[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 12]
[House]
[Pages 16116-16117]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              KEEP AMERICANS INFORMED ON HOMELAND SECURITY

  (Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, as we enter this week and 
begin a very legislatively-intense week, members of the Select 
Committee on Homeland Security will be meeting this afternoon to begin 
to legislate and implement the reauthorization of the homeland security 
efforts.
  I call today for a unified effort. I call today for telling the 
American people the truth and being able to explain to them the 
substance of chatter and the importance of unifying around a single 
theme of securing the homeland.
  It is important to note as we leave this body at the end of the week, 
going to our respective home sites but also to our respective 
conventions, selecting nominees for the Presidency of the United 
States, it is important for local communities to be informed aptly. We 
must explain more extensively the color system, use what is right, 
pronounce when it is important to pronounce, and not utilize any of 
this for political purposes.
  The debate this afternoon in our Select Committee on Homeland 
Security

[[Page 16117]]

should be vigorous, special interest should have no place. The only 
place that should be in this mark-up should be the place of the 
American people, to ensure their safety. For many do believe that we 
are not as safe as we were 4 years ago, and we need to work in a 
unified policy to ensure that happens.
  Internationally and domestically, securing the homeland is balanced 
between our freedom and our rights, as well as our ability to secure 
our local communities. I constantly believe that we should engage the 
American people in the security of our homeland.

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