Whatever Happened to the DHS’s Color-Coded Terror System?

Where have you been of late, orange days?

Writing at JABBS, David Mark asks: Has Homeland Security’s Color Coding Of Terror Threats Been Scrapped? A Closer Look Suggests Yes, After Serving Its Purpose (To Get Bush Re-Elected)

From the get-go, critics of the Bush Administration suggested that it was using the terror threat system for political gain, in part because President Bush’s popularity always seemed to rise after a change in the terror threat system. As the New York Times reported in August, 2004, a terror threat announcement by Ridge earlier that month was used to “repeatedly praise President Bush’s leadership.”

OK, but then the questions arises: With Bush’s ratings still in the shitter (though better than before), why hasn’t he been dialing up the rainbow? There was only one mention, Mark notes, in all of 2005 and none in 2006, despite reports of terrorist activity that would likely have prompted a threat way back when.

Maybe it’s the confusion between the threat rainbow and Rainbow Parties?–Nick Gillespie