Mike Levin: “I thank the managers of the intelligence reform bill, S. 2845, for accepting an amendment offered by myself and Senator…”

“I thank the managers of the intelligence reform bill, S. 2845, for accepting an amendment offered by myself and Senator Coleman on the issue of terrorist financing. This amendment, amendment No. 3867, was developed in coordination with Senators Collins and Lieberman of the Governmental Affairs Committee and Senators Shelby and Sarbanes of the Banking Committee. I thank each of my colleagues for their guidance and assistance which has enabled us to fashion a good amendment with bipartisan support and offer it to the bill today. This amendment is the result of an extensive investigation by the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, initiated at my request, into money laundering allegations involving Riggs Bank, a nationally chartered bank located right here in the Nation's Capital. Our investigation found a bank which routinely allowed highly questionable transactions with few questions asked. Some of these transactions involved millions of dollars in cash or suspicious wire transfers; others have raised serious concerns about possible terrorist financing. We live in a post-9/11 world.…”