Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2018

Floor Speech

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Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

The amendment I am offering today highlights a critical security concern that must be addressed in order to keep the American people safe. Over the past several years, terrorists in Europe and around the world have added vehicular attacks to their deadly arsenal. From Paris to Barcelona and Jerusalem to London, terrorists have rented trucks and vans to commit horrible attacks, leaving hundreds dead and countless seriously injured.

While the United States has yet to experience an attack on the scale of those that have occurred in Europe, we must do everything in our power to make sure that the individuals who do us harm do not eventually slip through the cracks.

I believe the U.S. Department of Homeland Security should have the discretion to use its funds to explore partnerships with van and truck rental companies so that background checks may be conducted for individuals attempting to procure these vehicles. This amendment is a first step towards recognizing and addressing the potential vulnerability of American citizens to these terrible attacks.

It is my hope that I continue to work with the chairman as well as the Committee on Homeland Security to pursue legislative measures that will address the vehicular attacks and actions so that we can guard against them.
I thank the chairman, the ranking member, and my colleagues for their
support.

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