Posted on 07/28/2007 9:39:19 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi used the Democrats' weekly radio address Saturday to tout her party's passage of legislation to implement major recommendations of the 9/11 Commission.
The House passed the bill Friday on a 371-40 vote, a day after the Senate passed it 85-8. The White House said the president would sign it.
The legislation would shift money to high-risk states and cities, expand screening of air and sea cargo and put money into a new program to ensure that security officials at every level can communicate with each other.
Its passage ranks among the top accomplishments of the 6-month-old Democratic Congress. Republicans would say it's one of the few.
"We will have done in six months what previous Congresses failed to do for almost six years," said Pelosi, D-Calif.
"Implementing the recommendations will fundamentally change the way the president and the Congress deal with matters related to terrorism, making us more unified and more effective," she said. "That is because this bill closes loopholes and weaknesses that terrorists seek to exploit."
The independent 9/11 Commission in 2004 issued 41 recommendations covering domestic security, intelligence gathering and foreign policy. Congress and the White House followed through on some, including creating a director of national intelligence, tightening land border screening and cracking down on terrorist financing.
Democrats, after taking over control of Congress, promised to make completing the list a top priority, and Republicans generally went along.
The House passed the original version of the 9/11 Commission bill the first day of the current Congress. The minimum wage increase the Democrats passed in those first days has just taken effect, but other early priorities - such as energy reform and stem cell research funding - remain far from becoming reality. Bush vetoed a stem cell bill last month.
The 9/11 bill would require screening of all cargo on passenger planes within three years. It also sets a five-year goal for scanning all container ships for nuclear devices before they leave foreign ports.
"The threat of terrorist violence against the United States is growing. Al-Qaida is gaining strength, and Osama bin Laden continues to elude capture," Pelosi said. "There is not a moment to spare to take the steps necessary to keep the American people safe."
NOT!!!
Nice try, 2PAC, but Sorry , No cigar!
Pelosi, you ridiculous twit.
Do Nothing Nancy finally passes a bill.
Pray for W and Our Troops
I hope they track the States and make sure the money is used for its intended purpose.
Republicans wasted billions on homeland security by making sure every Podunk town got a piece of pork - remember the security cameras for the native fishing village in Alaska? - while the next terror targets are going to be large cities - Rat strongholds. I have personal knowledge of many millions of domestic terror $ wasted on boondoggles.
Bush also gave us Norm Minetta and the TSA, as well as open borders on the south. These are vulnerabilities the the Dems are bound to exploit.
LOLOL.. She is such a precious thing, eh?
:)
Then where in hell were you 10 years ago...6 years ago...10 days ago you worthless political HACK!?
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