American Military University HLSS311 Border and Costal Security Professor Webster January 14, 2018 Introduction It is undeniable that there are so many people who have evil intentions and try their best to get to America so that they can execute their evil plans. There are also many criminal groups and syndicates who like to send dangerous and illegal materials to America hoping to make a lot of money from this stuff. Fortunately, there is US Customs and Border Protection to ensure that the American people will be protected from these threats as these individuals and dangerous materials will never be allowed to enter America and its borders. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Discussion The history of U.S. Customs and Border Protection can be traced back to the year 1789, when President George Washington passed the Tariff of 1789 that legalized the process of obtaining duties on imports (Warner, 2010, p. 12). This became the American government's strategy at the time to secure the funds it needed to recover from the devastation caused by the American Revolutionary War. It was also during this year that the United States Customs Service was formally established. This agency became the government's primary source of funding for the next century and succeeded in ensuring that America's progress and development in building the necessary infrastructure proceeded. The U.S. Customs Service was also responsible for the acquisition of important territories such as Florida and Louisiana, as well as the construction of major railroads and schools throughout the country. Therefore, America would not be the superpower it is today if it were not for the increased contributions made by the United States Customs Service. This agency worked hard to ensure that America was on the right direction and had the money it needed to improve its infrastructure that was used by people and made their lives better. The conclusion of the Civil War prompted several states to impose whatever immigration laws they wanted. This created chaos in America, and so the Supreme Court ultimately decided in 1875 that the establishment of immigration laws should be done by the federal government and not by local governments. In 1891, the Immigration Act was implemented which established an agency charged with determining immigrants who will be allowed to enter America and those who will be denied entry for various reasons (Philpott, 2015, p. 122). This agency employed people who resided at America's major ports of entry and checked immigrant manifests. It was evident during the 1900s that Congress's primary concern regarding immigration was the protection of people's employees and wages. Therefore, this approach turned immigration into a trade issue instead of a profit issue. This paved the way for the integration of immigration into the responsibilities of the Department of Commerce and Labor in the early 20th century. The conclusion of World War I prompted the government to make it easier for immigrants who came mainly from Europe to enter America. This effort became evident when laws were imposed in the 1920s to reduce the number of immigrants by setting a limit for each nationality depending on what past US census statistics indicated. The American government reduced the number of visas offered annually and the immigrants who managed to obtain them were the only ones allowed to enter American borders. This was the effortconscious of the government to prevent America from being overwhelmed by the huge number of immigrants from Europe who were all looking for a chance at a better life in America. During the time of President FranklinD. Roosevelt, made sure that immigration already became the responsibility of the Department of Justice. Currently, Customs and Border Protection is under the control of the Department of Homeland Security and this began in 2003. Customs and Border Protection is estimated to be made up of nearly 60,000 workers with various roles and responsibilities. This agency is led by a commissioner who is currently Kevin McAleenan. He began his term last January 2017. McAleenan is supported by Deputy Commissioner Ronald Vitiello and his primary responsibility is to ensure that the US Border Patrol operates effectively at all times. There are several agencies that make up Customs and Border Protection. For example, Air and Marine Operations (AMO) exists and its goal is to safeguard the people and important infrastructure of the United States by making full use of existing air and marine assets to identify and stop possible terrorist attacks, shipments of prohibited products, and entry illegal immigration (Bullock, 2015, p. 248). Air and Marine Operations has the special ability to provide air and sea assistance to various agencies and ensure that America's borders are always safeguarded. To achieve its goals, air and sea operations include at least 1,200 workers distributed in various locations across America. There are at least 250 air assets and 300 marine assets available for use by air and marine operations workers. Air assets consist of aircraft used regularly for surveillance, patrol and arrest purposes. On the other hand, maritime resources are used to prevent and apprehend smugglers who use boats and ships to transport their contraband within American borders. These marine assets are fast, reliable and equipped with the latest technologies. These air and sea assets and their unique technologies make it easier for air and sea operations workers to do their jobs protecting America's borders from threats. The Office of Field Operations (OFO) is another Customs and Border Protection agency. Workers at this agency have the authority to monitor, arrest, and prevent suspicious people or materials from entering or leaving America (Schied, 2010, p. 43). America implements some laws regarding export and import that must be followed constantly. Therefore, if tourists entering the country attempt to bring goods and other materials that violate these laws, they will be arrested and their cargo confiscated. Even the animals and plants that you try to bring to America are checked by the workers of the Office of Field Operations because there is always the possibility that these animals and plants are infected or contaminated with diseases. There are also dog teams used by Office of Field Operations workers to help them identify the presence of illegal drugs, immigrants hiding somewhere, contraband products and hidden money that may be difficult for workers to recognize. Finally, there is the US Border Patrol. The border of America is difficult to determine especially when people wander into open lands. This is why Border Patrol workers use numerous strategies and technologies to make their jobs easier. For example, there are sensors that have been installed in specific areas along the border to identify the presence of people orcars entering the country illegally. Border Patrol workers are constantly watching their monitors to see what is happening at the border, and they even have their own night vision equipment, so those who try to enter America illegally at night will still be caught. There are air, land and sea vehicles used by border police operators, making it easier for them to get around the border and catch those who try to escape. The Border Patrol is fully ready and able to protect America's border. Customs and Border Protection has the ability under the law to inspect shipments destined into or out of America. It can confiscate stolen, illegally imported or smuggled materials. If the importation of certain material is prohibited or restricted by US law due to human safety, such material will be confiscated. If the material does not have the necessary government license for import, it will be confiscated. If the packaging of the material does not comply with the laws in force in America, it will be confiscated. If the material has already been deliberately marked numerous times and no longer complies with American laws, it will be confiscated. If the documents issued to demonstrate the validity of the importation of the material are found to be false, the material will possibly be confiscated. The penalties specified by the Tariff Act of 1930 are the same as those that are followed when dealing with confiscated imported materials (Hinkelman, 2003, p. 289). Fines will be imposed on people who import, attempt to import, or assist in the importation of materials illegally. When it comes to fraud, the highest penalty will be the local value of the material. In terms of gross negligence, the highest penalty will be the possible loss of income multiplied by four. The bottom line is that Customs and Border Protection is making sure that those who make the mistake of trying to bring illegally imported materials into America will pay a high price. Customs and Border Protection workers have been properly trained and experienced enough to handle the inspection of imported materials, so they will ultimately know whether they should confiscate these materials or not. This is how rigorous the monitoring of products imported into America is and Customs and Border Protection is at the forefront of ensuring that nothing illegal enters America that could potentially harm or cause problems for the public. Customs and Border Protection workers have their own specific designations. For example, in the Office of Field Operations (OFO), there are CBP officers who have the authority to arrest, search, confiscate, transport weapons, and issue warrants. These people help in the fight against terrorism by identifying suspicious people who are trying to enter America. CBP officers help make society more peaceful by stopping crimes. They arrest people involved in illegal drugs, pornography, weapons smuggling and other fraudulent activities. Those who want to become CBP officers must undergo training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. This is where trainees are taught the important skills they should know to become effective CBP agents in the long term. Training usually lasts four to five months to ensure trainees are fully ready before going into action. Agriculture specialists also work under the Office of Field Operations. Candidates receive three months of training before being certified to perform the job (Paynich, 2011, p. 91). These workers are those found at airports, seaports andother entry areas across America. Agriculture specialists may also be designated in some countries by order of the US government to inspect agricultural products and ensure that they are all safe and free of contamination before they can enter America. Therefore, agriculture specialists play a huge role in ensuring the safety of the American people because harmful animals and plants will never have the chance to get to America and cause more damage and devastation. There is no doubt that contaminated plants and animals will cause disease and health problems to people if they consume them. Agriculture specialists have the ability to check materials or packages entering the country and confiscate anything suspicious they see. They can impose fines on violators. Finally, there are the import specialists who work in the Office of Field Operations. These are the people with the knowledge and experience to determine which products or materials will be allowed to enter America and which products will need to be rejected for various reasons (Sherman, 2009, p. 5). There is no doubt that the work of import specialists is very hard because millions of imported products enter America every day. However, these imported products are not all legal and acceptable as there are also many that are smuggled, counterfeit or too dangerous for people. This is why import specialists must be very meticulous in inspecting imported products because any mistake here could cause so much trouble and harm to the American people. There may be cases where import specialists would be designated abroad to monitor and inspect international factories for any violations committed. On the part of the US Border Patrol, the workers here are called Border Patrol Agents. These are the people who regularly roam America's borders to stop people from illegally entering or leaving America. Border Patrol agents identify and stop contraband and illegal immigrants from entering America. They have the authority to arrest individuals who are found to be illegal immigrants living in America. Border Patrol agents help reduce crime in society and improve the lives of people living near America's borders. It is evident that Border Patrol agents are very active and carry out many responsibilities, which simply means that they play an important role in keeping society safe and orderly. There may be many people attempting to enter the country illegally, but they can ultimately expect to be arrested because Border Patrol agents are very competent at doing their jobs. Contraband products will have no chance of escaping the watchful eyes of Border Patrol agents. When it comes to Air and Marine Operations (AMO), they have workers called Aviation Enforcement Agents, Air Interdiction Agents, and Marine Interdiction Agents. These are the people who use Customs and Border Protection's most advanced air, land and sea assets to ensure that terrorism is controlled and that aliens and illegal materials are prevented from entering America. Air and sea operations are adequately funded and the officers working here maximize their knowledge, skills and experience, whilst taking advantage of the impressive range of air, land and sea assets at their disposal. Customs and Border Protection has consistently demonstrated its willingness to adapt its rules and policies to ensure it can meet the challenges of a changing world. ToFor example, Customs and Border Protection recently required its agents to ensure they have reasonable suspicion before engaging in the inspection of cell phones and tablets owned by people entering or leaving America (DeCell, 2018). This change in rules allows officers to continue checking details that have been saved in mobile phones and tablets. However, officers are no longer permitted to make a copy of these details or use another device to conduct an analysis of these details unless they have a logical suspicion that the people who own these cell phones and tablets are attempting or planning to commit certain crimes. There is no doubt that the use of cell phones and tablets for crimes has become prevalent nowadays, so Customs and Border Protection has simply made sure that its agents will be ready and authorized to carry out inspections on suspicious persons as well as on their mobile phones and tablets. Preventing crimes is always better than dealing with the consequences, so Customs and Border Protection has done a great job of providing support and accountability to its officers through this initiative. It's also good to know that the Trump administration has shown a tremendous desire to help Customs and Border Protection improve. For example, the Trump government has already passed the INTERDICT Act which gives 9 million dollars to the agency so that it can acquire the devices and technologies necessary to identify the presence of illegal drugs among people traveling to America (Longmire, 2018 ). It is undeniable that drug cartels and syndicates around the world will never stop trying to get their illegal drugs across America's borders. This is why Customs and Border Protection must work even harder to ensure these illegal drugs are identified and confiscated immediately. The Trump Administration's recent move is a great sign that Customs and Border Protection will continue to receive the financial support it needs to carry out its roles effectively. In addition to the INTERDICT Act, the Trump government also promised to allocate $300 million so that Customs and Border Protection can have an additional 5,000 agents as part of its workforce (Rodriguez, 2017). There is no doubt that one of the current criticisms of Customs and Border Protection is the shortage of available agents. This means the agency's ability to protect America's borders from threats has already been compromised due to agent shortages. This problem has already been recognized by the Trump government and its response has been very positive. The commitment to allocate the money needed to solve the problem of labor shortages at Customs and Border Protection is another good sign that this agency is one of the priorities of the Trump government. This should help address people's fears and concerns that Customs and Border Protection is no longer effective and competent. It's only a matter of time before Customs and Border Protection returns to operating effectively. The bottom line is that Customs and Border Protection will not be able to be productive in fulfilling its responsibilities without continued support from the government. It may be recalled that during the presidential campaigns, Donald Trump even stated that his government will build a wall to prevent Mexicans from entering America illegally, and that he would make Mexico pay for this wall (Gambino, 2018). It remains to be seen whether this will actually happen or not. However, what is obvious is that President Trump has shown the desire to.”