Bob Menendez: “let me first say I totally agree with my colleague from Vermont. We are dramatically underfunded for what we need for…”

“let me first say I totally agree with my colleague from Vermont. We are dramatically underfunded for what we need for homeland security. That truly is the core of the issue. I appreciate the spirit of the debate he has had with us on this issue and his comments. I simply believe that as we seek to fund it fully, the question becomes, What do we do now? The bipartisan, unanimous 9/11 Commission recommended that homeland security funding be based on risk. That is what this amendment does. Many of my colleagues have actually made the case, by virtue of what they have said, that risk-based funding should be the very essence of our foundation. They made a good case for their respective States for risk-based funding when they argued that their States have high-risk targets. This amendment does nothing to eliminate the effectiveness component. It does not eliminate the minimum guarantees for States. But threat after threat has been revealed, and that makes it very clear where the greatest threats are in our country. That ultimately should be our thrust, driving our resources, those which we have, as we try to build more to where the risk is. We are all in this together. We are called upon to vote for agriculture, hurricanes, and other things. I ask Senators to vote in favor of this amendment.”