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Thank you Mr. Chairman, I will be brief. It’s almost a month ago that we marked the six years since 9/ 11 and we continue to face monumental challenges in securing our ports, our territorial waters, and the total transportation system. Maritime commerce is the life blood of international trade and we are the world’s leading maritime trading nation. In Alaska, we live in an area that is totally dependent on this industry and there is no question that at our ports about 90% of the goods we depend on comes in through the port of Anchorage. And now we have a dream that we will be able to extend the Alaska Railroad up to the Canadian border and tie into the Canadian National Railroad system and be able to bring the products of the Pacific to the people in Northwestern Canada. I do believe that the whole concept of security is the important concept we have to work on. I think we should continue to improve our security plans, our inter-agency cooperation, the methods implementing the transportation workers identification card system, and the other innovative technologies that will provide us greater security for our ports. So, I look forward to hearing your statements today and Mr. Chairman I thank you very much for the privilege of making my comments.
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