Sen. Ted Cruz Delivers Remarks at a Memorial Commemorating the Victims of the Flight 5342 Crash

...is missed terribly. Unfortunately for so many in this audience tonight, it is a loss that you carry with you every single day. Yet amid unimaginable grief over the past year, we've also witnessed extraordinary strength. We've seen resilience, courage, and determination. Instead of turning inward, you chose to stand up, to speak out, and to insist that we do everything humanly possible to ensure that no other family would endure the pain that you have faced. Over the past year, I've had the privilege of meeting with many of you personally, caring about your loved ones, their stories, your frustrations, and your hopes. And it has helped shape the work we have done, and only strengthened my resolve. I remember meeting with Tim and Sherry Lilly the week of the crash, and many of the family members of others lost several times since. After the crash, it became clear that serious gaps had allowed this accident to happen. Gaps in oversight, in coordination, and regulation that allowed an area of intolerable risk to persist. I know this isn't a political event, and that policy is not the focus, but I want to convey a very real message. In Congress, we have made serious progress in advancing the Rotaract, bipartisan aviation safety legislation. We're very close to having it become law. Thanks to the effort and leadership of many of the families gathered here tonight, the Senate has passed the Rotaract unanimously, every Republican, every Democrat coming together to speak is one. And I'm hopeful that our House colleagues will step forward and pass it as well. The reforms being debated would not have happened without the tenacious advocacy from family members here tonight. For that, I want to say thank you. Thank you for investing your time and energy and grief into action. I am committed to seeing this work through, to honoring the lives lost by ensuring that meaningful aviation safety reforms become law. While we cannot change the past, we can work together to create a safer future, one that honors your loved ones, not just for how they were lost, but for the enduring impact that their lives made. Thank you, and may God bless each and every one of you.