Mary Ellen Callahan, a former high-ranking Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official, is sounding the alarm about potential plans to shut down the agency’s office responsible for protecting Americans from catastrophic threats.
As the former assistant secretary for the Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction (CWMD) office within DHS from 2023 to 2025, warns that dismantling the office would leave the United States vulnerable to attacks as the country prepares to host major international events.
“The office leads our nation’s efforts to detect and deter chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear threats,” Callahan wrote in an opinion piece published Sunday. “And yet, there are reports that this office may be shut down. This would be a grave mistake.”
The CWMD Office was established during former President Trump’s first term to coordinate government-wide efforts against WMD threats. According to Callahan, advancing technologies are making these threats increasingly accessible to non-state actors.
During her tenure, Callahan witnessed demonstrations of commercially available agricultural drones capable of spraying “hundreds of gallons of chemicals in minutes” and studied how artificial intelligence could make sophisticated weapons development more accessible.
With the U.S. set to host both the FIFA World Cup and Summer Olympics in the coming years, Callahan argues that eliminating the office would leave host cities scrambling to find “tools, expertise and personnel needed to guard against weapons of mass destruction threats in less than 18 months.”
Despite its critical mission, the CWMD Office operates on less than 1% of the DHS budget, which Callahan describes as “a small price to pay for an insurance policy against events that could kill thousands and cause trillions in economic damage.”
The office was created with bipartisan support and unanimously reauthorized by the House of Representatives in 2023.
“We do not get to choose when the next threat arrives,” said Callahan. “But we can choose whether we are ready.”
For the full opinion piece from The Hill, click here.