From National Review
House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner is one of the villains of the hour in Washington. He has had the temerity to insist that the intelligence-reform bill — inspired by the 9/11 Commission and largely focused on centralizing U.S. intelligence, for no very good reason — actually include some provisions drawn from the commission's work that will enhance domestic security.
Sensenbrenner wants the federal government to set standards for driver's licenses to make them more secure and less liable to exploitation by terrorists. This is one of the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission. It can be found on page 390 of its report, in bold. One proposal would have a driver's license expire with the holder's visa — several of the 9/11 hijackers were here on expired visas. Sensenbrenner also wants to tighten up the procedures around the U.S. asylum system and make it easier to detain and deport suspected terrorists. As the 9/11 Commission's staff report on terrorist travel noted, "Immigration cases against suspected terrorists were often mired for years in bureaucratic struggles over alien rights and the adequacy of evidence." A bill with all these provisions passed the House by a healthy 282-134 margin.
But the Senate has had different ideas. It doesn't want to stray into the "controversial," instead hoping to stick with the non-controversial and mostly meaningless, i.e. reshuffling the intelligence bureaucracy. Senate Democrats and Republicans, with the support of the former 9/11 commissioners and (for the most part) the White House, have excluded or watered down the Sensenbrenner proposals. He has offered possible compromises, only to be rebuffed by the Senate. So who is being the obstructionist?
I am proud to have him as my Congressman.
Comments