Congressman Tom Rooney (R-Fla.) has introduced the "Terrorist Notification Act of 2010" which would require the nation's intelligence community to notify the Department of Defense (DoD) when they discover that a member of the armed forces, a civilian employee, or a DoD contractor has communicated with a person who seeks to harm the United States or United States interests. In the wake of the tragic shooting at Ft. Hood, this bill aims to improve communication between DoD and the intelligence community so that crucial intelligence is shared to help prevent future attacks.
"It's appalling that in the post-9/11 era, our nation's intelligence community is still plagued with the inability to share integral intelligence information to other agencies; information that has the potential to prevent major attacks, such as the horrendous assault at Fort Hood by a member of our armed services. My legislation closes the communication gap that still exists to ensure the DoD is free of those who seek to harm Americans while hiding within our military."
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's website, "Major Hasan came to the attention of the FBI in December 2008 as part of an unrelated investigation being conducted by one of our Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTFs). Such task forces are designed to bring investigators and analysts into a collaborative, information-sharing environment in order to maximize the collective impact of the respective agencies." Yet at the time this information was not shared with the DoD. Under the "Terrorist Notification Act of 2010" DoD is required to respond within twenty four hours of receiving intelligence of a suspected terrorist.
The "Terrorist Notification Act of 2010" is cosponsored by House Armed Services Ranking Member Buck McKeon (R-Calif.), Rep. Robert Wittman (R-Va.), Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.), Rep. Bill Shuster (R- Pa.), Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah.), Rep. Kenny Marchant (R-Texas), Rep. Bill Posey (R-Fla.), Rep. Donald Manzullo (R-Ill.), Rep. Bob Latta (R-Ohio), Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Rep. Todd Akin (R- Mo.), Rep. Phil Gingery (R-Ga.), Rep. Joe Pitts (R-Pa.), Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas), Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas), and Rep. Dan Burton (R-Ind.).