Robin Carnahan: “grief has changed the face of America. We are a tear-stained nation, but in spite of that, we are united as never…”

“grief has changed the face of America. We are a tear-stained nation, but in spite of that, we are united as never before. Americans are wearing symbols on their lapels. They are displaying flags from their cars and windows, and they are donating millions of dollars to victims' families. America has responded, as we always do, with patriotism and purpose. Today, we are uniting further in support of our troops flying dangerous missions in Afghanistan. This is the first step in a prolonged campaign against terrorism. It is a necessary step, and it was directed at the right targets--the Taliban government, which has given safe harbor to terrorists and to organizations such as theirs for far too long. Americans are also united in sympathy with the Afghan people. While our bombers were flying over Taliban strongholds, our C-17s were dropping food to the refugees. Congress has also responded to the September 11 attacks with unity and determination. We came together to support the people of Washington and New York by providing $40 billion to begin the relief effort. We came together to support the President and our military by authorizing the use of force in this new struggle with terrorism. We came together to aid our airlines by enacting a $15 billion stabilization package, and with the vote today in favor of cloture, we are poised to increase airline security.”