The November 5, 2009 shooting attack on Fort Hood, Texas would be officially recognized as an act of radical Islamic terrorism under a resolution introduced this week by Congressman John Carter, who represents the Fort Hood area in the House.
The Fort Hood Resolution, H.R.495, would end any ambiguity over whether the attack was properly classified under combat status or as part of a broader category of “workplace violence.”
“This is a blatant case of political correctness denying reality to the detriment of the victims and families of those who were killed and wounded in the attack on Fort Hood,” says Carter. “There is no justification for denying these casualties the same combat status as those at the Pentagon on 9-11, other than to deny that a radical Islamic terrorist with connections to Al Qaeda attacked our soldiers at Fort Hood.”
The Administration last week wrote to the Senate Homeland Security Committee that “the Department (of Defense) has advanced several initiatives to deter, detect, and respond to violent extremism in the force. The documents attached illustrate how the Department is dealing with the threat of violent Islamist extremism in the context of a broader threat of workplace violence.” Carter introduced legislation following the attack and again this year, The Fort Hood Families Benefits Protection Act, HR 625. The bill would by law award both military and civilian casualties of the Fort Hood attack combatant status to ensure full benefits and eligibility for the Purple Heart and the civilian award equivalent. The bill was considered for inclusion in this year’s National Defense Authorization Act, but was denied earlier this week.
However, two other Carter initiatives in response to the Fort Hood attack were included in NDAA. Language from Carter’s Whistleblower Protections Act will protect soldiers and civilian defense employees from retaliation for reporting violent Islamic extremist activity in the future. And Carter along with fellow Texan U.S. Rep Michael Conaway won approval for mandatory “active shooter” training by military and civilian law enforcement on U.S. military installations, to provide response training for mass shooting incidents like those at Fort Hood and Virginia Tech.
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