A concurrent resolution honoring and memorializing the passengers and crew of United Airlines Flight 93.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in the Senate concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 26) honoring and memorializing the passengers and crew of United Airlines Flight 93.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on S. Con. Res. 26.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

On Sunday, we remembered one of the most tragic days in our Nation's history, a day in which we lost 3,000 of our relatives, neighbors, friends and countrymen. These people were lost because of the actions of 19 terrorists who sought to inflict pain on our country and bring us to our knees. They did not.

Four of these terrorist found out firsthand that America and Americans are not to be taken lightly and that we are people of action.

Though the story of Flight 93 is well known by all, it is a story that bears repeating.

On that fateful day, the 40 passengers and crew of a hijacked airplane, made aware through phone calls of the fate of the three other hijacked airplanes, took action to protect lives on the ground.

They acted in a way that I am confident the passengers and crew of the three other planes hijacked that day would surely have acted had they been aware of what was happening. The passengers and crew of Flight 93 acted in a way that should make us all proud. They knew the risks they were facing, yet acted anyway.

It is a significant feat what these 40 patriots did, equal to the shot heard around the world in Lexington and Concord or the Alamo in Texas. The very place that Flight 93 went down, I

believe, is providence, because it is in proximity to another major event in our history.

It is a reminder to all Americans that freedom is not easy, and the event of which I speak of is the Whiskey Rebellion, which occurred in 1794, just the first year of George Washington's second term, when there was a rebellion in Pennsylvania. George Washington rode to Pennsylvania, to a town just 10 miles south of Shanksville, Pennsylvania, to put down that rebellion and establish or continue to establish our democracy.

It is important for us in America to remember that it was hard 210 years ago to establish democracy, and it is hard today. So we all need to remember that story of Berlin, Pennsylvania, the Whiskey Rebellion, just 10 miles south of Shanksville, where the first counterattack on the war on terrorism occurred in the skies over Somerset, Pennsylvania. And those passengers of Flight 93 are an example for all Americans to live up to today and into the future.

This resolution authorizes the permanent memorial here in the Capitol to the passengers and crew of Flight 93, whose actions certainly saved lives on 9/11. Many, including the 9/11 Commission, believe they may have saved this very building and many of us who work here.

It is my expectation that whatever memorial is established will complement, not compete with the memorial that will be constructed in Shanksville, where Flight 93 eventually crashed.

I look forward to working with our colleagues in the Senate to bring this appropriate recognition of heroism and bravery to this hallowed building. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewomen from Florida (Ms. Ginny Brown-Waite.)

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kirk).

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join today to pass this legislation that will establish a permanent memorial here in the Capitol to honor those 40 American patriots who undoubtedly saved lives on 9/11 by sacrificing their own lives. As we vote today, let us remember the final words of Todd Beamer and that is: ``Let's roll.''

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill (S. 252) to direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain land in Washoe County, Nevada, to the Board of Regents of the University and Community College System of Nevada.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on S. 252.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to urge passage of Senate 252, the Dandini Research Park Conveyance Act, which was introduced in the Senate by Senator Harry Reid and co-sponsored by Senator John Ensign.

I was proud to introduce the companion legislation in the House, and I am pleased to be here today to champion passage of this important bill.

This legislation will direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey 467 acres of land in Washoe County, Nevada, to the Board of Regents of the University and Community College System of Nevada.

The land is patented under the Recreation and Public Purposes Act, which now prevents the Board of Regents from expanding a university- sponsored research park that provides for technology transfer, science- based economic development, and partnering among academic, governmental, and industrial sectors in Nevada.

Known as the Dandini Research Park, the land is currently used by leading research and education institutions in Nevada, including the Truckee Meadows Community College and the Desert Research Institute.

The research being done by TMCC and DRI at the Dandini Research Park benefits not only Nevada but communities across the western United States. The science park stands as a great example of a successful public/private partnership that brings the highest quality researchers to this educational facility.

For example, DRI is a world-class nonprofit research campus of the Nevada Higher Education System, and their research is driven by a special emphasis in atmospheric, Earth and ecosystem, and hydrologic sciences.

Additionally, DRI has three state-of-the-art interdisciplinary centers for arid lands, watershed and environmental sustainability, and environmental remediation and monitoring.

DRI's research has helped provide innovative and important advancements in their field and has increased demand for their expertise. The state-of-the-art research being conducted at the Dandini site has resulted in the need to expand these facilities. However, since the University and Community College System of Nevada does not own the land of the Dandini Research Park, they are unable to obtain financing to expand the science center.

Today's bill allows for the transfer of this land to allow the Board of Regents to develop and expand the Northern Nevada Science Center. Additionally, the bill mandates that net proceeds of any future sale of this property would be returned to the Secretary of the Interior for use by the Bureau of Land Management.

The goal of much of the work being done at the Dandini Research Project is to provide innovative solutions to maintaining the vital balance between environmental protection and the development of our natural resources.

This work helps us to better understand how we can live in harmony with our environment.

Madam Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to pass this noncontroversial bill that is supported by the entire Nevada delegation and which passed the Senate in July. This bill will allow Nevada's leading education and research institutes to continue to expand upon their great work on behalf of Nevada and this great country, as well as our environment.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. President, I rise today to submit a concurrent resolution to honor the memory of the passengers on flight 93. As we reflect on the events of 9/11 and mourn the great loss we suffered, we remember the innocent who perished and we are reminded of the valiant efforts of those who saved lives, including the passengers and crew of United Airlines flight 93. Those brave people gave up their lives in order to save others that fateful day.

Last fall, the 9/11 Commission released its report about the series of events that took place on September 11, 2001. The Senate has subsequently undertaken an evaluation of the Commission's findings through a series of hearings. As the story continues to unfold, it becomes clearer how important the actions of the passengers and crew of flight 93 were. We now know that flight 93 was almost certainly headed to the U.S. Capitol or the White House. We also know the passengers of flight 93 learned through a series of phone calls to loved ones that hijackers on three other flights had turned airplanes into flying bombs that morning, crashing them into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Armed only with that knowledge and their own courage and resolve, those brave passengers attacked the hijackers and forced them to crash flight 93 into rural Pennsylvania far short of its intended target. The 9/11 Commission concluded that the Nation owes a debt to the passengers of flight 93. Their actions saved the lives of countless others and may have saved either the U.S. Capitol or the White House from destruction. Those of us who work here in the Capitol owe a special debt of gratitude to those heroes. Their actions saved one of the greatest symbols of our democracy.

Today I am resubmitting a resolution honoring and memorializing the passengers and crew of United Airlines flight 93. This legislation expresses our deepest respect and gratitude to them, as well as condolences to their families and friends. This bill also calls for an appropriate memorial to be placed in the Capitol by the bicameral, bipartisan leaders of Congress.

Today I bow my head in memory of those who died at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. I also pay respect to our first responders, volunteers, and average citizens who risked their lives to save others on that day.

Finally, I pay homage to the passengers and crew of flight 93 for taking on those who wished to harm our country and Nation's Capitol. I believe it is appropriate at this time to acknowledge the actions of the passengers of flight 93 for showing such remarkable heroism and to commemorate them in the very walls that might have crumbled had they not made that ultimate sacrifice. We are forever indebted to them and should never forget their bravery or sacrifice or that of their loved ones.

The Senate unanimously passed an identical resolution last October 11, within a month of its introduction, but it did not pass the House of Representatives before the adjournment of the 108th Congress. The bipartisan legislation I am reintroducing today has the

support of 25 of my colleagues, including Senator Santorum from Pennsylvania, who has joined me in leading this effort. I am also happy to report that Congressman Shuster of Pennsylvania will also be introducing companion legislation today.

I hope all my colleagues will join me in sponsoring this resolution. I hope on a broad bipartisan basis we are able to recognize those brave passengers and crew of flight 93 for what they did on that remarkable day.

Madam Speaker, I thank my friend, the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton), for yielding me time, and I thank the sponsor of this bill for introducing it.

We all rise today to honor the passengers and the crew of United Airlines Flight 93. They gave their lives so that others might live, and I strongly support S. Con. Res. 26, which commemorates the courageous actions of these 40 passengers and crew. The passengers thwarted a potentially dangerous attack on a target here in Washington. Without their sacrifice, it is possible that many of us would not be here today. This building in which we stand perhaps would not be here, and almost certainly many innocent civilians would have died.

Eighteen of those brave men and women on board Flight 93 were from New Jersey. One of those brave souls lived in Cranberry, New Jersey. He is one of the people on board we recognize. He has become something of a symbol.

Todd Beamer was a respected businessman who stood out in a national company. He was a man of deep religious faith. He was involved with his family, a loving father who looked forward to the upcoming birth of his third child. He was a caring and devoted husband to his wife, Lisa, whom I would also like to recognize and honor here today. It was his famous phrase, ``Let's roll,'' that helped inspire our Nation to meet his high standard of shared sacrifice and to remind Americans in those dark days following September 11 that America would not just survive but America would thrive.

This body authorized the naming of the United States Post Office in Cranberry after Todd Beamer. And each time I see the Todd Beamer Post Office, I am reminded that individual Americans can and do extraordinary things.

Americans are willing to sacrifice in the name of accomplishing something greater than one person. This country has always depended on this unique character, and it was always my hope that people would use this post office with an understanding of this American characteristic and that they would pause to reflect on the sacrifice of the individual but also on their roles, what they can do in small and large acts of bravery.

Todd Beamer was not alone. With him were other New Jerseyans and Americans who shared his values and commitment to save others. Richard Guadagno was another outstanding passenger of Flight 93. Raised in Trenton, Richard was the manager of the Humbolt Bay National Wildlife Refuge in California, and was on his way back to Eureka, California, after visiting his family in New Jersey and attending his grandmother's 100th birthday party. He too made the sacrifice. I had an opportunity to talk with his parents, and I was struck by how remarkable and compassionate Richard Guadagno was. Today we honor him and all the other passengers and crew members.

Recalling the legacy of the passengers and crew of Flight 93 reminds Americans that we need heroes every day. Lisa and Todd Beamer's children can grow up knowing that their father acted bravely at a time when others

were in need; and he will always be remembered as a hero, along with his fellow passengers.

Madam Speaker, I am proud to support this resolution, and I thank the sponsors for introducing it. As it is said in Jewish tradition, whoever saves a single life is honored as though he saved an entire world.

I honor those on Flight 93 whose brave acts saved the lives of so many Americans.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of Senate Concurrent Resolution 26, which pays tribute to the heroic efforts of the passengers and crew of United Airlines Flight 93. Their decisive and brave decision to overtake the September 11 terrorists likely saved the lives of countless Congressional Members and staffers, as well as the U.S. Capitol or White House from almost certain destruction.

The San Jose community I represent was especially saddened by the loss of Captain Jason Matthew Dahl, the pilot of Flight 93 and a true American hero. Jason grew up in San Jose, and his parents, who were the proprietors of Dahl's Dairy Delivery, used to deliver milk to Hillsdale Elementary School, where I served as principal.

From his childhood years, Jason had a strong desire to fly. He first manifested his affinity for flight during his years at Sylvandale, where he started building radio-controlled airplanes. He then joined the Civil Air Patrol, and was soon taking flying lessons from Amelia Reid at Reid Hillview Airport. He was a quick study, and was flying solo by the youthful age of 16. During this early period, Jason gave his father a photograph, depicting the two of them standing in front of a Cessna, on which Jason had written: ``Maybe someday this will be a 747.''

Jason attended my alma mater, San Jose State University, from 1975 to 1980, and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Aeronautical Operations. Jason was soon hired by Ron Nelson Construction as a corporate pilot. A few years later, he applied to the commercial airlines, and he realized his dream when he got the call from United Airlines in June 1985, where he steadily moved up the ranks.

His passionate devotion to this endeavor was only matched during his lifetime by his devotion to his family. Balancing the demands of career and family is a daunting challenge, especially for a pilot, but family was greatly important to Jason. No matter how busy his flight schedule, he always made the time for his wife, Sandy, and his children, Matt and Jennifer.

Captain Dahl was an emblem of the American dream. He was doing what he loved to do when he lost his life along with thousands of others in the horrible assault on our Nation that occurred on September 11. His courage and the courage of the passengers and crew of Flight 93 was reflective of the spirit displayed in abundance by so many Americans that day.

It is fitting that we honor those who gave their lives on Flight 93 through passage of Senate Concurrent Resolution 26, which acknowledges the great debt we owe them and extends condolences to their family and friends. The resolution also establishes a bipartisan, bicameral congressional panel to select an appropriate memorial honoring the passengers and crew of Flight 93. The memorial--to be placed in the Capitol--will be a permanent tribute to the forty selfless individuals who overcame fear and mobilized into action to defend their fellow Americans.

I join my colleagues in their strong support for Senate Concurrent Resolution 26.