Issue Position: War on Terrorism
Issue Position
A large number of constituents have contacted me about the war against terrorism. By far, it is the most common concern people raise with me. With this page I hope to provide you with more detailed information to address those concerns.
The concerns fall into two categories: the degree to which we are engaged in a war against terrorism, and the quality of the intelligence regarding weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
On the issue of terrorism, following is a list of actual (and some of the foiled) terrorist attacks that have cost, or had the potential to cost, American lives. It is by no means a complete listing of every instance, but one that documents the magnitude of terrorist activity.
On the issues of intelligence regarding weapons of mass destruction (WMD), it is critically important that we review the facts as reported by the head of the Iraq Survey Group, and former United Nations chief weapons inspector, Dr. David Kay. Most of Dr. Kay's key findings have been ignored or forgotten. Instead the focus has been on the lack of finding "warehouses" of WMD.
It has been documented that Saddam Hussein developed, used and was continuing to research chemical, biological and nuclear weapons. The United Nations and every major European nation believed his WMD development was quite advanced.
Hussein used these weapons against his own citizens (the Kurds), invaded two foreign countries (Iran and Kuwait), was developing long range missiles, and ignored 17 U.N. Resolutions over ten years requiring cooperation with weapons inspections.
Innocent Iraqis were tortured, mutilated, murdered and disappeared during his rule. You have no doubt seen pictures of the mass graves in Iraq, which graphically reminded us of the hundreds of thousand of people he murdered and for which he is now standing trial. During my own visit to Iraq last fall, I heard many stories of his brutal regime. There is little doubt among nations that he would have used weapons again since he had used them in the past and showed no signs of stopping.
I assure you investigations will continue regarding the abilities of our intelligence agencies to find and correctly analyze essential information. Unfortunately, our intelligence capabilities were significantly reduced in the past decade. According to the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, during the 1990's, the number of CIA operations officers declined by about one quarter, CIA stations declined by about a third, reporting assets declined by 40 percent and intelligence reporting declined by about one half. This placed us at a tremendous disadvantage in predicting terrorist activities.
As a result, there is no doubt that changes are needed in our intelligence agencies. As a member of the National Security Subcommittee of the Government Reform Committee, I will continue to work towards improvements that bring our intelligence gathering abilities to needed levels. For the future, we must be armed with solid information.
Despite these weaknesses, we have made progress: Libya has declared and is dismantling its WMD, Iran opened its nuclear facilities to inspectors and Pakistan has begun to round up terrorists. In addition, two thirds of senior al Qaeda leaders have been captured or killed since 9/11, and millions of dollars used to fund terrorist activities have been intercepted. But we still have many monumental challenges before us.
Protecting our country against terrorism is made more difficult by the unique organization of terrorist networks that go to great lengths in order to conceal their relationship with any country. Terrorists know that any known link would invite immediate retaliation.
We are a nation and a world at war. Our citizens have been attacked overseas and at home. Thousands have died. When our country is attacked, we must take all necessary steps to protect our citizens at home and abroad. Acts of terrorism are not just crimes, but acts of war. We have a history of defending our soil and our people when we are in inherent danger, and with the threat of terrorism looming over us, we must defend ourselves. We cannot afford to ignore the facts and we must make future decisions based upon them.
TERRORISM TIMELINE
November 1979 - Tehran, Iran
American Embassy attacked and seized, hostages taken - released 1981.
April 1983 - Beirut
63 people killed from truck filled with explosives driven into U.S Embassy.
October 1983 - Beirut
241 U.S. servicemen killed from truck filled with explosives driven through main gate at U.S. Marine Corps
headquarters.
March 1984
The Islamic Jihad kidnapped and later murdered Political Officer William Buckley in Beirut, Lebanon.
September 1984 - Beirut
Truck filled with explosives crashes through gate into U.S Embassy compound in Beirut, no deaths.
June 1985
A Trans-World Airlines flight was high jacked en route to Rome from Athens by two Lebanese Hizballah terrorists and forced to fly to Beirut. Eight crew members and 145 passengers were held for 17 days, and one American hostage, a U.S. Navy sailor, was murdered.
August 1985 - Rhein-Main, Germany
22 killed from car filled with explosives driven into main gate at U.S. Air Force Base.
October 1985
Achille Lauro cruise ship hijacked, one American killed.
November 1985
Hijackers on Egyptian plane kill U.S. passengers.
December 1985 - Rome and Vienna
20 killed from suicide bombers at U.S. and Israeli international airports.
April 1996 - Berlin
Two U.S. soldiers were killed and 79 U.S. servicemen were injured in a Libyan bomb attack on a nightclub in West Germany.
February 1988
U.S. Marine Corps. Lt. Col W. Higgins was kidnapped and murdered by the Iraqi-backed Hizballah group.
April 1988 - Naples
Organization of Jihad Brigades exploded a car bomb outside a USO club in Naples, Italy, killing one U.S. soldier.
April 1988
259 killed in bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland.
January 1991
Attempted Iraqi attacks on U.S. Ambassador's home in Indonesia and USIS library in Manila.
December 1992 - Aden, Yemen
Two killed from bomb at Gold Mohur Hotel immediately after one hundred U.S. servicemen departed on their way to duty in Somalia.
February 1993 - World Trade Center, New York City
Six deaths and more than 1,000 injuries from bombing.
April 1993 - Kuwait
Attempted Assassination of President Bush by Iraqi agents during visit to Kuwait.
October 1993 - Mogadishu, Somalia
18 U.S. servicemen killed, Bin Laden claims he supplied weapons and fighters to Somalis involved in the battle.
1994 - New York City
Investigators thwarted attempt to blow up Holland and Lincoln tunnels and other New York City landmarks.
Late 1994 early 1995 - Manila, Philippines
Investigators discovered plots to assassinate the Pope and President Clinton during visits to the Philippines.
1995
Investigators discovered plans to explode a dozen commercial jets over the Pacific.
June 1995 - Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Unsuccessful attempt to assassinate Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
November 1995 - Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Five Americans killed by car bomb at a U.S.-run training facility for the Saudi National Guard.
June 1996 - Dhahran, Saudi Arabia
19 U.S. airmen killed by truck bomb at the Khobar Towers apartment compound where hundreds of U.S. Air Force personnel were stationed.
January 1997 - Egyptian Letter Bombs
A series of letter bombs with Alexandria, Egypt, postmarks were discovered at Al-Hayat newspaper bureaus in Washington, New York City, London and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Three similar devices, also postmarked in Egypt, were found at a prison facility in Leavenworth, Kansas.
February 1997 - New York City
A Palestine gunman opened fire on tourists at an observation deck atop the Empire State Building in New York City, killing a Danish national and wounding visitors before turning the gun on himself. A handwritten note carried by the gunman claimed this was punishment attack against the "enemies of Palestine."
November 1997 - Pakistan
Two unidentified gunmen shot to death four U.S. auditors from Union Texas Petroleum Corporation and their Pakistani driver after the drove away from the Sheraton Hotel in Karachi.
November 1997 - Egypt
Al-Gama'at al-Islamiyya gunmen shot and killed 58 tourists and four Egyptians and wounded 26 others at the Hapshepsut Temple in the Valley of the Kings near Luxor.
August 1998 - Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania & Nairobi, Kenya
224 killed, including 12 Americans, and more than 5,000 wounded by truck bombs at U.S. embassies in both cities.
December 1999 - Port Angeles, Washington
U.S. Customs agents stopped Ahmed Ressam from crossing out of Canada into the U.S. with a truck full of explosives headed to Los Angeles airport.
December 1999 - Amman, Jordan
Intelligence officials reveal plot to kill U.S. and Israeli citizens by bombing a fully booked hotel and prominent Christian sites over millennium celebrations.
October 2000 - Aden, Yemen
17 sailors killed and 30 wounded when terrorists on boat rigged with explosives attack the U.S.S. Cole.
December 2000 - Aden, Yemen
A bomb exploded in a plaza across the street from the U.S. Embassy in Manila, injuring nine persons.
September 2001 - New York City; Washington, DC; Shanksville, Pennsylvania
Thousands killed from four hijacked passenger airliners crashed into New York City's two tallest buildings, the Pentagon and a field in rural Pennsylvania.
September 2001 - Paris and Brussels
Intelligence officials uncover evidence of plots to bomb the U.S. embassy in Paris, and possibly also NATO headquarters in Brussels.
October 2001 - Sarajevo, Bosnia
NATO officials break up an al-Qaeda cell planning to attack the U.S. embassy and Eagle Base airfield, home base to 3,000 U.S. peacekeepers.
December 2001
Richard Reid attempts to blow up a commercial flight from United Kingdom en route to United States using bombs hidden in his shoes.
March 2004 - Madrid, Spain
198 killed and more than 1,400 wounded from 10 coordinated bomb detonations on Madrid subway during commuter rush hour.
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