Northern Command no longer a startup organization

About 400 times a year, military officials at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado deploy fighter jets to intercept an aircraft somewhere over the United States. These "targets of interest" more often than not turn out to be lost or misguided pilots. Nonetheless, for the North American Aerospace Defense Command and Northern Command, the organization created to provide a military defense against terrorist attacks on U.S. soil, "that could be the next 9/11," said Air Force Gen. Victor E. Renuart, commander of both organizations.

The Pentagon established Northern Command in 2002 to bring focus to and consolidate homeland defense and civil support missions that were previously the responsibility of multiple Defense Department organizations. The command's area of responsibility includes the continental United States and its air, land and sea approaches out to 500 nautical miles, as well as the Gulf of Mexico and the Straits of Florida.

Renuart presented a broad outline on Wednesday of NORTHCOM's challenges at the Heritage Foundation, a Washington think tank. NORAD, a joint U.S.-Canadian command created 50 years ago to defend North America from missile attack, is the command responsible for intercepting unidentified aircraft in U.S. air space. Both commands are headquartered at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colo.

Renuart's predecessors were consumed with organizational issues inherent in standing up a new unified command that incorporates personnel from all the military services and other federal agencies. But Renuart, who took over in March 2007, says the command now is focused squarely on operational issues.

Unlike other military commands, NORTHCOM is designed to operate in support of civil authorities, usually state governors, depending on the nature and extent of the support being provided. But the deployment of troops at home has been a complicated legal issue.

National Guard troops operating under the control of state governors may conduct law enforcement operations under a governor's authority, but the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act prohibits active-duty troops from enforcing the law on U.S. soil. While a president may circumvent that law in an emergency by invoking the 1807 Insurrection Act, most have been loath to do so for political reasons. A significant part of Northern Command's role is to be prepared for all manner of threats and the legal matters they may raise with regard to the role of the military domestically. "I've got a staff of 16 lawyers," Renuart noted.

Much of Northern Command's efforts are spent developing plans with states and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to understand the gaps in state and federal civilian capabilities, and identify the military resources that could fill those holes in an emergency.

Renuart describes the relationship between Northern Command and other federal, state, local and private entities as an "organization of organizations" and the command's role as one of "leading from behind."

Among the security issues he's most concerned about is the increasing number of tunnels that have been discovered under the Southwest border. Mainly used by drug cartels to ferry narcotics north, and cash and guns south, Renuart sees an enormous security vulnerability. As a result, Northern Command and the Homeland Security Department are working together to develop technologies to help detect these tunnels through imaging and other means.

"Our mission every day is to anticipate the threats to our nation," Renuart says. "[Since Sept. 11,] I believe we've been both fortunate and prepared."