Ridge Hears Fears, Ideas of Americans

Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge conducted the first of seven town hall-style meetings across the country Wednesday, seeking Americans’ ideas and concerns while defending the Bush administration’s response to terrorism.

Ridge championed the progress his department had made so far and defended the Patriot Act, which expanded the powers of law enforcement in the name of fighting terrorism.

“Even today, we are not safe in this country,” Ridge said. “The threat is real. There are difficult decisions we make every day, and we try to communicate that so you are informed rather than fearful. When we reduce the anxiety level of the country, the better prepared we are.”

The tour is similar to Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft’s recent 16-city tour to defend the Patriot Act as an essential part of the fight against terrorism.

But Ridge said he was conducting his tour, sponsored by the nonpartisan Council for Excellence in Government, primarily to hear the views of Americans.

Members of Wednesday’s crowd of about 300 here voiced concerns about privacy rights, immigration restrictions and preparedness in case of terrorist attacks on the water supply, agriculture or public gatherings.

Saint Louis University student Daniel Szyman, 22, of Hazelwood, Mo., questioned why immigrants would want to come to the U.S. when he said hassles and registration awaited them.

“They’re trying to make me scared of Arab people in America, and I don’t think it’s right,” Szyman said.

Ridge said that immigration to the United States was higher in the year after the Sept. 11 attacks than in the year before. He also noted that the Patriot Act had held up in court.

Ridge’s other town hall meetings are planned in Miami; San Diego; Houston; Seattle; Rochester, N.Y.; and Lexington, Ky.