Liz Saville Roberts: “The completion of the Bioterrorism Preparedness Act conference report, in my view, represents an absolutely vital and…”

“The completion of the Bioterrorism Preparedness Act conference report, in my view, represents an absolutely vital and significant step forward for our Nation as we work to protect ourselves from any kind of a terrorist attack involving bioterrorism. I also had the privilege of being chairman and now ranking member of the Emerging Threats Subcommittee of the Armed Services Committee. We had witness after witness and commission after commission. We asked them: What keeps you up at night? Each and every time when we tried to prioritize the threat that faced this country, bioterrorism was listed as No. 1. I thank Senator Kennedy for his leadership with regard to this bill. I echo the comments by Senator Gregg, who has been extremely helpful and led the effort on our side. I especially thank Senator Frist whose expertise and leadership with the Centers for Disease Control and the Department of Health and Human Services, plus his personal expertise, is second to none. If he is not the godfather of this bill, he is indeed the godprince. So I thank him for those efforts. This bill also represents a significant advancement in helping to protect agriculture and our Nation's food supply from a possible agroterrorist attack.”