Bob Menendez: “on July 7, just last Friday, media outlets across the Nation reported the news that the FBI had apparently foiled a plot…”

“on July 7, just last Friday, media outlets across the Nation reported the news that the FBI had apparently foiled a plot to bomb the transit systems that connect New York and New Jersey. The revelation of this latest plot paints a clear picture of where the terrorists intend to target their actions. Clearly, they want to strike where they can create the greatest loss of life and economic damage. Time and time again, we see that areas like New York, New Jersey, Washington State, California, Chicago, and others are high on the target lists of terrorists. These most recent threats against New York and New Jersey are only one example of this in one key area. Why had the terrorists chosen to attack the tunnels and rail system that connect the city of New York with the citizens of New Jersey? Because they wanted to inflict great damage, not only to the tunnels and the trains and the people on them, not only to the city of New York and the citizens of New Jersey, not only to the metropolitan area that encompasses New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut--no, the terrorists chose to plan their attack on the New York-New Jersey transit system because they wanted to inflict great damage on the entire country. More than 100,000 people use the Holland Tunnel everyday. More than 200,000 people ride the PATH trains every day. Mr. President, 18.7 million people live in the New York/New Jersey metropolitan area, nearly 6.5 million of whom come from New Jersey.…”