Democratic leaders call for action on 9/11 proposals
The car bomb plots in Great Britain during the past week have renewed calls in Congress to pass legislation to implement unfilled recommendations of the 9/11 Commission.
And top House Democratic leaders said passing the legislation should be the top priority for lawmakers when they return from the Independence Day recess early next week. However, the measure continues to face procedural hurdles in the Senate.
The calls for action mounted after two car bombs failed to explode in central London last Friday, and after a jeep with explosives was driven into the entrance of Glasgow International Airport and set on fire the following day.
"As the incidents over the weekend in London and Glasgow demonstrate, we must do more to protect Americans from terrorism," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said. "To make our nation safer, we must pass legislation implementing the recommendations of the independent 9/11 Commission."
House Democratic Caucus Chairman Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., added: "Recent events in New York, London and Glasgow should remind Congress of the work we must do to protect our nation and keep our country safe from terrorists. Sending this legislation to the president's desk should be Congress" first order of business.
But it remained unclear if an agreement could be reached in the Senate to allow the legislation to proceed to conference.
Negotiations stalled prior to the Independence Day recess when Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., objected to going to House-Senate conference, on the grounds that the legislation did not include a provision on auditing how billions in homeland security grants are spent. Coburn aides could not be reached for comment Friday.
Pelosi, meanwhile, noting that the 9/11 measure was the first bill passed by the House after the Democrats took control of Congress this past January. "I urge Senate Republicans to stop blocking this vital legislation so we can pass it as our first order of business next week and put it on the president's desk," she said. "We cannot wait any longer."
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