We appreciate the work of your panel, and you have my commitment that this committee will do its part to address these challenges through further oversight and legislation.

I would like to thank you for holding this hearing to examine current prison countering violent extremism programs.

I am aware that most of today's discussion will likely focus on a possible radicalization of Muslim inmates; however, I would like to encourage the committee to remember that limiting this committee's oversight of radicalization to one…

I would like to thank you for calling this hearing to examine current prison counter-violent extremism programs and explore the development of such programs for inmates post-release.

Administrator Fugate, you deserve much of the credit for that.

Almost immediately, a consensus emerged that the Federal response was woefully inadequate.

I look forward to hearing how you are working to continue to improve FEMA so it is a nimble organization prepared to respond.

I think at some point, Mr. Administrator, you might have to help us make the case from a financial standpoint that we need to, you know, better to be prepared for the emergency when it happens than not prepared when it happens.

If that is not happening I need to know that to fix it.

Confusion regarding roles and responsibilities at every level of government, gaps in emergency communication technologies, and lack of effective coordination between Federal and State responders undermined immediate response efforts.

We really have to fix that and some other things.

Director Fugate's tenure there has added stability to the agency.

I think Congressman Clyburn is going to talk a little bit about his experience, is, when you have, like South Carolina, you have some counties that handle it very well and some counties that don't.

I would like to thank you for holding this hearing to assess Federal preparedness, response, mitigation, and recovery capabilities that have evolved since Hurricane Katrina.

I am asking you for a commitment to hold a hearing on the oversight of the Department of Homeland Security and invite Secretary Johnson to testify before the end of the first session of this Congress.

The Honorable Bennie G. Thompson, a Representative in Congress From the State of Mississippi, and Ranking Member, Committee on Homeland Security:

Since September 11, more people in the United States have died in attacks by domestic extremists than in attacks by international terrorist groups.

The Committee on Homeland Security has long been engaged on the issues of cybersecurity, port security, and critical infrastructure protection.

I remain concerned that TSA will continue to purchase more technologies that address the threats of yesterday instead of the threats of tomorrow.

I still have concerns about some of TSA's other screening programs the Inspector General has found ineffective.

how can you terminate somebody because they have cancer? I mean, that is, you know, what I am saying?

A 2014 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found that actions taken by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and other Federal agencies to address cybersecurity in the maritime port environment have been limited.

We know that terrorists span all races, in all ethnicities, and have a profiling mechanism as a means of security is skeptical.

Requiring the Coast Guard to complete a cyber risk assessment and ensure that cyber risks are addressed in maritime security plans, as recommended by GAO, is a good first step toward reducing cyber vulnerabilities at ports.

I think that is important. We put it in the legislation, and I hope that authority gets us where we need to be.