[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 149 (Wednesday, October 22, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S13010-S13011]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          THE 9/11 COMMISSION

  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I wish to comment on the 9/11 Commission. 
That is the commission which has been put together by Federal law and 
asked to look into what happened on 9/11 and get all of the information 
from everybody to find out what happened leading up to the attack on 
this country. What did we know? What did the CIA know? What did the FBI 
know? What did the FAA do during the attack? What happened? Only by 
knowing what happened can we prevent it from happening again. Were 
there dots that should have been connected but weren't? Did we have 
information that could have perhaps prevented that attack had certain 
people known of it or had been told of it? Are there deficiencies in 
some of these agencies? Did people drop the ball?
  I do not know. But we put together a panel headed by former Governor

[[Page S13011]]

Keane of New Jersey. It is a distinguished panel. One of our former 
colleagues, Senator Cleland, is on that panel. It is called the 9/11 
Commission.
  I want to read a couple of statements. This statement was made 
October 10:

       In connection with the commission's second interim report 
     issued on September 23, 2003, we discuss the commission's 
     ongoing effort to get prompt access to some key executive 
     branch and White House documents that the commission needs to 
     complete its work on time. Although we can report substantial 
     progress, the commission is continuing to press for necessary 
     access to some key items.

  I don't understand why there would be problems in getting information 
from the CIA, or the FBI, or the White House, or the FAA. What on Earth 
is happening?
  This is the Federal inquiry into what happened on 9/11 and how we can 
prevent it from ever happening again. I would think every Federal 
agency would cooperate fully and immediately. But that, regrettably, 
has not been the case. October 15, a statement by the 9/11 Commission:

       Over the past two weeks, as a result of field interviews 
     conducted by our staff, the commission learned of serious 
     deficiencies in one agency's production of critical 
     documents.

  The agency in question happens to be the FAA. Now they indicate they 
are issuing subpoenas. In fact, they say this disturbing development at 
one agency has led the commission to reexamine its general policy of 
relying on document requests rather than subpoenas. They have voted to 
issue a subpoena to the FAA for documents which have already been 
requested.
  I don't understand. We have a 9/11 Commission to investigate the 
tragedy that occurred as a result of the terrorist attack on this 
country. That commission has to issue subpoenas to Federal agencies to 
get cooperation. I would think every single Federal agency, starting 
with the White House, would open its records immediately to this 
commission so we can understand what happened.
  I am not accusing anybody of anything, nor is the 9/11 Commission. We 
want to understand what happened. How did it happen? What clues might 
we have had? What kind of failing existed with respect to our 
intelligence that prevented us from knowing and, therefore, preventing 
these terrorist attacks? When I read this, I shake my head and think it 
is unbelievable that a commission created by this Congress, called the 
9/11 Commission, to get to the bottom of what happened on 9/11, has to 
issue subpoenas to anybody, or has to send out progress reports to say, 
Well, we have made progress now in our efforts to gain access to key 
White House documents. The White House has agreed to brief all 
commissioners on another set of highly sensitive documents. We will 
seek prompt resolution of the remaining issues regarding access of 
these documents.
  Why is there a problem? Why would not every agency in every part of 
this Government provide this information at will and upon the request 
of the 9/11 Commission?
  I hope we don't see these kinds of reports again. I hope the next 
report from this commission would tell us the President has requested 
every single agency to turn over every single document requested by the 
9/11 Commission immediately. Let this commission do its work and finish 
its work, make a report to the Congress and to the American people 
about what happened on 9/11, about what information existed leading up 
to 9/11, and how we can learn from that to protect this country against 
future terrorist attacks.
  I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. CARPER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. CARPER. Mr. President, we have just concluded what for many of us 
was a tough vote. I simply want to express my thanks to the 58 other 
Democrats and Republicans who joined me--59 in all--in voting for the 
motion to proceed and to take up for debate and amendment legislation 
that would reform the way we handle class action lawsuits in this 
country.
  I am disappointed with the vote, that we fell one vote short, but I 
am encouraged by some of the conversation that took place immediately 
following the vote by the leaders of both sides and a number of my 
colleagues, including Senator Dodd and Senator Landrieu.
  I sense there is a genuine willingness on the part of Democrats and 
Republicans and that one Independent not to give up on this issue. It 
is one that we need to address and we can address satisfactorily. My 
own belief is it is one we can address this year.
  I have talked to any number of Senators on our side of the aisle who 
are prepared to offer what I think are constructive perfecting 
amendments that would make a good bill much better.
  I hope what we will do in the days ahead is to reach across the 
aisle--Republicans to Democrats and Democrats to Republicans--to find a 
common ground that I think will exist with respect to many of these 
amendments and to then move forward together and, hopefully, to get to 
the end of the day when we can vote on a bill and not have to worry 
about the kind of partisan divide that in some cases characterized this 
vote and, frankly, characterizes too many votes we cast here.
  I was approached by one of my colleagues following the vote who asked 
if we lost the war. I said: No, no, maybe today the battle was lost but 
not the war. There is a realization that the way we handle class action 
litigation in this country is broken. It can be fixed.
  As we like to say in Delaware, ``If it isn't perfect, make it 
better.'' This bill that came out of committee is not perfect. It can 
be made better. That is what we are going to do.
  I yield back my time and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. INHOFE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Dole). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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