Shelley Berkley

In Response to September 11 - Oct. 12, 2001

Shelley Berkley
October 12, 2001— U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, DC
Congressional floor speech
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I rise today in the strongest support of this resolution. I condemn this horrendous act of terrorism. I praise all the unnamed heroes who risked their lives to save others. And I grieve with those who experienced the loss of loved ones. My heart goes out today to the family of Barbara Edwards, a high school teacher from Southern Nevada who was a passenger on the hijacked jet that crashed into the Pentagon. I rise today to support the President and our Administration in the pursuit of those responsible for this heinous crime against humanity.

Our hearts are broken, our eyes are full of tears, but we Americans have a simple message for those who carried out this cowardly attack, and those who gave them assistance and shelter. As Thomas Jefferson once said, "I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man." Let this be a warning to those who wish us harm, America will never back down. Americans will never live in fear. We will persevere over the tyranny of terror and the will of tyrants everywhere.