Wiretapping Surveillance Program

WIRETAPPING SURVEILLANCE PROGRAM -- (House of Representatives - September 21, 2006)

(Ms. FOXX asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)

Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the President's initiative to surveil known and suspected terrorists who call from outside the United States into their calls within our borders. Simply put, this initiative has saved lives by gathering valuable intelligence our law enforcement has used to prevent and foil terrorist attacks that have and continue to be planned, as I speak.

It simply escapes me how anyone, especially the Democrats, could be against such a vital program in the global war on terror.

Maybe my colleagues are confused about the purpose and parameters of this program. This is not a program to listen in on American citizens' conversations. To the contrary, it is a narrowly tailored program that is used only in the case of international calls coming into the United States from known or suspected terrorists.

As a Nation, we are facing a new kind of war and an enemy using new and unconventional means of warfare. Many have characterized this war as a clash of civilizations. It is time we face the realization that we can use all of the tools available to win this war, or we can ignore the threat and pay heavy consequences through American lives.

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