Chairman Lieberman, Ranking Member Collins, and distinguished Members of the Committee. Thank you for the opportunity to appear today to discuss the steps U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has taken in response to the attempted terrorist attack on Northwest Flight 253. I appreciate the Committee's leadership in the aftermath of the attack, and your steadfast efforts to ensure the security of the American people.

The attempted attack on Northwest Flight 253 on December 25 was a powerful reminder that terrorists will go to great lengths to defeat the security measures that have been put in place since September 11, 2001. As Secretary Napolitano has testified at recent hearings regarding the attempted attack, this Administration is determined to thwart terrorist plots and disrupt, dismantle, and defeat terrorist networks by employing multiple layers of defense that work in concert with one another to secure our country. This is an effort that involves not just CBP, but components across the Department of Homeland Security and many other federal agencies as well as state, local, tribal, territorial, private sector and international partners.

Today I want to describe the role that CBP currently performs in aviation security and the enhanced security measures implemented in the aftermath of the attempted Christmas Day attack.

CBP's Role in Multiple Layers of Defense

Since 9/11, the U.S. government has employed multiple layers of defense across several departments and agencies to secure the aviation sector and ensure the safety of the traveling public. Different federal agencies bear different responsibilities, while other countries and the private sector - especially the air carriers themselves - also have important roles to play.

CBP is responsible for securing our Nation's borders while facilitating the movement of legitimate travel and trade vital to our economy. Our purview spans more than 5,000 miles of border with Canada and 1,900 miles of border with Mexico. CBP is the largest uniformed, federal law enforcement agency in the country, with over 20,000 Border Patrol Agents operating between the ports of entry and more than 20,000 CBP officers stationed at air, land, and sea ports nationwide. These forces are supplemented with more than 1,100 Air and Marine agents, and 2,300 agricultural specialists and other professionals. In FY 2009 alone, CBP processed more than 360 million pedestrians and passengers, 109 million conveyances, apprehended over 556,000 illegal aliens between our ports of entry, encountered over 224,000 inadmissible aliens at the ports of entry, and seized more than 5.2 million pounds of illegal drugs. Every day, CBP processes over one million travelers seeking to enter the United States by land, air or sea.

In order to counter the threat of terrorism and secure our borders, CBP relies on a balanced mix of professional law enforcement personnel, advanced technologies and fully modernized facilities and infrastructure both at and between the ports of entry. We deploy a cadre of highly trained agents and officers who utilize state of the art technologies to quickly detect, analyze and respond to illegal breaches across the borders. These personnel rely upon a solid backbone of tactical infrastructure to facilitate their access to border areas while impeding illegal entry by persons or vehicles into the United States. CBP Officers utilize advanced targeting, screening and inspection technologies to quickly identify persons or cargo that warrant additional scrutiny without unduly impeding the traveling public or commerce.