Remarks on Signing the SAFE Port Act

Remarks on Signing the SAFE Port Act

October 13, 2006

Thank you all. Please be seated. Thank you, and welcome. I'm pleased
to have you here as I sign a bill that will help protect the American
people and our ports. The SAFE Port Act will make this Nation more

prepared, more prosperous, and more secure.
I want to thank the Congress for its good work. I'm pleased that key
Members of the Senate and the House have joined me here today, and I
want to thank you for being here. I first want to thank the Secretary of
Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff, for his service to the country. I
appreciate that Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist has joined us. I'm
pleased that Senator Susan Collins, who is the chairman of the Senate
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, has joined us. She
is one of the sponsors of the bill, as is Peter King, who's the chairman
of the House Homeland Security Committee. These two Members are strong,
strong chairmen, and they're doing a fine job to help us protect this
country. I appreciate very much Senator Bob Bennett and Senator Patty
Murray and Senator Norm Coleman for joining us, as well as Congressman
Dan Lungren.
The most solemn responsibility of the Federal Government is to
protect the American people. And since September the 11th, the
administration and the Congress have worked together, and we've led an
unprecedented effort to safeguard our homeland. In other words, we
learned the lessons of that attack. We've more than tripled spending on
homeland security. We've created a Federal Department of Homeland
Security with a single mission, to protect the American people. We've
trained and equipped hundreds of thousands of State and local first-
responders. We've worked with public agencies and private companies to
improve security at airports and aboard commercial airliners. We've
strengthened protections at bridges and tunnels and other critical
infrastructure. We have a responsibility to protect the homeland, and
we're meeting that responsibility.
Protecting our homeland requires protecting our borders. Since I
took office, we more than doubled funding for border security, from $4.6
billion in 2001 to 9.5 billion in 2006. We've increased the number of
Border Patrol agents from around 9,000 to a little more than 12,000.
We've upgraded technology and infrastructure along the border. We've
apprehended and sent home more than 6 million people entering America
illegally. This is important progress, but we've got a lot of more work
to do.
Last week in Arizona, I signed a bill that will allow us to hire
1,500 more Border Patrol agents, deploy advanced technology like ground-
based radar and infrared cameras, add beds in our detention facilities
so we can work to end catch-and-release. Congress also passed a bill
that will authorize the construction of about 700 miles of double-
layered fencing along our Southern border. I'm going to sign that bill
into law. I'll continue to work with Congress to pass comprehensive
immigration reform that protects our country, enforces our laws, and
upholds our values.
Protecting our homeland also requires protecting our seaports. Our
seaports are a gateway to commerce, a source of opportunity, and a
provider of jobs. Our ports could also be a target of a terrorist
attack, and we're determined to protect them.
Since September the 11th, we've launched a series of new efforts to
improve port security. We worked with Congress to pass the Maritime
Transportation Security Act, which required American ports and vessels
to adopt strict new security measures. We made wider use of intelligence
to screen cargo and target suspicious containers for inspection. We've
worked with foreign partners to improve their security procedures. And
with the bill I sign today, we renew a clear commitment: We will work
tirelessly to keep our Nation safe and our ports open for business.
The SAFE Port Act will build on progress and help us protect our
ports in three key ways. First, the SAFE Port Act will strengthen
physical security measures at our ports by helping us harness the power
of technology. The bill authorizes the development of 21st century
inspection equipment, so that Customs agents can check inside cargo
containers for dangerous materials without having to open them. The bill
also requires radiation detection technology at our 22 busiest ports by
the end of next year. America has the best technology in the world, and
with this bill, we will apply that technology to make our ports the
safest in the world.
Second, the SAFE Port Act provides legislative authority for key
elements of our port security strategy. The bill codifies into law the
Container Security Initiative, which we

launched in 2002. Through this initiative, we have deployed American
inspectors to dozens of foreign ports on five continents where they are
screening cargo before it leaves for our country.
The bill also codifies into law the Customs Trade Partnership
Against Terrorism, a joint effort between the public and private sectors
to improve cargo security. Under this partnership, private shippers
agree to improve their own security measures, and in return, they can
receive benefits, including expedited clearance through our ports.
And the bill provides additional authority for the Domestic Nuclear
Detection Office, which we established to guard against the threat of
terrorists smuggling a nuclear device into our country.
All these efforts are smart. They're working. And with this bill,
they're here to stay.
Finally, the SAFE Port Act requires the Department of Homeland
Security to establish a plan to speed the resumption of trade in the
event of a terrorist attack on our ports or waterways. This bill makes
clear that the Federal Government has the authority to clear waterways,
identify cleanup equipment, and reestablish the flow of commerce
following a terrorist attack. We'll do everything we can to prevent an
attack, but if the terrorists succeed in launching an attack, we'll be
ready to respond.
We take these steps to improve our port security, and as we do so,
we thank the hard-working Americans who protect our people day in and
day out. We're grateful to the Coast Guard's men and women, the Customs
and Border Protection officers, our port workers and managers, State and
local law enforcement officers, and all those in the private sector who
do their part to keep America safe. We're going to protect our ports.
We're going to defend this homeland. And we're going to win the war on
terror.
With that, I'm now pleased to sign the SAFE Port Act into law.