[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 145 (Wednesday, September 11, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5418-S5419]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       Remembering September 11th

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I think everyone knows today is the 
anniversary of 9/11. Many of us here remember evacuating this very 
building on September 11, 2001. We knew the world would never be the 
same.
  For the people of New York, an ordinary beautiful morning was brought 
to a screeching halt as the clear blue sky filled with smoke. For those 
at the Pentagon, the workdays in service of our Nation turned into a 
literal nightmare. For hundreds of air travelers, routine flights gave 
way to tragedy, and, thanks to the bravery of passengers and crew, 
incredible acts of heroism.
  The Senate stands with the entire Nation as we remember the terrible 
events of 18 years ago today and the nearly 3,000 innocent lives that 
terrorists stole away. We stand in solidarity with those who still 
grieve, and we honor the patriotic resolve that inspired first 
responders, U.S. servicemembers, and countless Americans who dedicated 
themselves, that day and since, to selflessly keeping our Nation safe.
  May our remembrances renew our commitment to building a world where 
terrorist evil has no home. May we never forget.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Democratic leader.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I join the leader. Eighteen years ago, on 
a cloudless Tuesday morning, my city, our country, and our world 
changed forever. In the span of a few hours, the Twin Towers fell, the 
Pentagon was hit, and smoke rose from an empty field in Pennsylvania.
  More than 3,000 souls were taken from us that day. I knew some of 
them: a guy I played basketball with in high school, a businessman who 
helped me on the way up, and a firefighter whom I went around the city 
doing blood drives with. It was one of the bloodiest days on American 
soil since the Civil War.
  Each year we correctly and appropriately pause to remember that awful 
day. We mourn those whom we lost and think of them. The day after 9/11, 
I called for every American to wear the flag. I wear this flag every 
day. I have worn it every day since then in memory of them.
  We also remember our resiliency and the resiliency of New Yorkers, 
the brave firefighters, police officers, and

[[Page S5419]]

ordinary citizens who rushed to the Towers.
  The generosity--I will never forget a man who had a shoe store about 
two blocks north of the Towers who just gave shoes to all the people. 
Some men and women who had to run 90 flight of stairs left their shoes 
behind.
  I remember the next day, when President Bush sent us back up to New 
York, and the empty skies, a bunch of F-16s around our plane going down 
there, smelling the smell of burnt flesh and death in the air, and 
seeing over 1,000 people lined up with little signs, because we didn't 
know who was gone and who might be found: Have you seen my sister Mary? 
Have you seen my son Bob?
  It was an awful day and a day we live with, but we know our 
resilience. Many predicted that Lower Manhattan would be a ghost town 
forevermore. It has more people, more jobs, and more business than 
before 9/11. Many thought that America would succumb to the evil 
brutality of the terrorists. We have fought back very successfully.
  We think, finally, of those who are dying now as a result of their 
rushing to the Towers into the hours and days after, and we are also 
grateful that this body has now fully funded both the health fund and 
the fund to see that the families are taken care of.
  It is an amazing moment. I live with it all the time. I ride my bike 
around the city, and every seventh or eighth block has the name of a 
street commemorating someone who died--firefighter this and police 
officer that.
  But America, New York, and all of us have not been beaten by the 
terrorists and have not been beaten by adversity. On this issue, we 
have come together, and we will prevail.
  I ask unanimous consent that there be a minute of silence in memory 
of those who were lost both that day and who are still being lost 
because of their heroism a few days after.


 Moment of Silence in Remembrance of the Lives Lost in the Attacks of 
                           September 11, 2001

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senate will observe a moment of silence in 
remembrance of the events of September 11, 2001.
  (Moment of silence.)

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