Zoe Lofgren: “Yesterday America experienced tragedy. With the collapse of the World Trade Center and the penetration of the Pentagon…”

“Yesterday America experienced tragedy. With the collapse of the World Trade Center and the penetration of the Pentagon by hijacked aircraft, thousands of Americans lost their lives. We all mourn, and we are all resolved to take new steps to secure again the safety of our country. We Americans stand together now. As Americans, we will insist that these American deaths be accounted for and that American lives lost will not come without an extraordinarily high cost to those who are our enemies and those who help and support our enemy. As we move ahead through each day, there is something that we must remember and take comfort in: a great nation is defined by great peoples. We saw this greatness yesterday in the heroism of firefighters and police and volunteers who tried to save others. We saw it in the victims on planes who, while facing certain death, called ground forces with information that today are helping us put together the evidentiary pieces to identify our enemies. We Americans, our heritage may be Irish, Chinese, German, Italian, and many more; we are Catholic, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Protestant, and more. It is important to remember that it is not how we look or how we dress or the religion we follow that distinguishes us as Americans. No, instead, it is our commitment to liberty, our dedication to the American beacon of liberty and the passion with which we love America.”