The Next Attack on the U.S.?

Thursday, August 2, 2007

By Jon Scott, Fox News

July 3, 2007

Jon Scott: Were talking now to Indiana Congressman and 9/11 Commissioner Tim Roemer. Thanks for taking a few moments.

Tim Roemer: Good afternoon.

Scott: Do you think the next terrorist attack in this country in likely to come, as the Washington Post is reporting today, you probably saw that, through relatively unsophisticated, near simultaneous attacks like those in UK and Scotland?

Roemer: Well, it depends on who the terrorists are. It could be what we saw at Fort Dix, at the Kenned International Airport, more of a homegrown, less spectacular, but plotting and putting together a plot that they try and pull off. It could be more along the lines of what they tried to do in New York City, both in 1993 and in 2001, where they killed 3,000 people and they wanted something spectacular. They are now evolving to the degree that they are learning in Bali to go after nightclubs but also putting together the gas limo project, using cars as bombs in Britain. They are able to do both.

Scott: You know what seems to have stunned so many people here in America, and I’m sure in Great Britain as well, is that 6 of these people that were arrested in this plot are doctors. Here’s what the New York Post is reporting and I’ll ask if you agree with it, “Terrorism experts say the typical al Qaeda recruit is a young well educated Muslim form a stable prosperous family. An extensive database study found that 2/3 of terrorists went to college and most came from middle or upper-middle class family.” Would you agree with that, that it’s not just sort of the impoverished and the disenfranchised that are terrorists?

Roemer: I would agree that it’s not the just the impoverished and disenfranchised. Look at bin Laden, comes from a very wealthy family. They know that his dad made a lot of money in the construction industry. Look at Zawahiri, who’s putting out tape after tape after tape, trying to get the hearts and minds and spreading their ideology all over the world, an engineer coming from Egypt. So the fact that these are doctors and the 7/7 plot and the liquid plot had more of some working class British born people, the fact of the matter is hearts and minds is an issue we have to pay attention to. This ideology is spreading around the world.

Scott: Quick question for you. Law enforcement here in the US has uncovered and prevented dozens of terrorists plots, the most recent Miami, Fort Dix in New Jersey, JFK in New York- what kind of a mark would you give us in our terrorism prevention here?

Roemer: I’d say we need to be a lot safer. Here we are almost 6 years after 9/11 and in Congress with the President we need to see bipartisan cooperation to pass the remaining 9/11 reforms. Things that will better secure our borders when they know they are trying to get here, al Qaeda’s trying to attack. Trying to get the right technology in our ports, trying to make sure a nuclear weapon can’t get into our country, trying to make sure Congress can’t pork barrel spend but they invest in wise critical infrastructure spending based on intelligence and risk, not a chairman scratching somebody else’s back for a favor. All those things are sitting in conference today, we hope in the spirit of the 4th of July that Congress will pass these reforms and send them to the President. The President will sign these coming in the next few weeks.

Scott: Congressman Tim Roemer, former 9/11 Commissioner, thank you so much we appreciate it.

Roemer: Thanks.

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