Washington, D.C. – At today’s hearing of the House Homeland Security Committee, Congresswoman Jane Harman (D-Venice), Chair of the Intelligence and Terrorism Risk Assessment Subcommittee, called the Christmas Day airliner bombing attempt a failure of intelligence. “Doing better is not optional,” Harman told the witnesses—senior intelligence, homeland security and State Department officials.

“Doing better is not about laundry lists, it is about leadership,” said Harman. “Only through leadership will our system of layered security become more agile and responsive. Let’s understand that the enemy that is seeking to harm us is agile and responsive, and whatever it is that we now decide to do, they will try to figure out a way to get around it. ”

“One piece of unfinished business since the Intelligence Reform Act of 2004 is the formation of a Privacy and Civil Liberties Board that was supposed to oversee new practices to keep our country safer,” explained Harman. “I wrote a letter to the President in October with Senator Susan Collins of Maine; the White House has never responded to our letter and so far as I know nothing has been done. I think this is unfortunate and will prevent us from assuring the public that we’re enacting better practices consistent with our Constitution.”

Video of Harman’s statement can be viewed at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUn3LdE_2sE

The full text of Harman’s remarks as delivered appears below:

I’d like to welcome our witnesses but comment on the absence of Secretary Napolitano. This is the committee with primary jurisdiction over the Department of Homeland Security. She is the Secretary of Homeland Security, she is in Washington DC, she was invited to testify at this very important hearing and she should have been here. Under Secretary Lute, I understand that you are prepared and have accepted our invitation but I am very personally disappointed that she isn’t here.

I also want to note for the record, that I was briefed following the Christmas bomb plot within a few days. I was first in my District and then I was on a family vacation. But, Secretary Napolitano did call me after she spoke to the Chairman—I’m quite aware that she had spoken to him. And I also exchanged emails and had numerous calls with Mr. Leiter, who was first in Washington DC during the event and subsequently on a short family vacation himself. I know he was hard at work.

Also, I want to note that in recent years there have been many Intelligence Community successes: the Zazi plot, the Headley plot and others are examples of success. And there have been many Intelligence Community sacrifices, particularly the loss recently of seven CIA personnel at Forward Operating Base Chapman in Afghanistan. Obviously, all of us know this and want to salute again today the hardworking women and men of the Intelligence Community.

But despite all those successes and the risks that they take, the Christmas Day problem does represent a failure. Two of you, Mr. Kennedy and Mr. Leiter, have stepped up and taken responsibility, as has Mr. Brennan, and I applaud you for doing that. And I applaud the fact that you have all pledged that you will do better. Doing better is not optional—100 percent security can never be achieved but surely we can do better. And at least to me—listening to all this and based on my long experience with the Intelligence Reform Act and other efforts to try to do better—I think that doing better is not about laundry lists, it is about leadership. Only through leadership will our system of layered security become more agile and responsive. Let’s understand that the enemy that is seeking to harm us is agile and responsive, and whatever it is that we now decide to do, they will try to figure out a way to get around it. So our system of collection, analysis, visa approval, watch-listing and other things should get better. But only through strong leadership will that better system stay agile and responsive.

Let me just add one more thing—and this I commend the DHS for doing well—preparing, not scaring the public. There’s a new tone; I applaud it. And let’s remember the successful layer of security on Christmas Day was a prepared public on that airplane.

Finally let me make one other point. There is testimony submitted for the record of this hearing by the ACLU that I think is extremely thoughtful. It reminds me that one piece of unfinished business since the Intelligence Reform Act of 2004 is the formation of a Privacy and Civil Liberties Board that was supposed to oversee new practices to keep our country safer. I wrote a letter to the President in October with Senator Susan Collins of Maine; the White House has never responded to our letter and so far as I know nothing has been done. I think this is unfortunate and will prevent us from assuring the public that we are enacting better practices consistent with our Constitution.