Terrorist Release Announcements to Counter Extremist Recidivism Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the victims of the 9/11 attacks and to voice my support for the TRACER Act.

Mr. Speaker, 16 years ago, 19 cowardly terrorists hijacked four airplanes and used them as missiles to kill 3,000 innocent people. The souls that were lost belonged to moms and dads, brothers and sisters, sons and daughters.

It was a day that we will never forget. Each year, as we look back, we all remember something different about that morning. There are those who remember getting a phone call and listening to a frantic voice on the other end. Some remember running into the streets as the Twin Towers fell and feared for their lives. Others saw the Pentagon in flames and wondered who did this and why.

There are many other images and thoughts that are seared into our minds. However, we can also remember the heroism of our first responders, the brave firefighters and police officers who raced to the scene and charged up the stairs of the World Trade Center to save their fellow countrymen.

We can picture strangers helping strangers navigate through the dust and debris in downtown New York, and we can be grateful for the courageous passengers on United Airlines Flight 93 who saved an untold number of lives and perhaps this very building that we stand in here today.

Yesterday morning, I stood at Ground Zero in New York and listened to each of the victims' names that were read. I remembered a nation that came together and stood by one another as we recovered from this heinous attack.

September 11 showed the entire world that terrorists could knock our buildings down, but they could not dent the American spirit. In the aftermath, we pledged to work with one another and prevent such a tragedy from ever happening again.

Today, we are still engaged in a generational fight to defeat Islamist terrorism, but I believe we will eventually win that fight as long as we pursue policies that will make it easier to protect our homeland and the American people.

One of the lessons we learned from 9/11 was the need to strengthen information sharing among Federal, State, and local authorities, and while we have taken steps to address this in the past, we need to do more.

This act, the TRACER Act, introduced by Congressman Rutherford, would require the Department of Homeland Security to share with local and regional fusion centers important information regarding potential risks posed by individuals who were previously convicted on charges related to terrorism. More specifically, it would allow DHS to share the expected place and date of release of these incarcerated terrorists.

Providing law enforcement officials with this information will allow them to minimize potential risks to their communities by countering extremist recidivism. This legislation is an opportunity to strengthen coordination between all levels of law enforcement and help keep Americans safe.

Again, I would like to thank Congressman Rutherford for all of his hard work on this legislation, and I hope that his constituents and the entire State of Florida make a strong recovery in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma.
As someone who has personally toured devastated communities back home

in my home State of Texas as a result of Hurricane Harvey, it is clear that there are still many long days ahead. However, we can be very thankful for the men and women at DHS, including FEMA and the United States Coast Guard, as well as thousands of local first responders and volunteers who have been called to action.

The American people deserve to know that all levels of government are working together to keep our homeland safe. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan bill. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. Speaker, I, once again, urge my colleagues to support this important legislation. It is bipartisan, ensures that State and local law enforcement have greater access to Federal counterterrorism information and, most importantly, neighborhoods; when terrorists are released back into the communities, they at least know who they have in their neighborhoods.

I also want to applaud Congressman Rutherford, who cannot be here today because of Hurricane Irma. My thoughts and prayers are with the State of Florida as they continue to respond and recover from that devastating hurricane.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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