Republican New York Rep. Peter King addressed the need Tuesday to use intelligence to stop terror attacks before they occur, citing the Manchester attack as a “wake up call” for the United States.
On Fox News, King said, “If anything positive comes from such a horrible tragedy, again, this can be a vivid wake up call to all Americans to realize how real this threat is.”
“Islamist terrorism is real, it can strike at any time, anywhere,” King asserted. “We in the United States are, of course, main targets.”
While security measures are important, King said, the real goal will be to stop terrorist attacks before they occur by using special intelligence.
“We need the intelligence. To get that you need surveillance and you have to be monitoring where the threat may be coming from,” he continued, citing mosques, Muslim communities, refugees and overseas allies as things to watch.
King preemptively addressed any arguments that his proposed measures are Islamophobic.
“We have to realize this is not going after a particular religion but it’s going where the threat is coming from.”
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