Phoenix - Kidnapping Capital of the U.S.A.

When you think of kidnappings, generally you think of areas like Colombia, Brazil, Somalia or Iraq & Afghanistan. It surprised me to learn that Mexico City is the Kidnapping Capital of the world, with Phoenix Arizona a close second, making it the Kidnapping Capital of the U.S.A. What's even more troubling, is the fact that this has been going on for quite some time with practically zero major coverage from main stream news stations. What are their priorities?
What bothers me the most about this is the fact that Obama has picked Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano as the new head of Homeland Security? Was it her Stellar Record? What's more is that Napolitano didn't even complete her own state security plan. As the Tucson Citizen pointed out,

"(Gov. Janet Napolitano) blames budget problems and the difficulty coordinating agencies in Arizona, where she has been governor, for failing to complete key provisions of a detailed security plan for her own state."

Apparently Yet Again, Politics trumps anything else in Washington, and the post was given as political payback, instead of given to the right person for the right job. The following story can be found on ABC's website, but why isn't this the leading story on their newscasts? I suppose whoever is winning the Grammy's is a bigger story.

Washington Too Concerned With al Qaeda Terrorists to Care, Officials Say

By BRIAN ROSS, RICHARD ESPOSITO and ASA ESLOCKER
February 11, 2009

In what officials caution is now a dangerous and even deadly crime wave, Phoenix, Arizona has become the kidnapping capital of America, with more incidents than any other city in the world outside of Mexico City and over 370 cases last year alone. But local authorities say Washington, DC is too obsessed with al Qaeda terrorists to care about what is happening in their own backyard right now.

Wave of abductions hit Phoenix. Is Washington paying enough attention?

"We're in the eye of the storm," Phoenix Police Chief Andy Anderson told ABC News of the violent crimes and ruthless tactics spurred by Mexico's drug cartels that have expanded business across the border. "If it doesn't stop here, if we're not able to fix it here and get it turned around, it will go across the nation," he said.

California Attorney General Jerry Brown warned that as the U.S. government focuses so intently on Islamic extremist groups, other types of terrorists – those involved with the same kidnappings, extortion and drug cartels that are sweeping Phoenix – are overlooked.

To try and combat the crime wave, the Phoenix police have created a special unit to handle the kidnappings called the Home Invasion Task Force, which has pulled more than a dozen officers off other assignments. The crimes are occurring across the valley and in all types of neighborhoods, authorities warn.