In a joint interview on CNN's "State of the Union," Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) noted there are currently a record number of terror groups operating today, putting America at more risk than ever.
Rogers acknowledged the increasing pressure on U.S. intelligence groups to "get it right, to prevent an attack." He also mentioned that Al Qaeda has been recruiting fighters worldwide and many independent groups that once fought alongside the infamous terror network have now completely joined them.
He also added that terrorists are now more likely to consider carrying out small-scale attacks as opposed to none at all.
"That makes it exponentially harder for our intelligence services to stop an event like that from happening," he said.
When asked if she thought the U.S. was safer now than two years ago, Feinstein responded "I don't think so."
"I think terror is up worldwide, the statistics indicate that," Feinstein said. "The fatalities are way up. The numbers are way up. There are new bombs, very big bombs. Trucks being reinforced for those bombs. There are bombs that go through magnetometers. The bomb maker is still alive. There are more groups than ever. And there is huge malevolence out there."
Both Feinstein and Rogers have been staunch advocates and supporters for the intelligence community, whose practices were ousted by Edward Snowden earlier this year. During the interview, Rogers explained how his National Security Agency (NSA) leaks could be harmful to the country.
"You think about what's happened with recent disclosures," he said. "Now three al Qaeda affiliate groups have changed the way they communicate - (meaning) it's less likely that we're going to be able to detect something prior to an event that goes operational."
SOURCE: http://www.hngn.com/articles/18488/20131201/terror-threat-level-terror-threat-terror-threat-us-terror-threat-level-us-dianne-feinstein-intelligence-committee-mike-rogers-intelligence.htm
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