Homeland Security, U.S. Department of

The creation of the Department of Homeland Security was one of the largest organizational changes in the history of the United States government bureaucracy. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officially came into being on November 25, 2002, when the Homeland Security Act of 2002 was passed by the U.S. Congress. The formation of the Department of Homeland Security was a direct response by the George W. Bush administration to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. After the attacks, and the claims of responsibility for them by the al Qaeda terrorist group, preventing domestic terrorist attacks became the top priority of DHS. DHS officials sought to give a public impression of innovation and expertise at pursuing ...