Senator Corker: (11:44 AM)

• Spoke on the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act.
  • "So on balance I think this bill has problems. I think that we will be dealing with overcoming this over time. And I know a number of us have joined together to express that. But I do think that to be consistent and to give the victims who have lost so much an opportunity to express themselves in this way is the appropriate thing to do at this time. I have read the concerns that have been expressed by the head of our joint chief. I've read the letter that came over from the president and certainly there are significant and important points to have been made. As a matter of fact, six months ago those points might have led us to a slightly different place today. So with tremendous reservations and concerns about where this legislation is going to lead us, with tremendous empathy towards the victims that have lived through so much, have seen loved ones gone, that's affected their lives and will affect their lives for the long term, I'm going to support passage of this legislation today, but I do so understanding that there could be in fact unintended consequences that work against our national interest and with a determination should that occur, to work with others in this body to try to overcome that."

Senator Schumer: (11:53 AM)

• Spoke on the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act.
  • "The bill is near and dear to my heart as a New Yorker because it would allow the victims of 9/11 to pursue some small measure of justice, finally giving them the legal avenue to pursue the foreign sponsors of a terrorist attack that took the lives of their loved ones. The courts in New York unfortunately have dismissed the 9/11 victims' claims against certain foreign entities alleged to have helped the 9/11 attacks. These courts are following what I believe is a fundamentally incorrect reading of the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act. Do we really want it established inflexibly in precedent that foreign countries directly responsible for financing terrorist acts on U.S. soil are beyond the reach of justice? I don't think so. I don't think that in an age where we have state sponsors of terrorism, I don't think that's what the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act ever intended. So for the sake of these families, it should be made clear beyond a shadow of a doubt that every entity, including foreign states, will be held accountable if they are sponsors of heinous acts like 9/11."