"That commitment has taken Baca to more than a dozen Middle Eastern countries since 9/11. The tangible benefits of the trips aren't always clear, but Baca maintains they give him a unique window into Muslim cultures and to counterterrorism where the fight's the fiercest. In Saudi Arabia, he watched hundreds of police recruits march as he and other officials sat in "very elegant seats as if we were heads of state." Afterwards, they sat on rugs in police headquarters and feasted on a barbequed lamb. "They ripped out the choicest pieces of meat for us with their hands," Baca raved."