REMARKS FOR
THE HONORABLE
NORMAN Y. MINETA
SECRETARY OF
TRANSPORTATION
NORMAN Y.
MINETA SAN JOSE AIRPORT DEDICATION
SAN JOSE, CA
OCTOBER 31,
2002
I am extremely honored to have
San Jose International Airport named after me. This is where I grew up, where my
family roots are -- my home sweet home.
Tony Bennett sings about leaving
his heart in San Francisco. Don’t
worry, I’m not going to sing! But if I
did, the refrain would be: “I
left my heart in San Jose, and Santa Clara County!”
Aviation has been a big part of my life. My two sons are pilots and my wife, Deni, was a flight attendant for more than 30 years. I don’t know who likes to travel more, but I know it’s difficult to get us all in the same time zone!
Air travel is not only an
important part of our everyday lives, but it is a cornerstone of America’s
freedom and economy.
Without a viable air transportation system, both our freedom and our
economy would suffer.
Nothing made us realize this more than the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. We live in an era with different threats to our national security and challenges to meet these more complex threats. We understand that such new threats require new security reactions and measures, which the Federal Government is putting into place.
President Bush has said that the war on terrorism will not conclude in a matter of months or even years, and that to defeat this threat, we must use every tool in our arsenal -- from better homeland defenses and law enforcement, to intelligence gathering and sharing, to cutting off terrorist financing.
I want to take this opportunity to thank Ralphy Tonseth, Airport Director here at Mineta / San Jose International, and his staff for being great partners with us in creating a more comprehensive and effective security system for the airport.
It’s been a challenging year, but we have made outstanding progress in strengthening aviation security because we have worked together.
On behalf of President Bush, I also want to thank San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales, local law enforcement, the National Guard, and everyone here in San Jose and Santa Clara County for working with us to restore public confidence in aviation safety and security.
I want to acknowledge Jim Thomas, our recently appointed Federal Security Director and leader on the ground here at Norman Y. Mineta / San Jose International Airport.
Jim is also in charge of security for the Monterey Peninsula and the Modesto City-County Airports.
Jim brings to the position a wealth of security and law enforcement experience with the Armed Forces, most recently as chief executive for the Nuclear Arms Control Division for the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The Transportation Security Administration, also known as the TSA, will be working closely with Jim and other airport directors and managers to ensure that all air travelers enjoy a safe, secure and efficient trip in our national airspace system.
The Department’s bottom-line goal is very simple: both world-class security and world-class customer service, and I would like to give you an update on our progress in achieving those goals.
Sometimes we hear from naysayers that our goals are unreachable. Some have said that achieving the November 19th deadline for federalizing passenger security is a long shot. Naysayers also said the Anaheim Angels wouldn’t make it to the World Series!
As of today, we have deployed federal screeners to more than 270 airports nationwide, and we are on target to meet -- and in many cases beat -- the November 19th deadline set by the Congress for federalizing passenger security at all U.S. commercial airports.
On October 1st, the Federal Government was officially in charge of security here. By tomorrow (November 1st), you will have 450 passenger screeners at the airport, working to ensure a safe, secure, and pleasant trip through the airport.
These employees are extremely well trained in the latest security techniques to screen passengers and baggage and to detect and prevent security breaches.
And they understand how important it is to treat all passengers with courtesy, dignity and respect.
There have been some media reports about ensuring diversity in hiring screeners and other TSA employees.
Jim Loy, our Acting Under Secretary for Transportation Security and former Coast Guard Commandant, is as committed as I am to a workforce that is both high quality, and representative of America’s cultural diversity.
With less than 10 months to recruit the federal airport security workforce, we are proud to report that currently 34 percent of federal screeners are women, and 39 percent are minorities -- a higher percentage than the general workforce.
Here at Mineta / San Jose International, 56 percent of screeners hired so far are minorities. While 8 percent of the entire American workforce is Hispanic, 11 percent of TSA security employees nationwide are Hispanic.
Some 22 percent of screeners nationwide are African American, which is twice the number in the current civilian workforce.
Our Nation is known for its world-class transportation system, and we must ensure that our new security regime is efficient and does not adversely impact our transportation system and our economy.
Our security checkpoints must not become chokepoints on the economy.
This provides significant opportunities for success for the nation and this region -- particularly if we continue to work with our aviation partners to meet tomorrow’s challenges.
Before concluding, I just want to say again how exciting and meaningful this dedication is for me.
I
thank Mayor Gonzalez, Congresswoman Lofgren and Congressman Honda, and everyone
who was involved in the decision and in planning this special ceremony. My
family and I are very grateful for this honor.
Thank you, travel safely, and God bless America.