The Pentagon Advances On America

By Matthew Rothschild,
October 21, 2010
Courtesy Of "The Progressive"


We need to watch out for the increasing militarization of America.

Under George W. Bush, the Pentagon got a new command, called NorthCom, which has jurisdiction over the United States. It even has a small fighting force, which saw action in Baghdad, at its disposal.

And it has involved itself in domestic policing, for instance, at the Republican Convention in St. Paul in 2008.

Last year, under Barack Obama, the Pentagon tried to get the authority to deploy more than 300,000 U.S. troops here, in our own country, in times of emergency.

And earlier this year, the Pentagon got more power to operate in the United States when Barak Obama formed the U.S. Cyber Command. It is authorized to “conduct full spectrum military cyberspace operations in order to enable actions in all domains,”according to its mission statement. /

The person in charge of the Cyber Command, Army Lt. Gen. Keith Alexander, noted in his nomination testimony in April that it will have to “strike a balance between protecting military assets and personal privacy,” the Armed Forces Press Service reported.

That “striking a balance” line always makes me nervous.

So, too, does the Cyber Command’s collaboration with the private sector, which Alexander also alluded to. (The links among the Pentagon, law enforcement, and the private sector grow day by day. InfraGard is one example. See “The FBI Deputizes Business.”)

Yes, we do need protection from a cyber attack.

But are we really going to turn the Pentagon loose in the United States for “full spectrum” operations here at home?

Under the Posse Comitatus Act, the Pentagon is supposed to be essentially banned from operating inside U.S. territory.

But it’s here. And it’s advancing.

If you liked this story by Matthew Rothschild, the editor of The Progressive magazine, check out his recent story "Republicans Pray to the Free Market Idol."