Frank Lautenberg: “I rise to speak directly to the American people to tell them that this Senator understands the risks that our country…”

“I rise to speak directly to the American people to tell them that this Senator understands the risks that our country faces and I will do everything in my power to protect them from a terrorist attack. We have a President whose words do not match his actions and who continues to accuse Democrats of being weak on terrorism and unwilling to do what it takes to secure our nation. Nothing could be further from the truth. New Jersey was hit on September 11th we lost 700 people on that fateful day. Not a day goes by when I don't think about it. And it is largely that day that brought me back to this Chamber. My State is ripe with targets for terrorists, from its ports to its chemical plants and it has the most dangerous 2 miles for terrorism within it borders. So President Bush please don't lecture me on terrorism. Instead of rhetoric, the Senate has been acting to defend our homeland. Just last month we passed a bill to fund our homeland security needs next year. It would put $38 billion into making our homeland safer and more secure. What does the President do? He says he will veto it. Why? Because he thinks it costs too much. It costs too much? How do you measure the cost of protecting us from terror? And President Bush is accusing others of being weak on homeland security? The President is upset because Congress plans to put $2 billion more into homeland security than he thinks we should do.”