Rep. Michael McCaul said Monday that he doesn’t think a terrorist attack on the scale of Sept. 11, 2001, could happen today.
“I think our intelligence apparatus, our homeland security apparatus has improved. I don’t think a large-scale operation like 9/11 could happen again. I think Europe is in a more pre-9/11 position. They’re getting more attacks. But the threat is still alive and well. It’s evolved and changed,” Mr. McCaul, Texas Republican, said on MSNBC.
Mr. McCaul chairs the House Homeland Security Committee and has been active in pushing for more counterterrorism efforts.
“We’ve made a lot of progress after 9/11. The Department of Homeland Security was created after 9/11. My committee created after 9/11. So everything we do on the committee and in the department is to make sure we can prevent another 911 from happening,” he said.
Monday marks the 16th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that resulted in the deaths of nearly 3,000 Americans. Four commercial airplanes were taken over by terrorists: two were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center complex in New York City; one flown into the Pentagon; and one taken down by passengers who rushed the cockpit, crashing the plane in Pennsylvania.
• Sally Persons can be reached at spersons@washingtontimes.com.
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