Tom Carper | United States Senator for Delaware E-mail Senator Carper

Homeland Security

The world changed on Sept. 11, 2001. We must take every possible step to keep America safe while protecting the values that make the United States such a wonderful place to live and continuing to honor the victims of the horrible events of that day.

Since 9/11, my colleagues and I on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee have overseen both the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and the historic overhaul of our nation's intelligence community. I promise that I will continue to do everything in my power to give the department the tools it needs to be effective and to work for a more cohesive intelligence network that will better protect the American public.

The attacks in London, Madrid and other cities have shown us that the war against terror is an on-going struggle and we must be diligent in taking whatever steps are needed to keep us safe. It has become abundantly clear that terrorist organizations have targeted transportation systems in the United States and abroad. While Amtrak, freight railroads and local transit agencies are doing what they can, the federal government has not done its fair share to safeguard our nation's transportation system against similar terrorist attacks.

At Home in Delaware — Our state might be small geographically, but it is home to significant and critical infrastructure such as chemical facilities, oil refineries and one of the most important ports in the country. The consequences of a potential attack on any of these sites would be disastrous. I will continue to work with my colleagues to ensure that states like Delaware get an appropriate share of federal first responder aid.

Despite some continuing vulnerabilities, we have made much progress since 9/11. However, there is still work to be done to protect our infrastructure and make our citizens safe from terrorist attack. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues in a bipartisan fashion to develop legislation that strengthens our national security and protects the American way of life.