Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) called on Sunday for a “no-ride” list for Amtrak trains, as a way of preventing potential terrorists from riding the rails.
“Circumstances demand we make adjustments by increasing funding to enhance rail safety and monitoring on commuter rail transit and screening who gets on Amtrak passenger trains, so that we can provide a greater level of security to the public,” Schumer told reporters at a news conference
Material seized at Osama bin Laden’s compound by U.S. forces last week apparently showed that Al Qaeda had considered trains as a potential target for a terrorist attack in the U.S.
According to The New York Daily News, Schumer wants the existing airline “no-fly” list used by Amtrak, too.
Schumer’s plan would have Amtrak employees checking passenger lists against the “no-ride” list, and alerting law enforcement of any matches.
“By alerting law enforcement about passengers on a ‘no-fly’ list we’ve been able to catch and deter terrorists, preventing them from boarding plains or launching further attacks,” Schumer said. “We can do exactly the same for Amtrak at virtually no extra cost.”
Eric Lach
Eric Lach is a reporter for TPM. From 2010 to 2011, he was a news writer in charge of the website’s front page. He has previously written for The Daily, NewYorker.com, GlobalPost and other publications. He can be reached at ericl(at)talkingpointsmemo.com
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