REP. ANDREWS SHARES LONDON’S RESOLVE IN WAKE OF ATTACK

I join with my constituents and civilized people all over the world in expressing my sorrow for the atrocities committed on July 7, 2005 in London, and my support for Prime Minister Blair and the British people in their hour of tragedy. We are locked in a global struggle between civilization and barbarism. While the barbarians struck another blow, they will never prevail in this struggle. This attack in London reminds us of what we must do to succeed, and warns us of the urgent need to improve our Nation's efforts.

First, we must dramatically improve our intelligence capabilities so that we identify and destroy terrorist leaders before they attack innocent people.  Second, we must dramatically improve defenses on public transit systems - particularly trains. What happened in London could easily happen in New York or Washington tomorrow. The U.S. did not take this threat seriously after the tragedy in Madrid. We have now received our second alarm. Third, we must dramatically improve our efforts to stop the trafficking of nuclear, chemical, biological and radiological weapons. There is no doubt that had London’s attackers had access to any of these weapons, they would have used them, and the losses would have been exponentially higher. Finally, we must improve our efforts to convince people all over the world, particularly young Muslims, that our shared path of human freedom and dignity is far superior to the choice of death and destruction offered by the jihadists who launched this dishonorable attack.

As a member of the House Armed Services Committee, I will continue my work and determination toward the end that civilized people will win this struggle.

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