[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 54 (Thursday, April 3, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H2709]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SECURITY FOR OUR PORTS

  (Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, today, unfortunately, 
the Democrats will not be allowed to offer an amendment that would 
dramatically increase the security of this Nation from terrorist 
activities, and that is an amendment to provide for the nuclear 
detection of nuclear devices that might be put into containers in ports 
overseas. We have 6 million containers a year that come to the United 
States. The CIA has told us, the intelligence agencies have told us 
that this is one of the prime ways to deliver nuclear material by a 
terrorist. The Hart-Rudman Commission that warned us of 9-11 prior to 
9-11 has warned us that this is the main way in which a terrorist would 
have an opportunity to deliver a nuclear device. But what do we do? We 
wait until the containers get to the port of San Francisco, to the port 
of Oakland, to the port of New Jersey, to the port of Miami to then 
check them.

                              {time}  1015

  It is too late if they get inside of our ports.
  If a nuclear device went off in one of our ports, it would not only 
devastate hundreds of thousands of lives, it would not only devastate 
the city, it would devastate the world economy.
  The Democratic amendment should have been allowed so we can check 
these containers before they leave Asia, before they leave Europe, 
before they leave Africa. That is security for the Nation.

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