Thomas Daschle: “we are finally about to vote on a bill to create a new Homeland Security Department. Many Senators worked long and hard…”

“we are finally about to vote on a bill to create a new Homeland Security Department. Many Senators worked long and hard to get us to this point. But one man was indispensable. He is the chairman of the Senate Government Affairs Committee, Joe Lieberman. Under his leadership, the Government Affairs Committee held its first hearing on homeland security 10 days after September 11. It was at that hearing that former Senators Warren Rudman and Gary Hart, the co-chairs of a bipartisan blue-ribbon commission, shared their recommendation that the Government should create a permanent, cabinet-level Department to protect the American people from terrorism. Three weeks later, on the one-month anniversary of September 11, Senator Lieberman announced his plan to create such a department. He had the vision to see what needed to be done and the patience and flexibility to work through disagreements and come up with workable, bipartisan alternatives. He also had the courage to stand his ground for months while the President threatened to veto any Homeland Security bill.”