    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book I)]
    [April 17, 2004]
    [Pages 600-601]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's Radio Address
    April 17, 2004

        Good morning. For the past year, the September the 11th Commission
    has met to examine the facts surrounding the terrorist attack on our
    Nation. I look forward to the Commission's report, and I expect it to
    contain important recommendations for preventing future attacks.
        One lesson our Nation has already learned is that law enforcement
    and intelligence personnel must be allowed to share more information, so
    that we can better pursue terrorists inside the United States. In the
    weeks after September the 11th, Congress made essential reforms by
    passing the USA PATRIOT Act. That vital legislation gained overwhelming
    bipartisan support in the House of Representatives and passed the Senate
    by a vote of 98 to one.
        The PATRIOT Act tore down the artificial wall between the FBI and
    CIA and enhanced their ability to share the information needed to hunt
    terrorists. The PATRIOT Act also marked a major shift in law enforcement
    priorities. We're no longer emphasizing only the investigation of past
    crimes but also the prevention of future attacks. Because we passed the
    PATRIOT Act, FBI agents can better conduct electronic surveillance and
    wiretaps on suspected terrorists. And they now can apply other essential
    tools--many of which have long been used to investigate white-collar
    criminals and drug traffickers--to stop terrorist attacks on our
    homeland.
        Our Government's first duty is to protect the American people. The
    PATRIOT Act fulfills that duty in a way that is fully consistent with
    constitutional protections. In making America safer, it has helped us
    defend our liberty. Since I signed the PATRIOT Act into law, Federal
    investigators have disrupted terror cells in at least six American
    cities. And since September the 11th, the Department of Justice has
    charged over 300 persons in terrorism-related investigations. So far,
    more than half of those individuals have been convicted or pled guilty.
        Key elements of the PATRIOT Act are set to expire next year. Some
    politicians in Washington act as if the threat to America will also
    expire on that schedule. Yet we have seen what the terrorists intend for
    us, in deadly attacks from Bali to Mombassa to Madrid. And we will not
    forget the lessons of September the 11th. To abandon the PATRIOT Act
    would deprive law enforcement and intelligence officers of needed tools
    in the war on terror and demonstrate willful blindness to a continuing
    threat.
        Next week, I will travel to Hershey, Pennsylvania, and Buffalo, New
    York, to meet with the law enforcement officers who see the importance
    of the PATRIOT Act in their daily duties. They know we must not let down
    our guard. The war on terror will be won on the offensive, so Congress
    must renew the PATRIOT Act.
        Every hour of the day, America depends on the work of vigilant law
    enforcement and intelligence personnel. These men and women have
    difficult and dangerous jobs, and they are performing superbly. In their

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    mission of security, they are joined by members of the Armed Forces who
    are taking the fight to our enemies overseas. The American people are
    grateful to all who defend us, and we will continue to give them every
    tool and resource they need to keep America safe.
        Thank you for listening.

    Note: The address was recorded at 2:31 p.m. on April 16 in the Cabinet
    Room at the White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on April 17. The
    transcript was made available by the Office of the Press Secretary on
    April 16 but was embargoed for release until the broadcast. The Office
    of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of
    this address.