[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Page 5291]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        BOSTON MARATHON BOMBINGS

  Mr. CORNYN. Madam President, yesterday afternoon we were reminded 
that America faces determined enemies willing to engage in barbaric 
acts against innocent civilians--men, women, and children. On Patriots' 
Day--a day that has always been a celebration of American heritage and 
American freedom--terrorist bombings took the lives of at least three 
people standing near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, including 
an 8-year-old boy. His name was Martin Richard. He was watching runners 
complete the race alongside his family. His mother and his sister also 
sustained injuries, along with more than 150 other people.
  We still don't know who is responsible for this terrible atrocity, 
but we do know the people of Boston responded to this attack with 
courage and compassion. As the smoke rose, the American people saw 
their fellow citizens running toward--not away but toward--the scene of 
the blast. From the police officers and the first responders who 
secured the bomb site and loaded the injured into ambulances to the 
marathon participants who literally ran to hospitals to donate blood, 
to the doctors and other medical professionals who performed emergency 
lifesaving treatments on the victims, to the Boston area residents who 
opened their homes to those who had been left stranded, this attack 
brought out the very best in our country.
  In fact, in the immediate aftermath of the bombing, so many people 
rushed to donate blood, the Red Cross literally had to turn them away. 
Dr. Richard Wolfe, the head of the emergency medicine department at 
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, called it ``the smoothest sort of 
handling of mass casualty I've ever seen in my career''--something I 
hope none of us have to see again.
  This Chamber has spent the last 4 months, and even years before that, 
debating issues such as taxes, spending, and health care. But the No. 1 
responsibility of the Federal Government is to keep the American people 
safe and secure. Our response to this attack must be firm and 
unequivocal. We must send a clear message that we will never compromise 
our values or our freedom in the face of terrorist violence. We must 
stay on the offensive against the enemies of civilization and remain 
vigilant in our day-to-day lives. The victims of Boston deserve nothing 
less.
  I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Schatz). The Senator from Iowa.
  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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