Declassification of the 28 Pages of the Joint Congressional Inquiry

Floor Speech

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Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleagues in calling on President Obama to finally declassify the 28 pages of the Joint Congressional Inquiry into Intelligence Activities Before and After the Terrorist Attacks of September 2001. This year will mark 15 years since the horrific September 11 attacks that struck at the heart of our nation, and shook us to our core. The United States suffered an immeasurable tragedy that day, but for the victims and their families, their loss is beyond words. They lost sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, sisters and brothers. These families' lives were forever changed, and their road to healing is made all the more difficult by the questions that remain unanswered.

These classified pages in the 9/11 joint congressional inquiry contain vital information about the circumstances surrounding the attacks, and can provide crucial guidance for our future counterterrorism policies. I have personally read these pages and am confident that they can be released without compromising intelligence- gathering sources and methods. The Obama Administration is currently undertaking a review and is expected to announce its decision in the coming weeks. I strongly urge it to complete its review as soon as possible and declassify the 28 pages. I am pleased to be part of this bipartisan effort to give the families the answers they deserve.

Together with my colleagues Congressman Walter Jones and Congressman Thomas Massie, we introduced H. Res. 14 urging the President to release the pages. I want to thank Congresswoman Gwen Graham for organizing these speeches that are bringing renewed attention to this matter. I also want to acknowledge and thank former Senator Bob Graham for his hard work as Chair of the Select Committee on Intelligence when the Joint Congressional Inquiry was written, and his steadfast advocacy for making these pages public. Mr. Speaker, the victims' families and our nation experienced a profound personal loss and after 15 years they deserve to have their questions answered. The declassification of the 28 pages will be an important step in that direction.

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