[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 17882]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                      KEEP FAITH WITH OUR AIRLINES

  (Mr. MATHESON asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. MATHESON. Mr. Speaker, over the last 2 weeks, we have all seen 
what has become of our airline industry. Airport concourses across the 
country seem more like ghost towns than centers of international 
commerce. The lounges are empty, the taxi stands and busses are vacant. 
Across the country, airports that should be at the center of municipal 
liveliness, now seem to be monuments to a bygone era.
  The terrorist attacks left our nation reeling, but they did not 
change the fundamental soundness of any of our industries or the safety 
of future fliers. Over the past 2 weeks, our airline system has been 
hurt much more by perception than reality. It is our responsibility in 
this Congress not only to provide cash to the airlines, but also to 
provide reassurance and security to their passengers.
  Airport and airplane safety should now become the domain of the 
Federal Government. Before September 11, security was provided by the 
airlines that usually contracted this service to the lowest bidder. 
Securing the safety of the traveling public should be a basic function 
of government. We have the Coast Guard to protect boaters, we make sure 
the State Police monitor our highways, the skill of government-trained 
air traffic controllers has all but guaranteed the safety of our space. 
Why should security in airports and airplane cabins be any different?

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