The terrorist attacks of 9/11 served as a catalyst for dramatic changes to the United States national security enterprise and in the relationships among the various national security agencies. Among those changes is the recognition that our local, state, and tribal law enforcement agencies make critical contributions not only to the protection of our communities but to the security of the United States at large. However, while we’ve all made lots of progress in working more closely together, there is more we can do.

The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act (IRTPA) of 2004 established my office, the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), as the leader of the 17-member intelligence community and as the president’s principal intelligence advisor. IRTPA also called for greater integration of our collective efforts. These integration initiatives require us to work both horizontally and vertically, so that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.