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Fact Sheet: Confronting the Emerging Dangers of a New Century
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For Immediate Release Office of the Press Secretary October 30, 2008

Fact Sheet: Confronting the Emerging Dangers of a New Century President
Bush Outlines How The FBI Has Adapted To Meet The Challenges Of The War On
Terror

ÿÿWhite House News

ÿÿÿÿÿ President Bush Attends Graduation Ceremony for Federal Bureau of
Investigation Special Agents ÿÿÿÿÿ In Focus: National Security

Today, President Bush spoke to the graduating class of the Federal Bureau
of Investigation Academy in Quantico, Virginia, and discussed how the FBI
has been transformed as part of the Administration's broader efforts to
modernize the intelligence community since 9/11.ÿThe special agents awarded
their badges today will write a new chapter in the FBI's storied history
with assignments as diverse as the FBI's mission _ from dismantling
organized crime networks, to pulling the plug on online predators, to
making white-collar criminals pay for defrauding hardworking Americans _
and they will take their place on the front lines of the war on terror.

Thanks To The Vision And Determination Of The FBI, America Is Safer Today
Than Prior To 9/11

The FBI's leaders adapted the Bureau's mission to detection and disruption
of terrorist attacks.ÿBefore 9/11, terrorism was viewed primarily as a
criminal matter.ÿ Law enforcement focused more on prosecuting terrorists
after an attack than on preventing the attack in the first place.ÿ For
example, after terrorists first targeted the World Trade Center in 1993,
FBI agents succeeded in tracking down several of the killers, obtaining
indictments against them, and putting them behind bars.ÿ But eight years
later al Qaida returned to finish the job.ÿÿ

Immediately after 9/11, the FBI made preventing terrorism its top
priority.ÿ Over the past seven years, the FBI has more than doubled the
number of intelligence analysts and translators on the force.ÿ The Patriot
Act has helped ensure that FBI analysts and investigators have the
information they need to protect our Nation.ÿ The FBI established a new
National Security Branch _ bringing together divisions responsible for
intelligence, counterterrorism, and counterespionage.ÿ
  þ At the local level, we have increased the number of FBI Joint Terrorism
    Task Forces from 35 to more than 100. ÿThese task forces bring together
    Federal and local law enforcement agents.ÿ And they have helped break
    up terror cells in places like Portland, Oregon; Buffalo, New York; and
    northern Virginia.ÿ
  þ At the national level, we created the National Counterterrorism Center
    where the FBI is working side by side with the Central Intelligence
    Agency, the Department of Homeland Security, and other Federal agencies
    to track terrorist threats and prevent new attacks.ÿ We created the
    Terrorist Screening Center to consolidate terror watch lists from
    different agencies into one master list.ÿ
  þ At the international level, we have deployed the FBI to foreign
    countries to help track down terrorists. ÿSince 9/11, the FBI has
    opened 16 new offices overseas.ÿ Two are in Kabul and Baghdad _ where
    FBI agents are serving alongside our brave men and women in uniform on
    the front lines of the war on terror.ÿÿ

More than seven years have passed without another attack on our soil.ÿ This
is not an accident.ÿ Since 9/11, the FBI has worked with our partners
around the world to disrupt planned terrorist attacks.ÿ Most Americans will
never know the full stories of how these attacks were stopped and how many
lives were saved.ÿÿÿ

In The Midst Of This Rapid Change, One Thing Will Never Change _ The
Character And Courage Of Those Who Carry The Badge

The members of this class join the FBI during a momentous time in its
history _ its 100th anniversary. ÿOver the past century, the FBI has grown
from a small team of 34 investigators to a powerful force of more than
30,000 agents, analysts, and support professionals serving around the
world.ÿ They have pushed the boundaries of forensic science _ from
mastering the art of fingerprints to pioneering the use of DNA evidence.ÿ
  þ In every era, the FBI has risen to meet new challenges.ÿ When mobsters
    brought crime and chaos to America's cities during the 1920s and 30s,
    the G-Men of the FBI brought them to justice.ÿ When America entered
    World War II, the FBI stopped Axis agents from carrying out attacks on
    our homeland.ÿ During the Cold War, the FBI worked long hours to
    protect America from Soviet spies.ÿ This record of achievement has
    earned the admiration of the entire world.ÿ

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