George W. Bush reflects on 9/11 nearly 25 years after attacks
A captivated audience heard firsthand accounts of September 11th from former President George W. Bush at his presidential library in Dallas.
Nearly 25 years after the attacks, he joined members of his administration to revisit one of America's darkest days. He recalled the day that would come to define his presidency.
"9/11 was a clarifying moment for me and you and others in our administration because we realized that we were vulnerable to attack based upon what we believe," he said. "Based upon a belief system."
The now 80-year-old, alongside former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, described the chaos and uncertainty that followed and the decisions made in the hours and days after the attacks.
"When America is in trouble, Americans respond, and I got to see it firsthand," Bush said. "It's an amazing country, and I remember seeing the recruitment numbers, volunteer numbers, I mean, it was unbelievable who joined our military. Flooding the military, saying I want to serve."
Some of Bush's most vivid memories centered on the people he encountered. The military, first responders, grieving families, and Americans looking for reassurance.
Rice offered a view from inside the White House.
"On the day after the attack, we're sitting in the Oval Office and because the FBI and the CIA had not really been able to talk to each other because of civil liberties and, for the first time we had to forge intelligence between them by having Bob Mueller and George Tenet come into the Oval Office every morning and show the president what they saw in the threat matrix," Rice said. "A threat matrix that had been this big on September 10 was like a phonebook on September 12th."
Now, 25 years later, the focus turns to honoring the nearly 3,000 lives lost.
"The sad thing is one-third of our nation has no clue what we're talking about," Bush said. "They never witnessed this sacrifice and the courage and the dedication to serve a neighbor in need."
He stressed the importance of preserving our nation's history.
On Friday, the former president and first lady Laura Bush will participate in a commemoration ceremony in New York City. The Bush Center will also hold a moment of remembrance Friday inside the museum at 8:30 a.m.
