Statement Of Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)
On The Foiling Of The British Airline Terror Plot
Montpelier, Vermont
Thursday, August 10, 2006

“All of us as Americans are grateful to British authorities for disrupting a plot that endangered the citizens of both our countries.  I also commend the FBI professionals and others for their close and expert cooperation in this investigation.

“This episode and the upcoming five-year anniversary of the attacks of 9/11 are reminders that there is little margin for error in countering terrorism.  We need to refocus our attention and resources to eliminate the misdirection and mismanagement that too often divert us from the goal of protecting the American people.

“Imagine how different our situation would be today if we had not shifted our elite forces from Afghanistan to Iraq at the critical moment when we were close to finding Osama bin Laden.  In the years since then the Iraq war has stretched our military to the breaking point, sapped hundreds of billions of dollars, and preoccupied our attention.  The White House has even disbanded the intelligence unit that for years was dedicated to tracking down Osama bin Laden.  The diversion to Iraq has only succeeded in creating a new breeding ground for terrorists and in emboldening the rogue states that harbor and supply them.  Starting an unnecessary war in Iraq has not made us more secure, but less secure.

“We are at our best when we meet the threat of terrorism not with fear but with facts and determination.  Let us set a new direction to counter terrorism on our own terms, with American skill and with American values.”

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