Tom Bell, CEO of government technology contractor Leidos, said additional investment in security infrastructure at U.S. ports and border crossings is needed to expand screening of vehicles, cargo and other traffic entering the country.
Bell made the comments during a discussion with Breitbart News Washington Bureau Chief Matthew Boyle on border security, public safety and American sovereignty.
Asked about Leidos’s work at ports of entry, Bell described the range of equipment the company provides for screening.
“Leidos is a major player in ports and border security,” Bell said. “Everything from scanning people, cars, trucks, railroad containers, railroad cars, all of those can pass through Leidos security equipment to make sure that we know what’s coming through and whether what’s coming through actually matches the bill of lading that is supposed to be in that truck or train.”
But Bell said coverage remains inconsistent across the country’s ports and crossings.
“The problem is there’s — it’s porous. Not every port has one. Not every railroad crossing has one. Not every car is screened for narcotics, and our equipment can do that,” Bell said.
He said closing those gaps would require new spending on fixed infrastructure at crossings.
“But what’s going to be required is, and I’m sure the ports and border customs, border patrol, and Secretary Mullin are focused on this, a little bit of investment in the fixed infrastructure that’s going to allow us to have more of what’s coming into this nation actually surveyed for whether or not it’s authentically what it says it is on the bill of lading,” Bell said.
Earlier in the discussion, Bell outlined Leidos’s broader footprint across the federal government, including work with the Department of War, U.S. intelligence agencies, Veterans Affairs, the Social Security Administration, and components of the Department of Homeland Security such as the Coast Guard, TSA and CISA.
“We are the number one federal IT provider, and that gives us installed base and domain knowledge at essentially every department and every agency in the federal government,” Bell said. “From that, we develop mission solutions that help our government be better, faster, cheaper at serving its missions. What do I mean by that? We’re the number eight supplier at the Department of War.”
Bell summarized the company’s role across its federal contracts.
“That’s what we bring together: hardware, software, people, mission knowledge, solutions,” Bell added.
