Obama administration, Congress quietly let school security funds lapse

[exxonv]

Obama administration, Congress quietly let school security funds lapse

Before Connecticut tragedy, The Obama administration eliminated emergency preparedness program, let school violence prevention programs lapse. (12-14-2012 The Washington Guardian)

Beneath the expressions of grief, sorrow and disbelief over the Connecticut school massacre lies an uneasy truth in Washington: over the last few years the Obama administration and Congress quietly let federal funding for several key school security programs lapse in the name of budget savings.

Government officials told the Washington Guardian on Friday night that two Justice Department programs that had provided more than $200 million to schools for training, security equipment and police resources over the last decade weren't renewed in 2011 and 2012, and that a separate program that provided $800 million to put police officers inside the schools was ended a few years earlier.
Meanwhile, the administration eliminated funding in 2011-12 for a separate Education Department program that gave money to schools to prepare for mass tragedies, the officials said.

For the complete article, see http://www.washingtonguardian.com/washingtons-school-security-failure

No stimulus money for school security. Apparently we couldn't afford it. But we could give a billion dollars to a company that makes electrical generation machines out of windmills, that quickly went out of business. After they got the money, of course.

Sad to think that a high percentage of people in this country still believe that the Federal Government is putting our best interest first... Is anybody even a little surprised??? I'm not...

[BushMasterBoy]

What can we expect when the majority of the nations elected leaders are lawyers?

[hammer03]

And another billion to Egypt.

[BPTactical]

I heard this the other night from a "School Security" expert.
If it goes public will it make any difference?
Did Benghazi?
Fast n Furious?

[sniper7]

doesn't matter, the money would have been wasted. the "security" would not have been anyone armed at a school or anything that would have helped the recent tragedies.

[hammer03]

It would have been experts telling them to hide behind desks and suggesting throwing a stapler if he gets too close.

[exxonv]

True all - it's just ironic and hypocritical for the "administration" to say they now want to make it all better... Politics - playing with our freedom and our constitution. Same old stuff.. Just pointing out the obvious :)

[cmailliard]

REMS was a very weak grant, it WAS something at least, but very weak. Just like with most grants that are being cut or reduced, the .gov was not getting any good product in the end, the locals were not doing their job with the money. I know no government does a "good job" with money, but those who are giving the money make the rules. A lot of money has been wasted. The problem with a grant like REMS, is a school will bring in a consultant to do the work for them - what does a school learn by having someone else do their work? Kinda hypocritical for a school to be doing don't ya think. The consultant would have a boilerplate template for each hazard and just do a word search and change the name of the school or district and charge them $25,000. The schools have no idea what a hazard vulnerability assessment is, they just have a book that says "If this happens, then do this. . . "

[TFOGGER]

This needs to be shouted from the rooftops. If just a few people can be made to see the rampant hypocrisy in DC, it's worth it.

[cofi]

i would rather tthat 800 mil be spent on anything else in our schools.....music/art programs etc