State of Colorado Archives: on Homeland Security

George Brauchler: Uniformed service includes tour in Iraq

Walker Stapleton: On July 4th honored all veterans for defending our freedoms

Victor Mitchell: "Big brother government" is terribly intrusive

Darryl Glenn: CBRNE represents greatest threat for a mass casualty event

Darryl Glenn: Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosives (CBRNE) represent the greatest threat for a mass casualty event in the US--especially in the hands of a terrorist group or a lone wolf. The best safeguards against such an attack are robust, well trained, and properly equipped military, police, and intelligence groups. We must also work diligently to keep dangerous weapons out of the hands of hostile nations, rogue actors, and terrorist groups. This means that nations like Iran and North Korea cannot be permitted to attain nuclear capabilities and I would support legislation that tightens restrictions on those nations, including the reimposition of sanctions on Iran and the freezing of their assets. We must also ensure that CBRNE weapons do not make their way into the hands of nonstate actors including terrorist groups like ISIS.

Jon Keyser: Keep United States Northern Command in Colorado

Darryl Glenn: Defense budget that provides needed tools and training

• Secure our national borders.
• Push for immigration reform that benefits the economy and respects the value of family unity without abusing a sacred tenet of freedom--the separation of powers.
• Promote policies that recognize the importance of Colorado in homeland defense.
• Support a defense budget that provides service members with the tools and training they need to accomplish objectives.
• Direct money to veterans by eliminating inefficiencies and policies that stand between them and the benefits they have earned.

Jon Keyser: Deep understanding of the dynamic threats we face

Jon is exactly the type of Senator Colorado needs to help fight for smart policies that will keep our country safe.

Peg Littleton: Protect Colorado from base closures and other downsizing

As a county commissioner, I oversee a jurisdiction that hosts six major military bases. I have been an active supporter of military operations and have worked to protect Colorado from the federal government's base realignment closure process and other downsizing measures.

In the United States Senate, I will continue working to ensure the military's efforts to consolidate and concentrate operations benefits Colorado. I will actively support the expansion of cyber security and assist Colorado in becoming the cyber capitol of the world. I will fight for military funding adequate to ensure our country maintains a superior national defense. I will fight for more and better training and equipment for the men and women who protect our vital interests.

Peg Littleton: Unwavering support for veterans who fought for our freedom

As commissioner in a jurisdiction that hosts six major military bases, I have developed connections with top military leaders who advise me on the increasingly complicated threats posed to our way of life. In the Senate, I will call on the brightest military and foreign policy experts to help make decisions in the interest of keeping Americans safe.

Peg Littleton: Oppose moving detainees from Guantanamo to Colorado

As a senator, I will make public safety among my highest priorities. The men and women who serve our communities in law enforcement have my unwavering support.

I will not support efforts to move detainees from Gitmo to Colorado.

Ryan Frazier: Strengthen our military against threat of militant extremism

Tim Neville: Peace through strength: aid our friends & weaken our enemies

And if the decision is made to send our troops into battle, we must commit 100% to ensuring they have everything they need to achieve their objective, get the job done and safely return home.

Tim Neville: No warrantless search or seizure

In plain language, get a warrant and follow due process.

Michael Bennet: Mixed history on transferring Gitmo prisoners to US prisons

Bennet protested, "The Department of Defense has no authority to transfer these prisoners or make such modifications and they have made no case that it makes sense to do so."

However, Bennet has not supported legislation that would have blocked the administration from transferring any Gitmo detainees, from 2009 through 2013. He voted [against] amendment in 2009 that would have blocked funding to "construct or modify a facility in the United States or its territories to permanently or temporarily hold any individual held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba."

Darryl Glenn: Strengthen our nation's security & international defense.

He bills himself as a "Christian constitutional conservative" and said he will support policy that enables everyone to "pursue their American dream by ensuring economic freedom, restoring the traditional balance of power among federal branches of government, mandating that government live within it's means, strengthening our nation's security and providing for international defense.

Mark Udall: Reform the NSA; stop gathering millions of phone records

Since his appointment in 2011 to the Senate Intelligence Committee, Udall has been sharp in his criticism of the way the federal government has spied on American citizens. For a long time, Udall wasn't able to talk about his concerns because of confidentiality restraints. But whistle-blower Edward Snowden's leaks this year to the British and American news media has blown open much of how the NSA operates. Of particular concern to Udall is the so-called 215 program, authorized under the Patriot Act, which has allowed the NSA to collect the e-mails and phone records of tens of millions of Americans.

Mark Udall: Real reform to stop NSA overreach

UDALL: The arguments for the status quo fell apart this week. I get up every day, as a member of the Intelligence Committee, to do two things: Protect the American people and protect the Bill of Rights. The NSA is overreached. It's time to have real reform, not a veneer of reform. You know why? Because we have got to rebuild the American people's trust in our intelligence committee so we can be safe. But we don't do that by bulk data collection that violates the privacy of Americans, that's unconstitutional, and has shown to not be effective.

Q: 16 judges have said that the program is constitutional.

UDALL: It's hard for lots of Americans to believe that these general warrants, if you will, to collect every day, millions Americans' phone records, is somehow unconstitutional. It does not fit the standard in the Fourth Amendment of unreasonable search and seizure.

Mark Udall: NSA should not collect bulk data; go through FISA court

UDALL: There are some safeguards. But there are not enough safeguards. Why not go to the FISA court and get a warrant to access those business records? This administration has collected people's medical records, their financial records, their credit card records..

Q: Do you have any evidence that the government has abused this?

UDALL: Right now, they're literally collecting every phone record of every American and holding that in a database. I'd much rather have that data held by the phone companies. If we need to get access to it, the FISA court can issue a warrant. That's how we've operated in America in the past. We don't need the NSA to be collecting in bulk all of these records of innocent Americans. It's not effective. I would argue that it comes close to being unconstitutional.

Mark Udall: FactCheck: Yes, NSA can collect phone records on Americans

Is it true? Udall cited Section 215 of the Patriot Act as the relevant part of the law. This provision lets the government obtain "metadata"--information on phone numbers, call durations and other information short of the actual conversations--from Verizon customers. However, the government faces some limits: the FBI must demonstrate to a special FISA court that it has reasonable grounds for an investigation involving terrorism. The head of the NSA acknowledged that the NSA has collected millions of records under section 215.

Udall's claim appears accurate. Congress wrote the law & key lawmakers were kept apprised of the program; the FISA court approved it, apparently on multiple occasions. We rate the statement True.

Mark Udall: Reopen PATRIOT Act: stop gathering secret phone data

UDALL: I come from this at the start acknowledging that terrorism is still a real threat, that we have to protect the American people. At the same time, I also believe the bill of rights is one of the most powerful weapons that we have in this fight. As you pointed out, I have called for a number of years now for the intelligence community to be more forthcoming about the amount of data they're collecting on Americans. And in particular, you talked about metadata. The fact that every call I make to my friends, to my family is noted, where I am, the length of it, the date, that concerns me, particularly, because Americans didn't know this. That's why I'm calling for a reopening of the Patriot Act. That's why I'm calling for a wholesome debate all over the country.

John Hickenlooper: Make hiring veterans a priority

Ken Buck: No eminent domain for 238,000-acre Trinidad training site

Bennet went further, saying the Army understands expansion is not an option in the near future. "They understand they have to work the geography they have now," he said.

Michael Bennet: No expansion option for 238,000-acre Trinidad training site

Bennet went further, saying the Army understands expansion is not an option in the near future. "They understand they have to work the geography they have now," he said.

Ken Buck: Fight for a strong national defense

I will fight for a strong national defense and to ensure our military members, veterans and their families receive the benefits and care they have earned.

Michael Bennet: Increase military size & strength for new types of conflict

I support increasing the size and strength of our military, accompanied by sound preparation for how they will be used and where they will be deployed. We must develop an overall strategic plan to fund and support the most effective and efficient programs necessary to reduce new vulnerabilities at home and abroad, while cutting programs that are obsolete or unhelpful.

Ken Salazar: Implement the reforms recommended by the 9/11 Commission now

COORS: But Coors responded that the US had no plan to bring troops home when it went into World War II. He also said that while Americans don’t feel as secure as they did four years ago, they feel more secure than they did last year. “We’ll never have perfect security in the US,” he added.

SALAZAR: Salazar said that wasn’t good enough. “I believe we have not done enough, we have not acted with a sense of urgency. before 9/11 or after,” he said, referring to reports that warned of terrorist attacks before the World Trade Center and Pentagon were hit. Salazar also said the reforms recommended by the 9/11 Commission should be implemented immediately.

Pete Coors: We’ll never have perfect security in the US

COORS: But Coors responded that the US had no plan to bring troops home when it went into World War II. He also said that while Americans don’t feel as secure as they did four years ago, they feel more secure than they did last year. “We’ll never have perfect security in the US,” he added.

SALAZAR: Salazar said that wasn’t good enough. “I believe we have not done enough, we have not acted with a sense of urgency. before 9/11 or after,” he said, referring to reports that warned of terrorist attacks before the World Trade Center and Pentagon were hit. Salazar also said the reforms recommended by the 9/11 Commission should be implemented immediately.

Pete Coors: Important to check baggage and freight

Ken Salazar: Fight war on terror without sacrificing our freedoms

Ken Salazar: Fighting war on terror is not easy nor inexpensive

Pete Coors: We should be more worried about Iran and North Korea

A: Clearly, we should be more worried today, actually, about Iran and North Korea than we are about Iraq, based on weapons of mass destruction. But I think that the conditions change on an ongoing basis, and we must look at the facts that we have before us at the time we make a decision.

Pete Coors: Scrutinize the massive intelligence failures in the US

A: Bush made a very persuasive case to the American public, and if there’s a gun that’s pointed at one of my children, we ought to take action and essentially that was the presentation that was made by the president to the American people. And, today, we know that there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and what we ought to be doing is learning from the mistakes that have been made and also looking forward to what we ought to do in Iraq to try to stabilize the country. The most important thing we ought to be looking at is why we have such massive intelligence failures in our country. We had massive intelligence failures before 9/11 and before going into Iraq, and yet I haven’t seen one person being held accountable. Creating a director of intelligence and doing all the rest of the things that we need to do in order to have the right intelligence in our country I think is imperative for us.

Pete Coors: Get people in a coalition that’s been working with the enemy

A: When I talk about appeasement [I mean] as he aligns himself with Senator Kerry, who has consistently said we should have had more of an effort to get a coalition. “We should have, we should have, we should have.” It’s a campaign of hopes and wishes. Frankly, I haven’t heard yet Salazar’s plan to get people into a coalition who have been working with the enemy. We were attacked on 9/11. This country was attacked; 3,000 people were incinerated. We have an enemy that, if they could have killed 300,000 or three million, would have had no more remorse. I think it takes strong, bold action. I think that’s what Bush did, and I support that action.

Ken Salazar: Ensure emergency personnel have the support and resources