[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 170 (Monday, December 10, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2244-E2245]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  EXPRESSING SENSE OF CONGRESS IN HONORING THE CREW AND PASSENGERS OF 
                       UNITED AIRLINES FLIGHT 93

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. THOMAS G. TANCREDO

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 5, 2001

  Mr. TANCREDO. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3248 and wish to 
fully express my gratitude to the crew of United Flight 93, and 
especially its captain, Jason M. Dahl. It was with immense sadness that 
I learned that the Dahl family and indeed all of Colorado had been 
robbed on September 11th of a good man and a good father. Mr. Dahl's 
family, to paraphrase President Lincoln, must feel enormous pride for 
having laid such a costly sacrifice upon the altar of freedom.
  According to a friend, Dahl learned to fly before he learned to 
drive. A neighbor remembered Dahl's football and baseball games in the 
street with neighborhood children and his commitment to his family and 
his community. Having read the statements of those who eulogized him, I 
cannot help but conclude that the gentleman flying that plane was one 
of America's best--a great father and husband alike. Since September 
11th, America has rediscovered the importance of family, and turned to 
family members for comfort and understanding. It is no small tragedy 
that the

[[Page E2245]]

Dahl family does not have this luxury, having been left incomplete on 
September 11th.
  Most of us saw evil on that day watching the pictures of the two 
planes collide with the World Trade Towers in New York City. Jason Dahl 
almost surely saw evil in a different form. He must have seen it in the 
faces of the hijackers and known that it was in their hearts.
  The loss of Mr. Dahl and all of the passengers aboard Flight 93 will 
not be forgotten--certainly not by this body. This morning, we passed a 
resolution calling for a plaque to be placed on the grounds of the 
Capitol memorializing their deaths. I would suggest that their memory 
will go much farther. The fact that this great building and its dome--
two irreplaceable symbols of American democracy--still stand today will 
always be a living memorial to their sacrifice.
  My prayers, Mr. Speaker, are with all of the innocent civilians who 
died aboard that plane, and especially Jason Dahl and his family.

                          ____________________