By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com
Homeland Security has so much congressional oversight that it’s damaging morale and making the work more difficult, the Washington Post reports.
Consider the number of committees and subcommittees that oversee DHS – more than 90, which exceeds the number that has jurisdiction over the Defense Department by nearly three fold.
“It makes no sense at all,” said Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.), a homeland security committee member, who attributed the structure to a “petty fight for power” between committees reluctant to give up their piece of DHS.
When the department was created in 2002, 22 autonomous federal agencies were combined.
“It makes it very difficult for the department,’’ said King, who sees “no movement” in Congress to change the situation. “The amount of time that goes into preparing for a congressional hearing is immense. It’s like this hydra-headed monster they have to deal with.’’
