[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 3]
[Senate]
[Page 3642]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           TERRORIST THREATS

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, in recent weeks we have again been 
reminded of the pervasive threat posed by Islamic terrorists to the 
world. We have seen ghastly images in places as diverse as Brussels, 
Yemen, and Lahore. Attacks seem to be coming nearly weekly now, and it 
feels as if we hear of a new one almost every time we flip on the news.
  Over the weekend, the chairman of the Intelligence Committee 
delivered an address focused on the threat facing us and what we can 
ultimately do to overcome it. Senator Burr noted that he could not 
remember a time when the United States and its allies faced a greater 
array of threats across the world, which is why, as he put it, ``we 
cannot simply focus our efforts on how to best respond to attacks once 
they've already happened.'' Senator Burr spoke on the significance of 
working with our allies to target threats at every level. He talked 
about the importance of ensuring that law enforcement has the tools and 
authorities needed to keep Americans safe. He also underlined the need 
for President Obama to do more in directly taking on ISIL and made 
clear that doing so would require leadership that reached beyond the 
administration's current containment strategy.
  It is clear that defeating ISIL, Al Qaeda, and its affiliates will 
require concerted action by our military, the intelligence community, 
and international partners around the globe. That is why we have 
continued to press the administration for a serious plan to defeat 
these terrorist groups and not simply attempt to contain them. In 
addition to the ongoing air campaign, the President has lauded 
deploying special operations forces to target and pursue ISIL. It is a 
positive step, but a credible ground force will be needed to defeat 
ISIL.
  As Senator Burr put it, ``We're beyond containment and must move 
decisively and with purpose to eliminate the Islamic State.''
  ``The President,'' he continued, has accurately stated ``that `ISIL 
poses a threat to the entire civilized world.' Now is the time for our 
strategy to match that threat.''

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