Mr. Speaker, Mr.
President pro tem, members of Congress and fellow
Americans:
In the normal course
of events, presidents come to this chamber to report on
the state of the union. Tonight, no such report is
needed. It has already been delivered by the American
people.
We have seen it in the
courage of passengers who rushed terrorists to save
others on the ground. Passengers like an exceptional man
named Todd Beamer. And would you please help me welcome
his wife, Lisa Beamer, here tonight.
We have seen the state
of our union in the endurance of rescuers working past
exhaustion. We've seen the unfurling of flags, the
lighting of candles, the giving of blood, the saying of
prayers in English, Hebrew and Arabic. We have seen the
decency of a loving and giving people who have made the
grief of strangers their own.
My fellow citizens,
for the last nine days, the entire world has seen for
itself the state of our union, and it is strong.
Tonight we are a country
awakened to danger and called to defend freedom. Our
grief has turned to anger and anger to resolution.
Whether we bring our enemies to justice or bring justice
to our enemies, justice will be done. I thank the
Congress for its leadership at such an important time.
All of America was touched on the evening of the tragedy
to see Republicans and Democrats joined together on the
steps of this Capitol singing "God Bless America." And
you did more than sing. You acted by delivering $40
billion to rebuild our communities and meet the needs of
our military.
Speaker Hastert,
Minority Leader Gephardt, Majority Leader Daschle and
Senator Lott, I thank you for your friendship, for your
leadership and for your service to our country. And on
behalf of the American people, I thank the world for its
outpouring of support. America will never forget the
sounds of our national anthem playing at Buckingham
Palace, on the streets of Paris and at Berlin's
Brandenburg Gate. We will not forget South Korean
children gathering to pray outside our embassy in Seoul
or the prayers of sympathy offered at a mosque in Cairo.
We will not forget moments of silence and days of
mourning in Australia and Africa and Latin
America. Nor will
we forget the citizens of 80 other nations who died with
our own: dozens of Pakistanis, more than 130 Israelis,
more than 250 citizens of India, men and women from El
Salvador, Iran, Mexico and Japan, and hundreds of British
citizens. America
has no truer friend than Great Britain. Once again we are
joined together in a great cause. I'm so honored the
British prime minister has crossed an ocean to show his
unity with America. Thank you for coming, friend.
On Sept. 11, enemies
of freedom committed an act of war against our country.
Americans have known wars. But for the past 136 years
they have been wars on foreign soil, except for one
Sunday in 1941. Americans have known the casualties of
war. But not at the center of a great city on a peaceful
morning. Americans have known surprise attacks. But never
before on thousands of civilians. All of this was brought
upon us in a single day. And night fell on a different
world, a world where freedom itself is under attack.
Americans have many
questions tonight. Americans are asking, "Who attacked
our country?"
The evidence we have
gathered all points to a collection of loosely affiliated
terrorist organizations known as Al Qaeda. They are some
of the murderers indicted for bombing American Embassies
in Tanzania and Kenya, and responsible for bombing the
U.S.S. Cole. Al
Qaeda is to terror what the Mafia is to crime. But its
goal is not making money; its goal is remaking the world
and imposing its radical beliefs on people everywhere.
The terrorists practice a fringe form of Islamic
extremism that has been rejected by Muslim scholars and
the vast majority of Muslim clerics. A fringe movement
that perverts the peaceful teaching of Islam. The
terrorists' directive commands them to kill Christians
and Jews, to kill all Americans and make no distinctions
among military and civilians, including women and
children. This group and its leader, a person named Osama
bin Laden, are linked to many other organizations in
different countries, including the Egyptian Islamic Jihad
and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.
There are thousands of
these terrorists in more than 60 countries. They are
recruited from their own nations and neighborhoods and
brought to camps in places like Afghanistan, where they
are trained in the tactics of terror. They are sent back
to their homes or sent to hide in countries around the
world to plot evil and destruction. The leadership of Al
Qaeda has great influence in Afghanistan and supports the
Taliban regime in controlling most of that
country. In
Afghanistan we see Al Qaeda's vision for the world.
Afghanistan's people have been brutalized. Many are
starving and many have fled. Women are not allowed to
attend school. You can be jailed for owning a television.
Religion can be practiced only as their leaders dictate.
A man can be jailed in Afghanistan if his beard is not
long enough. The
United States respects the people of Afghanistan. After
all, we are currently its largest source of humanitarian
aid. But we condemn the Taliban regime. It is not only
repressing its own people; it is threatening people
everywhere by sponsoring and sheltering and supplying
terrorists. By aiding and abetting murder, the Taliban
regime is committing murder.
And tonight the United
States of America makes the following demands on the
Taliban:
-Deliver to
United States authorities all the leaders of Al Qaeda
who hide in your land.
-Release all
foreign nationals, including American citizens, you
have unjustly imprisoned.
-Protect foreign
journalists, diplomats and aid workers in your
country.
-Close immediately
and permanently every terrorist training camp in
Afghanistan and hand over every terrorist and every
person in their support structure to appropriate
authorities.
-Give the United
States full access to terrorist training camps so we
can make sure they are no longer operating.
These demands are not
open to negotiation or discussion. The Taliban must act
and act immediately. They will hand over the terrorists
or they will share in their fate.
I also want to speak
tonight directly to Muslims throughout the world. We
respect your faith. It's practiced freely by many
millions of Americans and by millions more in countries
that America counts as friends. Its teachings are good
and peaceful. And those who commit evil in the name of
Allah blaspheme the name of Allah. The terrorists are
traitors to their own faith, trying in effect to hijack
Islam itself. The
enemy of America is not our many Muslim friends. It is
not our many Arab friends. Our enemy is a radical network
of terrorists and every government that supports them.
Our war on terror begins with Al Qaeda, but it does not
end there. It will not end until every terrorist group of
global reach has been found, stopped and defeated.
Americans are asking,
"Why do they hate us?"
They hate what they
see right here in this chamber, a democratically elected
government. Their leaders are self-appointed. They hate
our freedoms, our freedom of religion, our freedom of
speech, our freedom to vote and assemble and disagree
with each other. They want to overthrow existing
governments in many Muslim countries, such as Egypt,
Saudi Arabia and Jordan. They want to drive Israel out of
the Middle East. They want to drive Christians and Jews
out of vast regions of Asia and Africa.
These terrorists kill
not merely to end lives but to disrupt and end a way of
life. With every atrocity they hope that America grows
fearful, retreating from the world and forsaking our
friends. They stand against us because we stand in their
way. We're not deceived by their pretenses to piety. We
have seen their kind before. They are the heirs of all
the murderous ideologies of the 20th century. By
sacrificing human life to serve their radical visions, by
abandoning every value except the will to power, they
follow in the path of fascism, Nazism and
totalitarianism. And they will follow that path all the
way to where it ends: in history's unmarked grave of
discarded lies.
Americans are asking,
"How will we fight and win this war?"
We will direct every
resource at our command ó every means of
diplomacy, every tool of intelligence, every instrument
of law enforcement, every financial influence and every
necessary weapon of war ó to the disruption and to
the defeat of the global terror network.
Now, this war will not
be like the war against Iraq a decade ago, with the
decisive liberation of territory and a swift conclusion.
It will not look like the air war above Kosovo two years
ago, where no ground troops were used and not a single
American was lost in combat.
Our response involves
far more than instant retaliation and isolated
strikes.
Americans should not
expect one battle, but a lengthy campaign unlike any
other we have ever seen. It may include dramatic strikes
visible on TV and covert operations, secret even in
success.
We will starve
terrorists of funding, turn them one against another,
drive them from place to place until there is no refuge
or no rest. And we will pursue nations that provide aid
or safe haven to terrorism.
Every nation in every
region now has a decision to make. Either you are with us
or you are with the terrorists. From this day forward,
any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism
will be regarded by the United States as a hostile
regime.
Our nation has been
put on notice: We're not immune from attack.
We will take defensive
measures against terrorism to protect Americans. Today
dozens of federal departments and agencies as well as
state and local governments have responsibilities
affecting homeland security. These efforts must be
coordinated at the highest level.
So tonight I announce
the creation of a cabinet-level position reporting
directly to me, the Office of Homeland
Security.
And tonight I also
announce a distinguished American to lead this effort to
strengthen American security, a military veteran, an
effective governor, a true patriot, a trusted friend:
Pennsylvania's Tom Ridge. He will lead, oversee and
coordinate a comprehensive national strategy to safeguard
our country against terrorism and respond to any attacks
that may come. These measures are essential. The only way
to defeat terrorism as a threat to our way of life is to
stop it, eliminate it and destroy it where it grows. Many
will be involved in this effort, from F.B.I. agents to
intelligence operatives to the reservists we have called
to active duty. All deserve our thanks and all have our
prayers.
And tonight a few
miles from the damaged Pentagon, I have a message for our
military: be ready. I've called the armed forces to alert
and there is a reason. The hour is coming when America
will act and you will make us proud. This is not,
however, just America's fight. And what is at stake is
not just America's freedom. This is the world's fight,
this is civilization's fight, this is the fight of all
who believe in progress and pluralism, tolerance and
freedom. We ask
every nation to join us. We will ask and we will need the
help of police forces, intelligence service and banking
systems around the world.
The United States is
grateful that many nations and many international
organizations have already responded with sympathy and
with support. Nations from Latin America to Asia to
Africa to Europe to the Islamic world. Perhaps the NATO
charter reflects best the attitude of the world: an
attack on one is an attack on all. The civilized world is
rallying to America's side. They understand that if this
terror goes unpunished, their own cities, their own
citizens, may be next. Terror unanswered can not only
bring down buildings, it can threaten the stability of
legitimate governments. And you know what? We're not
going to allow it.
Americans are asking,
"What is expected of us?" I ask you to live your lives
and hug your children. I know many citizens have fears
tonight and I ask you to be calm and resolute, even in
the face of a continuing threat. I ask you to uphold the
values of America and remember why so many have come
here. We're in a
fight for our principles and our first responsibility is
to live by them. No one should be singled out for unfair
treatment or unkind words because of their ethnic
background or religious faith.
I ask you to continue to
support the victims of this tragedy with your
contributions. Those who want to give can go to a central
source of information ó libertyunites.org ó
to find the names of groups providing direct help in New
York, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The thousands of F.B.I.
agents who are now at work in this investigation may need
your cooperation. And I ask you to give it. I ask for
your patience with the delays and inconveniences that may
accompany tighter security. And for your patience in what
will be a long struggle.
I ask your continued
participation and confidence in the American economy.
Terrorists attacked a symbol of American prosperity. They
did not touch its source. America is successful because
of the hard work and creativity and enterprise of our
people. These were the true strengths of our economy
before Sept. 11 and they are our strengths today.
And finally, please
continue praying for the victims of terror and their
families, for those in uniform and for our great country.
Prayer has comforted us in sorrow and will help
strengthen us for the journey ahead.
Tonight I thank my
fellow Americans for what you have already done and for
what you will do. And ladies and gentlemen of the
Congress I thank you, their representatives, for what you
have already done and for what we will do
together.
Tonight we face new
and sudden national challenges. We will come together to
improve air safety, to dramatically expand the number of
air marshals on domestic flights and take new measures to
prevent hijacking. We will come together to promote
stability and keep our airlines flying with direct
assistance during this emergency. We will come together
to give law enforcement the additional tools it needs to
track down terror here at home. We will come together to
strengthen our intelligence capabilities to know the
plans of terrorists before they act and to find them
before they strike. We will come together to take active
steps to strengthen America's economy and put our people
back to work.
Tonight we welcome two
leaders who embody the extraordinary spirit of all New
Yorkers: Gov. George Pataki and Mayor Rudolph
Giuliani. As a
symbol of America's resolve, my administration will work
with Congress and these two leaders to show the world
that we will rebuild New York City.
After all that has just
passed, all the lives taken and all the possibilities and
hopes that died with them, it is natural to wonder if
America's future is one of fear. Some speak of an age of
terror. I know there are struggles ahead and dangers to
face. But this
country will define our times, not be defined by them. As
long as the United States of America is determined and
strong, this will not be an age of terror. This will be
an age of liberty here and across the world.
Great harm has been
done to us. We have suffered great loss. And in our grief
and anger, we have found our mission and our moment.
Freedom and fear are at war. The advance of human
freedom, the great achievement of our time and the great
hope of every time, now depends on us. Our nation, this
generation, will lift the dark threat of violence from
our people and our future. We will rally the world to
this cause by our efforts, by our courage. We will not
tire. We will not falter and we will not fail. It is my
hope that in the months and years ahead life will return
almost to normal. We'll go back to our lives and
routines, and that is good.
Even grief recedes with
time and grace.
But our resolve must not
pass. Each of us will remember what happened that day and
to whom it happened, will remember the moment the news
came, where we were and what we were doing. Some will
remember an image of a fire or a story of rescue. Some
will carry memories of a face and a voice gone forever.
And I will carry this: it is the police shield of a man
named George Howard, who died at the World Trade Center
trying to save others. It was given to me by his mom,
Arlene, as a proud memorial to her son. It is my reminder
of lives that ended and a task that does not end. I will
not forget the wound to our country and those who
inflicted it. I will not yield. I will not rest. I will
not relent in waging this struggle for freedom and
security for the American people.
The course of this
conflict is not known, yet its outcome is certain.
Freedom and fear, justice and cruelty, have always been
at war. And we know that God is not neutral between
them.
Fellow citizens, we'll
meet violence with patient justice, assured of the
rightness of our cause and confident of the victories to
come. In all that lies before us, may God grant us wisdom
and may he watch over the United States of America. Thank
you.
.