Adam Schiff: “my amendment increases the nonproliferation and disarmament funds by $15 million, from $20 million to $35 million. The…”

“my amendment increases the nonproliferation and disarmament funds by $15 million, from $20 million to $35 million. The effect of this amendment, therefore, is to restore the full amount of the President's request for the nonproliferation and disarmament fund. Why should we do that? Why should we meet the President's request for funding of this account? Perhaps the single greatest threat we face as a Nation is from terrorists armed with weapons of mass destruction. It is why we went to war in Iraq. It is why we established the Department of Homeland Security, to address this significant threat to American lives. And within the threat of terrorist possession of weapons of mass destruction, the greatest danger within that threat is the potential access of terrorists to nuclear material and the ability to create a nuclear weapon. We will survive another biological attack like the anthrax attacks. We will survive chemical attacks. But a nuclear attack in this country, on our soil or against our troops around the world would fundamentally change this Nation. And around the world there are literally hundreds of facilities that have some kilos, others that have tons of plutonium or highly enriched uranium in an unsecured condition. The technology of the atomic bomb is a half century old. It is not difficult to replicate. Obtaining the nuclear material is the terrorists' main obstacle and that challenge may be far too easily overcome.”