[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 16609]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         IN SUPPORT OF H. CON. RES. 464, PATRIOT DAY RESOLUTION

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Otter). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Bentsen) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. BENTSEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support today of H.Con. 
Resolution 464, commemorating the solemn occasion of the first 
anniversary of September 11, 2001, and the vicious attack on the United 
States and its people that day.
  September 11 will long be remembered not just for the death and 
destruction brought upon America and too many of our people, but also 
for the day in which innocence was lost. The hijacking of civilian 
aircraft and the taking of thousands of innocent bystanders' lives will 
forever be among the most heinous of crimes against humanity. Yet, 
while the attacks, designed to shake our Nation to its deepest roots 
and break our spirit to be a leader of the Free World, they only served 
to strengthen our resolve and show the world that the American sense of 
kindness and community could not be broken even by the most awful of 
acts.
  In the midst of a living hell only Dante could describe, Americans 
rose to respond, first by the police, firefighters, and emergency 
medical personnel who poured into burning buildings which had become 
infernos, risking life and limb to save a fellow citizen and later by 
military force. As we now know, many made the ultimate sacrifice. Yet, 
rather than create panic and chaos, the attacks by the terrorists only 
served to underscore our resolve. Clearly, in the early hours following 
the attacks, the actions of otherwise ordinary Americans proved beyond 
a reasonable doubt that the terrorists failed in their ultimate goal. 
While they were able to cause pain and suffering and shatter a sense of 
security felt here at home, they failed in destroying the spirit which 
is America. And, in causing the death and destruction, they exposed the 
world to their own twisted ideology of anger and hate and a lack of 
respect for freedom and human life.
  Mr. Speaker, in the intervening months, America, with our allies, has 
proven militarily that we can and will respond to defend ourselves and 
our freedom throughout the world. But even as important as it has been 
to respond swiftly and forcefully, it is now clear that the actions of 
those Americans who gave their lives on September 11, 2001, and those 
who responded to help them, and the faith that they inspired in the 
rest of us, resulted in a victory over the terrorists that very day.
  Now, we must continue to battle for freedom and democracy throughout 
the world, not only for our own defense, but also in the memory of 
those who first gave their lives for the cause on September 11, 2001.

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