Fire the Secretary of Homeland Security Napalitano!

President Obama should demand the resignation of Janet Napolitano.

Put simply, if the "system" is not working properly, then the person in charge of the "system" should be removed.

That is accountability.

Yes, one instance when a person who the sytem should have caught gets on an airplane and has free reign to blow it up is enough.

Ms. Napolitano should know she is expendable and should be preparing an exit.

Her departure should be linked explicitly to this case.

If the terrorist on the Christmas attack was on the list and got on the plane because of some human failure, she'd be fine. In that case, the system would have worked but the people failed.
In that case people lower down would deserve to have their jobs terminated.

But in this case, the Secretary didn't demand that we get on offense.
Her job is to make sure things are working. If not make them work better.
If the Secretary could prove that she was in the process of fixing this "system" where different agencies still don't communicate vital information, and where if one person knew what everyone did separately the attackers would be known and stopped; then she would deserve to keep her job (and praise)..

It seems clear that the Obama administration is on defense playing catch up. It was Napolitano's job to get and stay on the offense against these terrorists.

Let's bring in a new person, who knows that their job is to create and make a system work well.

It's clear the terrorists will keep trying and may succeed.
It shouldn't be because of our stupidity.
It shouldn't be because of our lack of organization eight years after 9/11.

Democrats we need to be the party of government. Good governance.
That needs to mean being the party of accountability.
If you mess up. Own up. and get out.

It would be real change in D.C. Especially from the Bush team, but politics in general.

I'm not for throwing Napolitano under the bus personally.
She can still work in the administration in another capacity.
But the message should be clear to people that if there's a failure in a core aspect of your job.
You lose. No excuses.

Otherwise, we have excuse after excuse, and eight years later no change.