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Smith Welcomes Release of 9/11 Report |
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“I welcome the release of the 9/11 Commission Report and I applaud the hard work done by the members of the commission, especially Chairmen Tom Kean and Vice Chairman Lee Hamilton, who did an exemplary job,” Smith said. “I would also like to thank the family members who lost loved ones in the tragic attacks for their hard work and perseverance in working with Congress and the Administration to establish this important panel. Several of these family members, including a dedicated group of women from central New Jersey who lost their husbands on September 11, did yeoman’s work in both helping to establish the commission and in ensuring that it went about its work in a comprehensive and deliberative manner. “Their hard work will help provide a safer and more secure “As the former Chairman of the Subcommittee on International Operations and Human Rights that probed the 1998 bombings of U.S. Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, I look forward to helping to lead efforts in Congress to enhance oversight of intelligence operations and to implement many of those recommendations that will break through the communications problems and lack of information sharing in our intelligence agencies. “Lessons must be learned from past failures in an effort to ensure our nation is adequately trained and prepared to anticipate, respond to, and thwart future attacks,” Smith said. As Chairman of the Subcommittee on International Operations and Human Rights, Smith conducted aggressive oversight hearings to determine what could be done to improve security at U.S. Embassies. Following this extensive review, Smith wrote landmark legislation – the Embassy Security Act (PL 106-113) – that authorized record amounts of funding to make substantial security improvements to U.S. diplomatic facilities. | ||
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For Immediate Release: July 22, 2004 Contact: Nick Manetto (202) 225-3765 |
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