Is Ft. Hood-like Domestic Terror Incident Possible At MacDill? DC Hearing Will Raise Issue

Posted Dec 5, 2011 by Howard Altman

Updated Dec 5, 2011 at 11:13 AM

Could a Ft. Hood-like “domestic terror” incident happen at MacDill Air Force Base?

That supposition was part of a pitch from the office of U.S. Rep. Peter King’s office about a joint House-Senate hearing on “Homegrown Terror Threat to Military Communities.”

The hearing, of course, will take place Wed., Dec. 7.

“Good morning,” wrote staffer Shane Wolfe.  “I wanted to ensure that you had this information about this Wednesday’s hearing on the homegrown terror threat to military communities in the U.S, including the threat from active duty personnel within the military itself. 

No doubt, this is an issue that is important to the tens of thousands of military personnel and their families stationed in Florida at Macdill AFB and other installations.” 

King, Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, and Senator Joe Lieberman (ID-CT), Chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee announced what they say is the first-ever joint hearing convened by the two committees. 

According to a joint press release:

King said:  “This critical hearing will follow the three prior hearings that I have convened to examine the serious threat of radicalization within the United States. Thus far, in a series of hearings, my Committee has examined the issue of radicalization within the Muslim-American community generally, focused on the problem of radicalization in U.S. prisons, and investigated the recruiting and radicalization perpetrated in the U.S. by the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Shabaab.

Chairman Lieberman and Ranking Member Collins deserve great credit for their previous hearings examining the threat of domestic radicalization, as well as their investigation into and hearing on the deadly attack at Fort Hood.  I welcome their bipartisan cooperation as we move forward in examining this critical matter. U.S. Army Major Nidal Hasan’s attack killing 13 and wounding 32 at Fort Hood, Private First Class Naser Jason Abdo’s plot to emulate Hasan, Carlos Bledsoe’s attack on a military recruiting center in Little Rock, and a number of other cases demonstrate the seriousness of this increasing terror threat to our military communities.  The brave men and women who volunteer to serve this country in combat zones overseas should not have to face the same dangerous threats here at home.” 

Lieberman said:  “Senator Collins and I have examined the phenomenon of homegrown terrorism and violent Islamist extremism since 2006 when we held the first of 13 hearings to examine this emerging threat. When we began our inquiry, just over a dozen homegrown terrorist plots had been uncovered and no one had been killed since 9/11. In the five years subsequently, these type of plots nearly doubled, and 14 innocent Americans have been killed – 13 at the Fort Hood Army base and one at a military recruiting station. Clearly, the threat of homegrown terrorism has increased dramatically, and clearly, members of the Armed services are a high-value target. I look forward to a deeper explanation of these trends and the development of a clear strategy to protect our military from terrorism here at home.”


What:            Joint Hearing: “Homegrown Terrorism:  The Threat to Military Communities Inside the United States”

When:            Wednesday, December 7, 2011, 9:30 a.m.

Where:            210 House Visitor Center (HVC 210)

What do the folks at MacDill think? I will tell you as soon as I find out. Stay tuned.