Frank Cilluffo Quotes (16 Quotes)

Being a senior and possibly needing more health care in the future, I'd like to see him talk about getting costs under control.

The last thing we can afford to do is give another reason for the intelligence and law-enforcement communities not to share info with its customers on the front lines, ... Culturally these communities have adhered to the 'need to know' - in order to protect sources, methods, preserve criminal investigations, etc. But we've got to provide incentives to ensure the 'need to share.'

The government should be getting its own house in order first,

Terrorism first and foremost is a psychological weapon aimed at undermining policies and values. It's a tough balance.

We'll never be in a position where we can protect everything, all the time. We can't afford it, and we don't want to infringe on the values we're trying to preserve.

Short of breaking up the federalist form of government, you are going to have the federal response in support of state and local authorities.

Our long-term success depends upon meeting and addressing the twin goals of security and commerce. We can and must have both.

In a weird way, the interagency review allows the US to hold international companies to a higher level of standards and accountability. There are some legitimate security concerns, but it's going to come down to enforcement, and arguably at a higher standard than we have had in the past.

People may want to simplify the chain of command and make one person accountable, but under our federal system, ... responsibility starts at the local level and works its way up from the bottom. And unless you are willing to quickly federalize police, firefighters, and other first responders in a crisis, and re-examine the Constitution and the federalist system that has been embedded in our ethos since 1776, we may have to live with that fact. In the meantime, the sad truth is that the terrorists are likely looking at our response to Katrina and taking notes. As bad as Mother Nature is, she doesn't intentionally plan to kill people.

As we look out into the future, the most valuable information is not only going to come from the top down - where most of it's coming from now, from overseas - but also from the bottom up. We need to be sure that we don't just have the right communications and technology, but also the right training in terms of analysis.

As tough as the federal issues are, it's the men and women in the frontlines ... who will ultimately determine if the battle is won or lost.

I doubt if you are going to have people who are willing to wait. I think a lot of people will panic.

The insurance sector can be a huge enabler. Historically, it's been able to induce changes in behavior much more effectively than government has.

There are a whole host of factors that you can practice against. But to be honest, it's not the same as living through it,

We have trained against similar scenarios, but it's not the same as a crisis unfolding before your eyes.

We have limited resources, unlimited vulnerability, and a flexible adversary. There are many cities that can make a good justification, but our limited resources have to be spent wisely.