PRESIDENT BUSH'S HISTORIC WORDS…Sept 22 2001

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 $40billion 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, your leadership and 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 honoured the British prime minister has crossed an ocean to

show his unity with America. Thank you for coming, friend.

On September 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 centre 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 terrorist organisations

known as al Qaeda. They are some of the murderers indicted for bombing

American embassies in Tanzania and Kenya and for bombing the USS 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 practise a fringe form of Islamic extremism that has been rejected by

Muslim scholars and the vast majority of Muslim clerics; a fringe movement that

pervertsthepeacefulteachingsof 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 organisations, including the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, the Islamic

Movement of Uzbekistan.

There are thousands of these terrorists in more than 60 countries. They are recruited

from their own nations and neighbourhoods 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 brutalised, 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 if his beard is not long enough. The United States respects the

people of Afghanistan - we are its largest source of humanitarian aid - but we

condemn the Taliban regime.

It is not only repressing its ownpeople, 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 of the leaders of Al Qaeda who

hide in your land. Release all foreign nationals you have unjustly imprisoned.

Protect foreign journalists, diplomatsandaidworkersinyour country. Close

immediately and permanently every terrorist training camp in Afghanistan.

And hand over every terrorist and every person and 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 practised freely by many millions of Americans and by millions more in countries

that America counts as friends. Its teachings are goodand 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 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 network ofterrorists 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 todrive 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 Americagrows 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 theirkind before. They're 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 - every means of diplomacy, every

tool of intelligence, every instrument of law enforcement, every financial influence

and every necessary weapon of war - to the destruction and to the defeat of the

global terror network.

This war will not be like the war against Iraqa decade ago, with a 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 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 thatprovide 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, any nation that continues to harbour 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 FBI 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 havecalled 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 isnot just America's freedom. This

is the world's fight.

This is civilisation'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 services and banking systems

around the world.

The United States is grateful that many nations and many international

organisations 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 civilised world is rallying toAmerica'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 somany 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, Liberty

unites.org, to find the names of groups providing help in New York, Pennsylvania

and Virginia.

The thousands of FBI agents 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 September 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 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 that 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, Governor 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. We will remember the moment the news came, where

we were and what we were doing. Some will remember an image of a fire or story

or 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.