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Ridge sez al-Qaeda still wants to disrupt US elections
Terrorists still hope to disrupt the U.S. democratic process even though the presidential nominating conventions and other high-profile gatherings this summer went off without incident, Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said Tuesday. Threat reporting over the last several months has been "consistent, general and credible" and indicated the al-Qaeda network is trying to push ahead with its plans, Ridge said. Although large events this summer were not attacked, he said, "that in no way diminishes the level of vigilance, awareness and concern that we have during this entire process." Ridge commented during a morning visit to the National Targeting Center in Northern Virginia. Operated by the Customs and Border Protection agency, the center secures the nation's borders and ports with a focus on keeping terrorists and their weapons out of the country. Speaking to the National Press Club later, Ridge said every day that goes by without incident gives authorities more time to make the country safer. Posted by: Dan Darling 2004-09-07 |
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