The Transportation Security Administration: The Bush Administration

September 11, 2001, will forever be remembered as a day of tragedy for the United States as an act of terrorism killed roughly 3,000 people at the World Trade Center, and 200 at the Pentagon. Terrorists hijacked four separate aircraft that day, two planes were crashed into the north and south tower of the World Trade Center in New York, one was crashed into the Pentagon in Virginia, and the last one crashed into a field where it was believed that passengers disrupted the hijackers, causing the aircraft to crash before reaching its target. Both towers eventually fell, and this attack brought about the beginning of many changes for the United States, that had a ripple effect onto other nations. On September 20th, Bush called for an emergency joint session of the US Congress where he announced the creation of the Department of Homeland Security (MacFarlane, P. J., 2017). Along with this new department came the development of several measures that were implemented to prevent future attacks. Although the terrorist attacks of 9/11 were devastating and caused turmoil and unrest for the United States, even to present day, there were some positive outcomes to be had from this event.

On September 11th, 2001 the future of the United States changed forever. With almost 3,000 people dying from a terrorist attack that spanned the Eastern U.S., new tactics had to be created to prevent an event like this from ever happening again. Forty-five days after the attack, the USA Patriot Act was passed (Source 5). While only some Americans approved of it, the act was created to protect from terrorism across the country.

September 11th catalyzed a major revival in the American public’s concern for domestic national security, which had dropped off following the collapse of the Soviet Union. The attacks, which were the first on American soil since Pearl Harbor, prompted American leaders to respond with swift and ambitious military action. At this time, the public perceived security of American territory against “terrorism”–an intentionally broad and emotionally charged term– as its chief national interest. Following the attack, President Bush announced the launch of a “global war on terror”, an international effort to combat terrorist groups and the nations that harbor them–prompting him to establish the Department of Homeland Security later that year.

After the terrorist attack September 11, 2001, the United States government increased their investments in security. Many innocent lives were lost because of that incident, which worried the United States of America about self-defense or Homeland Security. Homeland Security was signed to become a law by the President George W. Bush in November 2002. Their main priority was to secure the country from the threats such as international terrorism. The Department of Homeland security had to focus on five goals such as prevent terrorism, enhance security, secure the borders, enforce immigration laws, safeguard, and cyberspace. In order to achieve these goals a lot of work was needed.

September 11. 2001 was a major turning point in American History, and its political and social impact can still be felt today. The tragic event shook the entire country on the civilian and federal level. Before 9/11 many did not think that a plan of terrorism such as that of Osama Bin Laden's would be able to come to fruition because they had great trust in American security. The destruction came as a wakeup call to the federal government and American citizens themselves. National Security became the first thing people thought of when they traveled, and civilians looked to the government for reassurance that they were safe. The federal government's plan of action was to pass a series of acts that would go on to create the Department of Homeland Security and Transportation Security Association. Along with the creation of more strict security measures came the question of "who is a terrorist?" within the country. The formation of the DHS, TSA, and increase of Islamophobia are some examples of the lasting effects that 9/11 had on the country.

President George W. Bush had to become ready to be a wartime president. Once he knew about the attack he knew it was about terrorism. Once the citizens of New York noticed the attack on the world trade center and the attack on the Pentagon Bush had to immediately make an act. President George W. Bush called for a strengthening of law enforcement programs in 2001 (Document 7). The National Government put into action the USA Patriot Act, which was signed by Bush. The act allowed the government the right to search the homes and other privacies. It received many criticism because many citizens saw that the searches would be a violation of their civil rights. Congressman Lamar Smith said the Patriot Act was not such a threat to civil liberties as most people thought, since a lot of the Act’s “new” methods of invading privacy had already been used for decades in the United States, just for different crimes. And many of these governmental actions had already been challenged and reviewed by the Supreme Court. Still after some citizens were still afraid of losing their civil liberties (Document 9). Even Congressman Lamar Smith said that the purpose for the act was to provide law enforcement with tools to fight terrorism. He says that he hopes that Americans cans separate myth from reality which is true because Bush was trying to better society with this act (Document 8). There are different sides to the controversy but many though at the time that their liberties were being taken

In November of 2001, the United States was still reeling from the attacks on September 11 of that same year. President George W. Bush created a new organization to prevent future attacks on American flyers. The organization was called the Transportation Security Administration, or TSA. The TSA was tasked with implementing security measures to protect travelers. At first, the measures were welcomed by the public. They were seen as a necessary measure to protect against future 9/11 style attacks. But now, 15 years later, the measures the TSA have put in place have been questioned repeatedly by members of the public, the press and congress. Incidents such as the Underwear Bomber, where a Nigerian

In 2001, George W. Bush signed a law to provided tools to catch and prevent terrorism. It was called the USA Patriot Act of 2001. It was George W. Bush’s response to the terrorist attack that took place in September 11, 2001 in New York and Pentagon. The Law ensured security and safety for the citizens but it also violated individual right. The law took a lot of criticism because it violated constitutional right, and it created problems between individual right perspective and the public order advocates.

Budgets for defense related agencies have grown sky high. 9/11 changed many peoples attitudes and concerns about safety. This resulted in policies like the U.S patriot act that put defense and security above civil liberties. Shortly after the 9/11 attacks, homeland security was created and their budget in 2001 was 43

President George W. Bush signed into law on October 26, 2001 The USA PATRIOT Act. The title of the Act is a letter acronym: Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (PUBLIC LAW 107–56—OCT. 26, 2001) This Act was written to prevent and punish terrorist acts here in the United States as well as around the world, to help law officers, and to strengthen U.S. measures.

One of the worst, yet momentous events in U.S history occurred on September 11th, 2001. This event released a flow of patriotic fervor and a permanent fear among all Americans that they had also now become suspect to acts of international terrorists. This led to a lot of changes in the attitudes of the executive and legislative branches in the United States government. They came up almost immediately with new measures, which were supposedly against terrorism or terrorist threats. One of the principle acts passed by them was called "Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001," also called the USA Patriot Act. This was signed and approved as law

The U.S. government took many steps to try to make the country safer. It tightened security at airports and in public buildings. A new cabinet-level department—the Department of Homeland Security was created. It works to protect the United States from any terrorist attacks (scholastic.com). The U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) didn't exist before 9/11. The TSA was created to do three things: take responsibility for all modes of transportation; recruit, assess, hire, train and deploy security officers for 450 commercial airports from Guam to Alaska within 12 months; and provide 100 percent screening of all checked luggage for explosives. In the past, the TSA detected 50 million prohibited items, including 5,000 firearms on passengers attempting to board planes. Now, 50,000 TSA officers screen nearly two million air travelers each day

In the wake of September 11th, the country was in turmoil. Fear and confusion were rampant; direction was required. President George Bush, in a famous address, acknowledged the severity of the attacks, and called for a newly invigorated sense of nationalism. His plan for preventing future attacks called for the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, and expanded powers to intelligence agencies (Bush). During this time, one of the most provocative bills was allowed to pass, under the guise of a terrorist seeking bill. The Patriot Act was indeed effective in increasing the power allotted to surveillance agencies, but many feel at too high of a cost. Many have asked the question… "is

Former President, Goerge W. Bush, in his 9/11 Address to the Nation, clarifies the stand of the American government concerning the terrorist attack on the nation. Bush's purpose is to create a sense of stability and introduce war against terrorism. He adopts a precise and firm tone in order to provide a sense of stability to every single person living in the United States.

September 11, 2001 marked the most horrific day in history for United States of America. The events of this day changed the lives of those residing in America forever. United States was considered somewhat safe, in regards to terrorists’ attacks. However, this all came to a screeching halt when 19 militants known to be a part of the Al-Qaeda terrorist group hijacked four planes for the purpose of destroying targeted areas in the United States. As a result of the deadly attack on the United States, security measures drastically changed. Although, security measures throughout the United States have been in place, extreme caution came into effect. All departments looked at different measures to improve preventing terrorists’ attacks.