[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 25 (Wednesday, February 28, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1695-S1696]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     U.S. POSTAL INSPECTION SERVICE

 Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to the 
exceptional men and women of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, a 
premiere Federal law enforcement agency and protector of the U.S. mail. 
Founded by Benjamin Franklin, the Nation's first postmaster general, it 
is one of the oldest Federal law enforcement agencies. The Postal

[[Page S1696]]

Inspection Service has a long, proud, and successful history of 
enforcing laws against those who would use the Nation's postal system 
to defraud, endanger, or otherwise harm the American people.
  America has long entrusted her secrets and commerce to the Postal 
Service. Dedicated postal workers have delivered untold love letters 
from sweethearts, care packages from home, financial instruments from 
bankers, and mail-order parcels from merchants. Preserving this trust 
is the Postal Inspection Service. In days past, Postal Inspectors 
protected colonial America's post offices from theft and embezzlement 
and protected the American people from mail fraud swindles following 
the Civil War. Postal Inspectors solved the last known stagecoach 
robbery in the United States in 1916 and protected the transfer of the 
Nation's $15.5 billion gold reserve from New York to Fort Knox in 1934. 
Postal Inspectors organized the massive military mail system during 
World War II and protected the priceless Hope Diamond when it was 
transferred to the Smithsonian Institution in 1958. In recent years, 
Postal Inspectors have conducted major investigations from Wall Street 
insider trading to child pornography to international art fraud. The 
Postal Inspection Service was one of three Federal law enforcement 
agencies assigned to the Unabomber task force.
  As a testament to their reputation and professionalism, postal 
inspectors were selected by former Senator John Danforth to serve as 
the primary investigators looking into the confrontation at Waco, TX. 
In 1996, Postal Inspectors served on the Federal task force 
investigating the shootout at Ruby Ridge, ID.
  In addition to its expertise as a Federal law enforcement agency, the 
Postal Inspection Service serves as the security arm of the U.S. Postal 
Service. When natural disasters or civil disorders occur, postal 
inspectors and postal police officers are among the first to respond, 
protecting the U.S. mail, postal workers, and property. Immediately 
following these emergencies, the Postal Inspection Service works with 
the Federal Emergency Management Agency to re-establish basic 
Government mail service, and safeguards delivery of the tons of private 
relief and aid that is often sent through the U.S. mail.
  The Service continues to work to preserve America's confidence in the 
U.S. mail, even as the Internet assumes a prominent role in our 
society. Just as it has adapted from stagecoach robberies to Wall 
Street insider trading schemes, the Postal Inspection Service has now 
set its sights on Internet fraudsters and cyber-criminals who use the 
U.S. mail as part of their schemes. It is appropriate that the Service 
is currently giving significant prevention and investigative attention 
to the issue of identity theft where thieves steal other's identifying 
information--name, address, date of birth, Social Security number and 
mother's maiden name--to take over the victim's financial accounts.
  Today, there are approximately 2,000 postal inspectors stationed 
throughout the United States responsible for enforcing more than 200 
Federal criminal statutes.
  As the ranking Democrat on the Subcommittee on International 
Security, Proliferation, and Federal Services, I have the privilege of 
providing legislative support and oversight of this distinguished 
department. I am continually impressed with the quality and breadth of 
service they provide the American public. In addition to a large cadre 
of postal inspectors, the Postal Inspection Service includes uniformed 
postal police officers, forensic specialists, and a host of other 
professional and technical employees. I thank the men and women of the 
Postal Inspection Service, and recognize them in this special way for 
their outstanding dedication and service to the country.

                          ____________________