Fighting Terrorism
FIGHTING TERRORISM -- (House of Representatives - March 17, 2005)
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Mr. McCAUL of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Kentucky for his leadership in managing this very important debate here today. As the gentleman mentioned, I have a background in counterterrorism in the Justice Department. I know this war on terror firsthand. I serve on the Homeland Security Committee and the International Relations Committee.
You know, many believe that the war on terror began on September the 11th, 2001, but the fact of the matter is we have been at war for several decades. You do not have to go back very far for evidence of that. As recently as 1993 an individual by the name of Ramzi Yousef entered the United States claiming political asylum. He was detained and given a notice to appear. He failed to appear at that hearing. Instead he would join the first al Qaeda cell in downtown Manhattan.
We recently passed the REAL ID Act to make it more difficult for those like Ramzi Yousef to obtain political asylum in this country.
After joining his fellow classmates from the bin Laden academy, he engaged in a conspiracy to blow up the World Trade Center. Fortunately, the Towers remained standing that day. But that day would come later. And that was Osama bin Laden's dream.
Then the embassies in Africa were bombed, and the USS Cole. In 1997, bin Laden openly and publicly declared war against the United States. The only thing that troubled him was that the United States would not respond back to his declaration of war. It seemed like the United States was a sleeping giant, and it would not be until the bloodiest alarm of 9/11 that the giant would finally awake.
And now, to the present. There is positive news in this war on terror. We have rooted out al Qaeda in its caves in Afghanistan. We have killed or captured nearly 75 percent of the leadership. We have liberated Afghanistan and held free elections for the first time in the country's history, and we have liberated Iraq. We know that Zarqawi in Iraq has significant ties to bin Laden. We know that al Qaeda today says it has the right to kill 4 million Americans, 2 million of them children. It is a threat that we take very serious today, and it is a threat that we are responding to.
We have seen significant and positive developments in terms of the Syrians pulling out of Lebanon.
Rarely in the history of the world has freedom moved so swiftly through a region. In places where oppression, tyranny and inhumane treatment once flourished, we now find nations waking up to the reality of self-ruled governments and the benefits that come with their new democracies. In Iraq for the first time in more than a generation, people are speaking up for or questioning governments, a new right for many of them. And this discourse is occurring not in closed rooms or the hidden chambers of a dictator's prison, but in the legislative halls of a free Iraq and Afghanistan.
As recently as this week, we as a Congress passed an emergency wartime supplemental bill. We have an opportunity to continue our commitment to the brave fighting men and women who are helping ensure this birth of democracy by providing the necessary tools to protect themselves, by providing the body armor that they need, by providing the armed Humvees that they need, and by increasing death benefits from $12,000 to $100,000.
The United States Government and Coalition Forces have trained and equipped nearly 82,000 Iraqi police and highway patrol officers, and along with soldiers, the United States and its allies are well on the way to helping Iraqis defend and protect themselves in their own country.
In all, more than 142,000 Iraqi police officers and soldiers, many of whom have already taken over the responsibilities of protecting their freedom, have received training. About 130,000 of those troops helped ensure the success of the Iraqi elections, some even died to protect those vital votes. Add to that of Iraq's 18 provinces, 12 are now being patrolled and policed by Iraqis. And on February 21, the 40th Iraqi National Guard Brigade officially assumed control of its area of operation in and around Baghdad. This is the first Iraqi brigade to stand alone and have direct control over an area of operation. While the Coalition Partners continue to advise the brigade, the areas will be under complete Iraqi control.
With the $5.7 billion proposed to train Iraqi troops in the supplemental budget, we are making a confident investment in a nation that will uphold the democracy those in those lands have fought so hard for.
But our need to help spread freedom also includes Afghanistan. We voted on a $1.3 billion investment to be made there to stabilize this emerging democracy and eventually reduce U.S. forces in the area. We have seen American forces quietly making tremendous progress in a land which for so long had none. Already, Americans have trained 36,000 national and local Afghani police officers, 1,000 border security agents and 400 highway patrol officers. Coalition Forces have set up six training locations to make it efficient to train these troops, and we must remember by training these troops we are spreading and securing democracy, and therefore making us safer here at home. With each and every Iraqi and Afghanistan troop trained, America is one step closer to bringing its sons, its daughters, its husbands and wives home for good.
I would like to close with a very powerful story. It is a story of Janet and Bill Norwood. It is the story of Sergeant Byron Norwood. As many Members recall, at the State of the Union, Mr. and Mrs. Norwood sat right over there. The President talked about how their son, Byron, lost his life. He lost his life in an incredibly brave story. He rescued seven Marines held hostage by insurgents. He saved seven Marines' lives from the insurgence in Iraq, and paid the ultimate sacrifice in the process. It was a defining moment in the State of the Union, the warm embrace between Janet Norwood and Safia from Iraq.
I would like to close by reading a card that I received from Mrs. Norwood. With each parent I have talked to who lost a loved one in Iraq, they all said the same thing, "Finish the job."
This is a picture of Sergeant Byron Norwood. And in the card written to me, Mrs. Norwood said, "Dear Representative McCaul.
"We want you to know how much we have appreciated your visits to our home. It was a pleasure to meet you and Linda and to be able to share more about Byron with you. Knowing that you and so many other Americans honor and respect his sacrifice helps greatly to ease our sorrow.
"Thank you also for the flags. The one that was flown over the Capitol on the day that Byron died will always have a special place in a beautifully displayed box with other treasures from Byron's Marine Corps service. He would be so amazed and so proud.
"The whole idea of the Post Office naming is such a stunning honor. One of the things we worried about was that people would soon forget about Byron. If your bill passes, that will never happen, and that is such a great comfort.
"If you ever become aware of any way I can be of service in my new role as a Gold Star Mother, either to the government or to the Gold Star Moms, please let me know. Sincerely, Janet."
Mr. Speaker, this is what it is all about. This brings this war on terror home to the homes of every family in this Nation, and it is a war that we will prevail in.
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