Libertarian Senate Candidate/Airline Pilot on 9/11

From http://www.lp.org/

ATLANTA, GA - Chuck Donovan, candidate for U.S. Senator from the state of Georgia, issued the following statement on the anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001:

"Like most Americans, I took the attacks of 9/11 very hard. As a professional pilot, I took them personally. We pilots had been trained with a plan to deal with hijackers; a plan we were told included team members outside of our cockpits. September 11, 2001 showed us we were disarmed and alone.

"Nine years later, we Americans are more and more restricted from using the tools of self-defense. Far too often and in far too many ways, we find ourselves helplessly at the mercy of a government we cannot rely on.

"The government's reaction to 9/11 was to energetically use its' two favorite tactics; expand power at the expense of our liberty, and to spend lots more money. Neither the poorly named "Patriot Act" nor the new Department of Homeland Security held anyone in government responsible for their failures that day. They also failed to effectively deal with the clearly exposed lack of inter-agency coordination.

"Today all we have to show for the huge investment is a bigger, more bloated government that finds it impossible to protect us from someone like Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, better known as the "underwear bomber." All the layers of bureaucracy were unable to take clear information on a known threat and act upon it. Our government makes a show of security, forcing experienced flight crew wearing layers of identification, to take off their shoes and belts, open their suitcases, or to wait at the border on return from international flights, yet someone like Abdulmutallab easily slips through the system.

"Our Federal government can only be relied upon to posture as a kind of Robocop. In reality, it is more like the Keystone Cops.

"The one small success on that terrible day 9 years ago was when free people on board United Airlines Flight 93 voluntarily joined together and resisted a deadly threat. Years later, it was free people once again, who stopped Abdulmutallab without the help of government.

"Today the threat of an overreaching, overspending government, using its authority to arrogantly step into every aspect of our lives, has finally become clear to many Americans. Benjamin Franklin warned us, 'Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.' Yet too many Americans remain unconvinced. If we fail to heed Franklin's warning, we will soon find ourselves without liberty or security."

Chuck Donovan is an international airline Captain who has over 30 years of experience as a professional and military pilot. Donovan's career in this no-nonsense profession, as well as his staunch support for small, fiscally responsible government, make him the best candidate for Georgia's new Senator.

You may learn more about his campaign at his campaign website.

The LP is America's third-largest political party, founded in 1971. The Libertarian Party stands for free markets and civil liberties. You can find more information on the Libertarian Party at our website.