ibertarian presidential nominee Gary Johnson on Monday said he would shutter the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as president.
Johnson’s vow follows bombings incidents in New Jersey and New York over the weekend that injured 29.
“I would,” he told host Neil Cavuto when asked on the Fox Business Network if he would consider closing down the agency. "I think it’s just another layer of bureaucracy. It’s just spending more money than we have to spend.
“Look, we should always be looking for ways to make government more efficient. Why is it that government makes the perfect choices and business doesn’t? Well, business doesn’t and they admit it.”
Johnson, the former GOP governor of New Mexico, said he would have the FBI assume the DHS’s responsibilities.
“Well, it was the merging of 22 separate agencies,” he said of DHS’s creation. "I just think it’s corporate reorg gone bad.
“I would just devolve those agencies back to where they came from in the first place,” Johnson added. "Put the FBI in charge of all this.
“I think we can all recognize the FBI has been around a long time. They have a great reputation. Going forward, this would be FBI-driven.”
Johnson said the DHS has struggled with both its identity and explaining its actions to voters since launching.
“Homeland Security, what do they really do?” he asked. "Why are there armed Homeland Security agents walking the streets now?
“Why are those black, unmarked vehicles Homeland Security? What do they do? I just think the morale is low within the Department of Homeland Security and nobody knows really what they do.”
