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| Bush Signs Directive on Biodefense |
| 2004-04-28 |
| WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush, who has made national security the centerpiece of his re-election campaign, has signed a directive to help protect Americans from biological attacks. The presidential directive, which Bush signed last week and is being announced on Wednesday, aims to plug gaps in the nation's defense against terrorists who might use biological agents. Specifically, it works to coordinate what the government already is doing to protect food and water supplies, for example. A classified version of the directive instructs agencies on how to best carry out their biodefense work. An unclassified version of the directive will be released at a briefing Wednesday when it is announced jointly by the Homeland Security, Health and Human Services and Defense departments, an administration official said Tuesday. The official spoke on condition of anonymity. The administration declined to publicly release the directive on Tuesday, but memos posted on the Web site of the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies, said the directive "has a strong emphasis on the water sector." One memo said the general concept the directive to protect water is a "surveillance system" for water supplies that would be similar to an early-warning system designed to detect intentional releases of harmful biological materials. The new directive charges the Environmental Protection Agency with developing a plan to examine how such a surveillance system could be set up to protect the nation's water supply, the memo said. Administration officials worked for months to identify holes in the nation's defense against biological attacks - and then find ways to fix them. The effort was led by retired Gen. John Gordon, Bush's homeland security adviser, who took a broad look at the problems, focusing on the threats that were the most likely to materialize. |
| Posted by:Steve White |