Sean Patrick Maloney: “Mr. Chairman, reform for our Nation's security and intelligence is now the sole responsibility of the House of…”

“Mr. Chairman, reform for our Nation's security and intelligence is now the sole responsibility of the House of Representatives. The other body, both sides of the aisle, unanimously, almost with complete and total support, passed the strongest intelligence reform in our Nation's history, with a vote of 96 to 2. The Collins-Lieberman bill is before the House today in the form of a bipartisan substitute, the Menendez substitute. It will make our country safer by creating a strong national intelligence director with full personnel and budgetary authority and a National counterterrorism Center that will share intelligence. Regrettably, the House leadership bill has no such authority. Last week, the 9/11 Commission chairman, Governor Kean said, 'If the National Intelligence Director does not have budgetary authority, you might as well not do anything.' If we pass today the Collins-Lieberman-Menendez bill out of the House, we can get it to the President's desk for his signature before we adjourn. The bipartisan 9/11 Commission members support the substitute. The White House has lined up behind it. So has the 9/11 family members, the steering committee, as well as editorial boards across this Nation.”