House Democratic Caucus Media Availability - 9/11 Commission Recommendations

Federal News Service August 10, 2004 Tuesday

HEADLINE: HOUSE DEMOCRATIC CAUCUS MEDIA AVAILABILITY

SUBJECT: 9/11 COMMISSION RECOMMENDATIONS

PARTICIPANTS: HOUSE MINORITY LEADER NANCY PELOSI (D-CA); REP. STENY HOYER (D-MD); REP. JANE HARMAN (D-CA); REP. JIM TURNER (D-TX) REP. ROBERT MENENDEZ (D-NJ); REP. JAMES CLYBURN (D-SC)

LOCATION: HOUSE RADIO/TV GALLERY, THE CAPITOL, WASHINGTON, D.C.

BODY:

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REP. CLYBURN: Thank you, Madame Leader. Let me first of all thank you for your great leadership, and thanks to Jim and Jane and to Steny for all of their leadership on this very important issue.

I first want to associate myself with the invocation of urgency by our chair, who did so very eloquently in language that I can understand very well and language that I don't understand so well.

But I think he has laid out what is so important here, and that is how urgent this matter is.

I've been here now for 12 years. I don't believe I've ever seen any entity of government or even quasi-government that has been well-as well coordinated, as well developed, and that has been as well received and respected as we have seen this 9/11 commission. Former Governor Kean and former Congressman Hamilton have led us to a unanimous bipartisan response to 9/11.

And I believe that it's incumbent upon this Congress to fashion a bipartisan response to the report. For us to allow this report to languish and for us to sit by while we hear and read about all these perceived threats to disrupt the elections, to have some influence over the process, and not be about the business of trying to get the report implemented legislatively, I think, would be a tremendous disservice to the American people.

I believe that we need to be here. If the speaker won't do it, the president should move to bring us back here to Washington, so that we can be about the business of fashioning a bipartisan response to this report, so that whatever debates take place can take place with a backdrop of legislation that will be created to put the American people back at ease.

I represent a congressional district that is bordered by the Savannah River Plant. Sitting in the center of it is Fort Jackson. The Charleston part is on one side, the Georgetown port on the other. And I can go nowhere in my congressional district when (sic) I don't hear people asking, "But what about the ports?" What are we doing about the high-level nuclear waste, nuclear-coming back from Europe through Charleston, going overland and by rail throughout our congressional district, throughout our state, going down the Savannah River plant? What are we doing to make sure that we are fashioning a proper response to all of that?

I'm not too sure what we are doing, but I do believe that if we were back here having a legitimate debate over legislation, we can show the American people that we do understand their emotional condition and we will try legislatively to respond to it.

Thank you.

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Q Ms. Pelosi --

REP. HOYER: (Helen ?), also if I can add, some of us don't believe because the president says no that that's dispositive of the issue.

REP. PELOSI: (Chuckles.)

REP. HOYER: We have a responsibility of our own --

REP. PELOSI: That's right.

REP. HOYER: -- and we are calling for this session because we think it's important for the American people.

REP. CLYBURN: And I think that's been-if I may, I think that's been demonstrated time and time again. The president first said no to Homeland Security, but we now have it.

REP. PELOSI: And it-right.

REP. CLYBURN: And then the president said no to the commission itself, and thanks to our leader we now have it. And because he is saying no now does not mean our leader won't get it.

REP. HOYER: And he said no and the speaker said no to the extension of the deadline for this commission, and Governor Kean today said if that extension had not been granted, they could not have done their work.

REP. PELOSI: Yeah.

REP. CLYBURN: Absolutely.

REP. PELOSI: And may I just say also --

REP. HOYER: And, Ms. Pelosi, I want to say-she can't say this, but the leader -

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