The Year Domestic Terrorists Openly Declared War on the Nation's Power Grids

Note: The Government Accountability Office says their recommendations from years ago still "have not been implemented yet leaving the power grid vulnerable." Over those years there's been more than 700 attacks. This year however is standing out as the domestic terrorists behind it get bolder.

The first indicator that America's Power companies were under siege came earlier this year in February.

The Department of Justice caught three men who ended up pleading guilty to providing material support for a plot to attack power grids in America. They were white supremacists who wanted to create economic distress and civil unrest.

A recent law enforcement memo warned that more attacks like the ones in recent power substations in North Carolina (affecting 45,000 homes at the peak) could happen in other parts of the county too.

Prior to that North Carolina was targeted on November 11th when sheriff's officers in Jones County reported that criminal vandalism had caused 12,000 homes to lose power for days. That investigation is still ongoing.

Earlier in the year power companies in Oregon and Washington reported physical attacks on substations using hand tools, arson, firearms, and metal chains. No suspects have been arrested yet.

The attacks by these domestic terrorists reportedly bypassed security by cutting fence links, lighting nearby fires, shooting equipment from a distance or throwing objects over the fence and onto equipment, according to federal authorities.

Let's be clear here. America is currently experiencing concentrated attacks by homegrown terrorists and the Justice Department is having a hell of a time trying to catch the perpetrators.

The suspects run from white supremacists to militia groups seeking to cause anarchy and bring down our democracy.

The "enemy within" should be a major priority for all law enforcement agencies in the country and federal authorities. But frankly I haven't seen that much about these terrorists in the mainstream press all year. Maybe an occasional story that faded away in a day.

More importantly I want to see states and the federal government get proactive and take a long hard look at our very vulnerable national power grids and do something about it.

What's the answer?

I suspect that Congress would get tied up in knots (like the GAO did years ago) trying to secure federal spending to fund the states security. The most we can expect is Congress may harden whatever security the federal government already provides.

I say let the states assume the cost for enhanced security (if necessary) for their own national (or private) power grids.

What? You say that's crazy! Maybe not. Think about it. What is one of the most important things in every state that people depend on?

That's right. Having electrical power in their homes, businesses and medical facilities. When it comes to state budgets what would be more important than this kind of protection? 

To achieve this, it calls for a thorough budget evaluation from state lawmakers who are interested in protecting their constituents. If some lawmakers resist, they'll be on the wrong side of the argument and get voted out of office.

As it stands, now that I have figured out an answer to this threat to the nation's power grid attacks it's up to federal lawmakers to catch the crazy bastards doing it!