Cord Byrd: “The President said: Wait, we can wait until 2003 to begin spending more on homeland security. Now it is 2003. What is…”

“The President said: Wait, we can wait until 2003 to begin spending more on homeland security. Now it is 2003. What is the President saying? He is saying: Let's wait until 2004. Now the administration is saying we don't need more money for fiscal year 2003 because the administration has not spent some of the money that was appropriated for fiscal year 2002. The administration is leaving itself wide open to justified criticism when it maintains that. So it is saying we don't need more money because the administration has not spent some of the money that was appropriated for fiscal year 2002. What poppycock. If the administration has not spent essential funds approved by the Congress over 1 year ago for homeland security, then the Senate Appropriations Committee should be holding hearings to find out why. Where does the fault lie? Who is right here? Who is wrong? What are we doing? Very little is being said on the part of the administration these days about protecting the homeland.”