contingency planning operations and security cooperation in Central and South America as well as the Caribbean. The internal assessment on SIA smuggling has...

Islam had an estimated 3 million adherents in Latin America and the Caribbean as of the end of last year, marking an increase of nearly 25 percent from the 2.3 million who were residing there in 2010, a Breitbart News analysis of U.S. Department of State (DoS) data shows. Among the Muslims in the region are people who emigrated from Muslim majority countries – including Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, and Pakistan – and locals who converted. Most of them are recent migrants and descendants of those who made the journey years and even generations ago, namely Palestinians, among others....

The potential spread of Ebola into Central and Southern America is a real possibility, the commander of U.S. Southern Command told an audience at the National Defense University here yesterday. “By the end of the year, there’s supposed to be 1.4 million people infected with Ebola and 62 percent of them dying, according to the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention],” Marine Corps Gen. John F. Kelly said. “That’s horrific. And there is no way we can keep Ebola [contained] in West Africa.” If it comes to the Western Hemisphere, many countries have little ability to deal with an outbreak...

Marine Corps Gen. John Kelly, commander of the U.S. Southern Command, predicted last week that the Ebola virus will not be contained in West Africa, and if infected people flee those countries and spread the disease to Central and South America, it could cause “mass migration into the United States” of those seeking treatment. “If it breaks out, it’s literally, ‘Katie bar the door,’ and there will be mass migration into the United States,” Kelly said in remarks to the National Defense University on Tuesday. “They will run away from Ebola, or if they suspect they are infected, they will...

WASHINGTON — Militants for the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria have traveled to Mexico and are just miles from the United States. They plan to cross over the porous border and will “imminently” launch car bomb attacks.

Department Discusses Pentagon-Style Structure to Stem Migrants, Crime WASHINGTON—Homeland Security officials are planning to create a military-like chain of command to police the Southwest U.S. border, in what could be the department's most significant restructuring since its creation in the wake of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, according to people familiar with the discussions. The plan would create a Southern Command, or Southcom in military parlance, bringing together groups of agents from Customs and Border Protection, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, these people said.

The littoral combat ship USS Freedom will depart from Mayport Feb. 16 for its maiden deployment to the Southern Command and Pacific Command areas of responsibility. Freedom will deploy to the waters surrounding Latin America to conduct counter-illicit trafficking operations and theater security cooperation activities while en route to its new homeport of San Diego, Calif. The ship will embark Detachment 2 from Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 22 in Norfolk, Va.; the first tailored LCS Surface Warfare Mission Package from San Diego; and U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment 704 from Miami to meet these mission requirements. "This deployment comes...

USS Freedom (LCS 1), the Navy's first littoral combat ship, is underway off the coast of Florida for final training and certification prior to its maiden deployment to the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) region. Counter-illicit trafficking (CIT), damage control, and systems training began soon after Freedom's arrival at Naval Station Mayport, Fla., on Jan. 25. "This training is extremely important for Freedom and will help us prepare for the CIT mission we expect to perform while in the 4th Fleet area of operations," said Lt. Cmdr. Mark West of Imperial Beach, Calif., operations officer for the Gold Crew, one of...

MAYPORT, Fla. (NNS) -- Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Gary Roughead announced today the reestablishment of U.S. 4th Fleet and assigned Rear Adm. Joseph D. Kernan, currently serving as Commander, Naval Special Warfare Command, as its first commander. U.S. 4th Fleet will be responsible for U.S. Navy ships, aircraft and submarines operating in the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) area of focus, which encompasses the Caribbean, and Central and South America and the surrounding waters. Located in Mayport, Fla., and dual-hatted with Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command (COMUSNAVSO), U.S. 4th Fleet reestablishment addresses the increased role of maritime forces...

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) - Costa Rica has rejected a political asylum request by a Colombian presidential confidante accused of having ties with right-wing paramilitaries. The Foreign Ministry says that former Sen. Mario Uribe's request is inadmissible based on information shared with them by Colombian prosecutors. Uribe is a second cousin and close ally to Colombian President Alvaro Uribe. Colombia's chief prosecutor ordered Mario Uribe's arrest on Tuesday -snip-

Is Puerto Rico really a part of the United States? And if it is, is it worth defending from attack? That's the emerging issue right now because Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez has just made his first threat on the U.S . commonwealth as he seeks to acquire advanced submarines. Chavez is heading to Russia in the next few days, to discuss the purchase of five kilo-class submarines, and possibly four more advanced amur-class subs. There are questions as to how he would be able to finance them as well as how obtain the advanced training to bring them online, but...

MAYPORT, Fla. (NNS) -- USS Doyle (FFG 39) and embarked Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron (Light) (HSL) 46 Det. 3 returned in September from a successful six-month deployment in the U.S. Southern Command area of operations. The ship’s crew and helicopter detachment performed a variety of operations including counter-narcotics patrols. Under the leadership of commanding officer Cmdr. Joseph P. Voboril, the ship was involved in numerous counter-narcotics interdictions, resulting in the seizure of an estimated $315 million in cocaine and 28 alleged narco-terrorists. “The motivation of the crew taking part in this important mission, the logistical support received from CTF (Commander, Task...

He provided some great rebuttals to the "GITMO controversy" and its critics, very much worth listening to. His segment will re-stream from 1200EST through the weekend... He is the author of: "Are Plans in Place if Schools attacked?" "Proliferation Terror Time for a New Deterrence Strategy" http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/05/breaking2453439.html "Does al Qaida have nukes?" http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=44251