Terrorist and Foreign Fighter Travel Exercise Act of 2019

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. Speaker, in the almost 18 years since the September 11 terrorist attacks, threats to the American public have become increasingly complex and today include threats posed by foreign fighters.

In 2015, the Committee on Homeland Security's Task Force on Combating Terrorism and Foreign Fighter Travel issued a bipartisan report that included a number of recommendations.

H.R. 1590 requires the Department of Homeland Security to develop and conduct a foreign fighter exercise that could be built into existing DHS domestic preparedness exercises. Importantly, after the exercise, DHS is required to submit an after-action report to Congress detailing the initial findings, plans for incorporating lessons learned, and any legislative changes informed by this exercise.

A very similar version of this legislation passed the full House last Congress. I am pleased that, through the markup process, modest modifications were made to improve the measure.

Mr. Speaker, I urge the passage of H.R. 1590, and I reserve the balance of my time.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, before I close, let me compliment the gentleman on the passage of this bill. This is, I believe, his maiden bill before the House of Representatives, and, from one Mississippian to another, I want to congratulate him for that.

Mr. Speaker, because terrorists are constantly seeking new ways to cause harm and spread fear, we must continuously work to keep pace with the evolving threat landscape.

H.R. 1590 seeks to strengthen the Nation's abilities to close the gaps in how we identify and assess threats from terrorist foreign fighters. As such, I support it and ask my colleagues to support it as well.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source