It’s been seven years since the September 11th attacks. This morning, President Bush and First Lady Laura Bush paused for a moment of silence on the White House South Lawn before attending a ceremony to dedicate a memorial at the Pentagon to the 184 victims who died there.
In the interest of unity on this day of remembrance, I am following the example set by the presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama, who have suspended their campaign activities. Both men will visit Ground Zero in New York City and make a joint appearance this evening at a forum on volunteerism and service.
Putting politics aside for the day, I thought it might be fitting to look back at my report on the day of September 11, 2001, and what has happened in the years since. Here is an excerpt from my report on that “Dark Day,” as I called it then.
“It is hard to put into words the emotions I was feeling at that moment. As I veered onto the Memorial Bridge I could see the smoke and flames billowing out of the Pentagon. I have friends and neighbors who work there - people who have dedicated their lives to the defense of the nation. Many if not most had served and survived on foreign battle fields only to die here at the heart of America’s government and power.
“By the time I reached Capitol Hill a mass evacuation was underway and thousands of congressional employees were streaming out of the main office buildings. I was able to reach my daughter Elyse who works for Congressman Frank Wolf and confirm she was okay. I called home to let the rest of our family know that while I had been close to the Pentagon explosion I was in one piece. …
“Many were not as fortunate as I was this morning. Flags are already flying at half-staff. Pray for comfort for those that have lost a loved one. Pray for courage for our political leadership. And pray that America will remember again that God is the author of our liberty and that we can survive only with his grace and protection. May God bless us and keep us strong, safe and free.”
In the seven years since that dark day, America has been spared the horror of another massive terrorist attack. That is not for lack of effort on the part of the Islamofascists. They have repeatedly tried to strike us from the shadows. This morning, Fox News published a list of 20 plots that have been foiled since 9/11.
Cheney, the courageous men and women of our intelligence and law enforcement communities and our brave men and women in uniform, the terrorists have been stopped here in America.
But what has happened overseas? Since September 11, 2001, London has been bombed. Madrid has been bombed. The popular tourist resort in Bali, Indonesia, has been bombed. Terrorist thugs massacred school children in Beslan, Russia. And Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda have brutally terrorized the Afghan and Iraqi people, virtually all of them fellow Muslims, and murdered American soldiers in an attempt to strangle freedom in its infancy in the Middle East.My friends, this is not just a “war against terrorism,” it is a war to defend civilization itself. Yes, the costs are high. Yes, families are hurting. Our prayers are with our men and women in the military and their families at home. But, yes, this is a just war, and it is a war that the free nations of the world must win. If we lose, the world will be plunged into another dark age of death, terror and chaos far greater and more horrible than what we witnessed on that dark day seven years ago.
May God bless us and keep us strong, safe and free.
Gary Bauer
Campaign for Working Families
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