Chuck Grassley: “we must be sure that we are taking the necessary steps to protect the citizens of our nation by preventing drug…”

“we must be sure that we are taking the necessary steps to protect the citizens of our nation by preventing drug traffickers, organized crime and terrorist groups from obtaining the profits of their illegal activities. Much has been done and said about the movement of illegal drugs into the United States or terrorists acts against our country. But the opposite side of the business--getting the profits from drug sales and other illegal enterprises out of the country and back into the hands of the criminal organizations--does not get as much publicity and is just as important. In an effort to strike another blow to drug traffickers and criminals who prey on our citizens by their ill-gotten gains, today I, in conjunction with Senator D'Amato, am introducing companion legislation to H.R. 1756, the Money Laundering and Financial Crimes Strategy Act of 1997. This legislation will authorize the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Attorney General and other relevant agencies, to coordinate and implement a national strategy to address the exploitation of our Nation's payment systems to facilitate money laundering and related financial crimes.”