Posted on 05/08/2002 4:55:31 PM PDT by freeperfromnj
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush is nominating Air Force Gen. Ralph E. Eberhart to head the new military command charged with coordinating homeland defense, the Pentagon said Wednesday.
If confirmed by the Senate, Eberhart would head the Northern Command. It will begin in October to coordinate the military's land, air and sea response to threats to the United States, Canada, Mexico and part of the Caribbean, Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld said in announcing the selection.
Eberhart has played an important role in overseeing air defenses and patrols in the sky over America since the Sept. 11 attacks, and has helped plan the new command's responsibilities, Rumsfeld said at a news conference.
The command was created because the attacks proved the military was not set up to deal with unconventional attacks from inside the country, officials have said.
A four-star general, Eberhart has been serving as commander of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD -- in charge of defending U.S. and Canadian airspace -- and Space Command, which is responsible for defending U.S. interests in space.
His nomination has been expected since Rumsfeld announced last month that he was creating the command.
Eberhart was also among leading candidates last year for chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a job that went to Air Force Gen. Richard Myers.
Officials have said the new command will not conflict with a 19th century law, the Posse Comitatus Act, which was meant to prohibit the military from acting as a domestic police force.
If, for example, a federal, state or local law enforcement agency needed help in responding to a terrorist threat or attack in an American city, its request would go to the commander of Northern Command through the Defense Department. The forces provided by Northern Command for that mission would be subordinate to civil authorities, Rumsfeld has said.
The new command would probably have its headquarters at Peterson Air Force Base, Colo.
"Officials have said the new command will not conflict with a 19th century law, the Posse Comitatus Act, which was meant to prohibit the military from acting as a domestic police force"
Why do you guys always think that this is some sinister plot? Can you not see that if we were to be attacked we are woefully unprepared?
During war, the information is not reliable. I still say that we need this command for a couple of reasons: Iraq and China.
I am interested also in the fact that it covers Mexico and the Caribbean. Guess what's in the Caribbean? CUBA.
However, I expect to be here saying "neener, neener" to those who are now in such a snit.
I wish I could be like you, Miss Marple, but I simply don't buy into the notion of the unending brillance of this administration. The Bush admin is made of men and women who are fallible -- they can make mistakes, though most of the time they don't.
With your Cuba comment, it seems like you're just reading from some list of Gubmit-approved issues. Cuba wasn't even considered a concern by most folks on here until it was uttered in a speech yesterday (or monday, don't remember). For you to so quickly pick up on it and begin parroting the official Bush administration line just astounds me. I don't place that kind of trust in any man, yet I'm pretty much at the mercy of what our leaders decide to persue.
I guess my point is that skepticism can be healthy, and downright productive, sometimes.
What I try to do is attempt to read what's going on. I am of course as fallible as anyone else, including the Bush Administration. I just thought the inclusion of the Caribbean was interesting, particularly in light of the signals the administration has been sending.
If I am wrong, I will freely admit it. I hope others will do the same.
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