[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 65 (Tuesday, May 4, 2010)]
[House]
[Page H3103]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           WHAT IS THE PLAN?

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, our homeland security today is 
paralyzed by denial, ignorance and political correctness. Systematic 
dependence on luck is not a national security plan; it is a disaster 
waiting to happen.
  From the borders to the big cities, America's national security is 
always in critical, or seems to be in critical disarray. In 1998, Osama 
bin Laden declared war on America, but we didn't pay attention to it. 
What is it going to take for our leaders to understand that radical 
Islamic terrorists want to murder our people?

                              {time}  1945

  Law enforcement in New York--Federal, State, and city--has done an 
incredible job in a short amount of time to apprehend the Times Square 
terrorist despite dangerous political games being played by some 
officials. In spite of politics, our lawmen acted swiftly, efficiently, 
and effectively in the capture of this terrorist.
  But New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg told the media, ``If I had 
to guess 25 cents, this would be . . . homegrown, maybe a mentally 
deranged person or someone with a political agenda that doesn't like 
the health care bill or something.''
  Now, isn't that helpful?
  The Times Square terrorist, Faisal Shahzad, was not a Tea Party-going 
taxpayer opposed to ObamaCare. There is no excuse for this reckless 
smear of the majority of Americans who opposes the government takeover 
of health care. It is irresponsible to play political games with 
national security; and even though Homeland Security Secretary 
Napolitano won't use the word ``terrorist,'' all of the indications are 
that this was an act of terror.
  The terrorist, Faisal Shahzad, was captured last night on an airplane 
bound for Dubai. Reports say the airline contacted the authorities to 
say that he made a last-minute reservation for the flight and that he 
got on the plane after paying cash. He is from Pakistan. Somehow, this 
radical terrorist was granted American citizenship in 2009. Shahzad 
told the FBI he went through a terror training camp in Pakistan in the 
region of Waziristan.
  He sounds like a terrorist to me.
  This is where the Taliban operates--the same Pakistani Taliban that 
immediately claimed responsibility for the Times Square foiled attack. 
Reports say Shahzad had been in Pakistan for the past several months. 
Eight people have now been arrested in Pakistan. Two of them are 
related to Shahzad.
  Over the past year, we have had a surge of attacks from radical 
Islamic jihadists who murder in the name of hate. For example, the Fort 
Hood shooter killed 14 Americans and injured 30 more. That was an act 
of terror. The attack on the Arkansas military recruiting station by a 
radical jihadist who killed an American soldier was an act of terror. 
Then there was the Christmas Day underwear bomber. That was an act of 
terror.
  In that case, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said ``the 
system worked'' when we caught the underwear bomber. That means the 
government plan in that case is for passengers on the plane to tackle 
terrorists who are trying to explode bombs that are hidden in their 
underwear. That's a plan? That's our national system?
  Combating terrorism takes vision. It takes moral clarity. There is no 
room for playing politics or politically correct games.
  Ronald Reagan once explained it this way:
  ``Above all, we must realize that no arsenal or no weapon in the 
arsenals of the world is so formidable as the will and moral courage of 
free men and women.
  ``It is a weapon our adversaries in today's world do not have. It is 
a weapon that we as Americans do have.
  ``Let that be understood by those who practice terrorism and prey 
upon their neighbors.''
  And that's just the way it is.

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