Congressman John D. Dingell

Washington, D.C. – Representative John D. Dingell (MI-16) today made the following remarks in support of H.J. Res. 61, a resolution condemning the horrible acts of terrorism committed against the United States:

"Mr. Speaker, on this day of tragedy and mourning, I rise in support of the resolution. I express my profound sympathy for the thousands of innocent victims and their families. My thoughts are also with the families of the firefighters, police officers and emergency personnel who lost their lives in the attempt to save others. We must never forget the heroic acts of these selfless Americans.

"As we mourn and grieve for loved ones, and grieve for our country, I promise you, Mr. Speaker, that our American ideals and values will survive, sustain us, and make us a stronger nation. Our country speaks with one voice and we are united behind the President. Make no mistake about it, this was an act of war, and will be dealt with as such. The perpetrators of these deplorable, cowardly deeds, and those that aid and comfort them, will hunted down and brought to justice.

"Mr. Speaker, I am a veteran of World War II, and perhaps the only Member in this body who was on the floor of the House for Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Declaration of War speech on December 8, 1941. I have many of the same emotions today as I did nearly 60 years ago. And just as America united after Pearl Harbor, so too has America come together to fight the cowardly and faceless enemy of terrorism. Be assured we will carry on, and demonstrate to friend and foe alike, the indomitable spirit of the American people.

"In our desire to avenge this vicious attack, and avenge it we will, we must not erode the civil liberties of Americans. During World War I and World War II, we trampled the liberties of Americans simply because of their ethnicity. These assaults on the freedom of German-Americans, Italian-Americans and Japanese-Americans left black marks upon our history. And we must not repeat those mistakes in the wake of this unspeakable tragedy. Indeed, depriving any group of Americans their liberty undermines the liberty of all Americans.

"Mr. Speaker, this is a time of national unity. All Americans – Christians, Muslims and Jews – will endure this onslaught, defeat our common enemies and demonstrate once again the greatness of our nation. God bless the United States and God bless the American people."