Bush, Dems Talk Terror Policies
President Bush said this week's unraveling of a plot to blow up airplanes should serve as a reminder that the war on terror is far from over.
In his weekly radio speech, the president said it would be a "mistake" to think "the danger of terrorism has passed."
"This week's events demonstrate the vital importance of ensuring that our intelligence and law enforcement personnel had all the tools they need to track down the terrorists to prevent attacks on our country," he said.
Mr. Bush said the airline plot would've caused "death on a massive scale." He urged Americans to remember that while terrorists have succeeded only once in "their goal of mass murder," it is up to the rest of the world to "succeed every time to stop them."
To that end, he's urging travelers to be patient with new restrictions banning liquids from being carried onto planes.
Democrats also devoted today's radio time to the trans-Atlantic terror plot. But Arkansas Senator Mark Pryor criticized the Bush administration for what he said are insufficient defenses against terrorism.
The Democrats echoed the President's message by saying the airborne terror plot unraveled this week demonstrates that the U.S. is still at war with dangerous extremists.
But Pryor said Democrats believe the government "must do more to protect Americans at home and around the world."
"Five years after 9/11 our country is not as safe as it needs to be or should be," he said. "This begins for once and for all securing our borders, implementing the recommendations of the bipartisan 9/11 commission and making a commitment to screening 100% of the cargo in our aircraft and our ports."
Pryor said the suspected plot to blow up airliners with liquid explosives showed "there is no time to waste" in making the country "as safe as it needs to be or should be."