On the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, House Intelligence Chairman Rep. Rick Crawford, R-Jonesboro, joined Ranking Member Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., in announcing the establishment of a bipartisan review of the 9/11 Commission Report recommendations.
The review will evaluate the progress made on the intelligence-related recommendations made by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States in The 9/11 Commission Report, which was released in July 2004, and identify possible gaps or areas of improvement.
Over the next year, the committee will hold events, hearings, and briefings, both public and closed, to inform a report of findings and actionable recommendations that will be released in the days leading up to the 25th anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001.
This review will examine both the current status of the Intelligence Committee’s adoption of the commission’s recommendations, as well as how the committee is equipped to counter the threats the United States will face over the next 25 years.
In the nearly 25 years since 9/11, the U.S. has taken significant steps to address the gaps and weaknesses in its defenses, most notably with the establishment of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). ODNI has brought drastic changes and improvements to U.S. national security by creating a more defined clearinghouse for coordination and information sharing within the intelligence community.
While many of these changes have been positive, the 25th anniversary of 9/11 presents a key moment in time to look back and evaluate how the commission’s recommendations have been implemented and identify opportunities for improvement to ensure national security is optimized for the next 25 years.
“The attacks on 9/11 fundamentally altered the security posture of the United States and the way we engage in the world,” said Crawford. “In the dark days following the devastating attack on U.S. soil, we watched Americans come together in unimaginable ways and we pledged never again to allow a failure of intelligence to compromise our national security.
“As we mark the 25th anniversary of one of the darkest days in U.S. history next year, we must ensure our intelligence community and its capabilities remain one step ahead of our rapidly evolving adversaries. While the threats look different today, the mission remains the same: we can never allow a failure to connect the dots to result in catastrophe ever again,” he added.