Washington, Feb 14, 2008 -

U.S. Congressman John Carter (TX-31), House Republican Conference Secretary, made the following statement today after House Democrats deliberately chose to let the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) expire.  By allowing FISA to expire we are preventing our intelligence community from monitoring and tracking terrorists like Osama Bin Laden who are determined to kill Americans and destroy our way of life.

“Today the Democrat Majority chose to put blatant partisan antics above the security of our country.  There is nothing more important than the safety of our children and grandchildren, but that is not the message that Washington is sending to the rest of the country today.  I am disturbed that the Democrats want to let such a critical safety measure expire.  Congress must not go home for the weekend until we give our intelligence community the tools they need to track and monitor terrorists.  Al Qaeda and those that want to kill us have not stopped seeking the next opportunity to attack our country, and there is no doubt they are watching this debate with great interest.”