Bennie Thompson: “it is my privilege, as the first Democratic chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, to rise in strong support of…”

“it is my privilege, as the first Democratic chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, to rise in strong support of this rule and the underlying bill. At the direction of the Speaker, I authored H.R. 1, legislation to complete the unfinished business of the 9/11 Commission. It had 200 original cosponsors. H.R. 1 was the first bill of the 110th Congress. It passed the House by a vote of 299-128; 32 House conferees on a bipartisan basis, including Ranking Member King, signed the conference report. Late last night the Senate passed it by a vote of 85-8. It would seem that 6 years after the 9/11 attacks and 3 years after the release of the 9/11 Commission report, Congress is finally embracing what the 9/11 families have been saying all along. It takes more than vigilance for our Nation to be more secure against the threat of terrorism. It takes a willingness to do things a different way. The 9/11 Commission challenged the administration, Congress and the American people to think a different way and take concrete steps to deter and prevent future attacks. Over the past 3 years, some progress has been made, most notably, the reforms in the intelligence community. However, until today, many of the key recommendations of the 9/11 Commission remain unfulfilled. The conference report on H.R. 1 ensures that most grant funding is allocated based on risk. It authorizes $1.6 billion for an interoperability grant program to improve communications for first responders.”