All politics is local, the homeland security education edition

If our people are not sufficiently educated to fight threats to homeland security, then the terrorists (and hurricanes) have already won. This is apparently what New York Governor Andrew Cuomo believes:

Governor Andrew Cuomo last month earmarked $15 million in his state budget proposal for what he called “the nation’s first college dedicated solely to emergency preparedness and homeland security.” Cuomo announced plan during a presentation for Vice President Joe Biden in January, saying there would be “a need” for it.

This proposal certainly has support:

A spokesman for the state’s university system, SUNY, said Chancellor Nancy Zimpher supports Cuomo’s proposal.

But at the same time, there are those who are opposed to it:

Assemblywoman Linda B. Rosenthal, chair of the Assembly’s Commission on Science and Technology, wrote a letter to Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver advising Silver to reject Cuomo’s plan. “I cannot support this initiative until I have a better understanding of the proposal, its long-term cost and impact on existing programs,” she wrote.

Rosenthal...noted in her letter that she was worried that the college would be competing with John Jay College of Criminal Justice, a school in her district. “I am concerned about how this college will be integrated with existing related programs at campuses around the State,” she wrote.

“For example, John Jay College of Criminal Justice … in my district offers a range of courses in Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security.”

So what does the John Jay College of Criminal Justice have to say about itself?

A senior college of The City University of New York, John Jay College of Criminal Justice is the preeminent national and international leader in educating for justice. Whether it is in the pages of The Lancet, across from opposing counsel, or behind a podium, John Jay students, graduates and faculty make their mark on the world.

Set in the heart of New York City, John Jay offers students a liberal arts and criminal justice curriculum that balances the sciences, humanities and the arts with professional studies. Offering both undergraduate and graduate degrees, the College is unique in its mission....

Well, it won't be unique in its mission of the Governor and the State University of New York have their way.

So we have the City University fighting with the State University - and that is how homeland security decisions are made.