"As Chairman of the Governmental Affairs Committee, I was briefed yesterday by the chairmen of the 9-11 Commission on their major recommendations. I am impressed with the unanimity of the Commission and the thoroughness of their report. The Commission has performed an extraordinary service, and all of its recommendations deserve careful consideration by the Congress and the Administration.
"I particularly agree with the Commission on the need to establish a National Counter terrorism Center, which would be a greatly expanded, strengthened, and more independent entity to replace the Terrorist Threat Integration Center. This Center would not only ensure better analysis and coordination of intelligence information, but also would have the authority to task the FBI, the CIA, and other intelligence agencies with the collection of specific intelligence.
"Last year, my Committee held two hearings examining the structure of TTIC and urged the agency to formalize and explain its overall operations. Earlier this month, I toured TTIC headquarters and met with its director, John Brennan.
"Similarly, the Commission''s recommendation of the creation of the National Intelligence Director with real authority over the budgets of the intelligence agencies scattered across the government should improve the management of intelligence resources.
"Finally, the legislation that Senator Joe Lieberman and I introduced yesterday to improve information-sharing and the interoperability of communications equipment used by first responders is consistent with the findings of the Commission."
####