[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Pages 13017-13018]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       TENTH ANNIVERSARY OF 9/11

  Mrs. SHAHEEN. Madam President, as you know so well as the Senator 
from New York, across the country this weekend Americans everywhere 
will gather to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the tragic events 
that took place on September 11, 2001. Families from every town, from 
every city and State will mark this day in their own solemn way and 
take a moment to remember and honor the nearly 3,000 victims of those 
senseless attacks. More than any episode in recent American history, 
the events of 9/11 were experienced on a very personal level all across 
this country.
  No one was untouched by the tragedy of that day. All of us can 
remember exactly where we were when we heard the news. We remember 
those frantic hours as we tried to call loved ones. We remember the 
silence in our skies as our Nation's entire air system shut down. We 
remember mourning the loss of family, friends, and neighbors; and we 
remember the fear and uncertainty as we wondered if more attacks were 
coming.
  We remember the sight we all watched on television, again and again--
the sickening sight of the falling towers of the Trade Center. It is a 
vision that has been forever seared into every American's mind.
  As Governor of New Hampshire at the time, I was actually in 
Washington for a National Governors Association event on early 
childhood education. I will never forget looking out of my hotel and 
seeing the smoke rising from the Pentagon.
  The attacks of 9/11 forever changed us as a nation. Our entire notion 
of security was turned upside down. Our government changed, our 
policies changed, and our view of the world changed. For our children 
and grandchildren especially, this became one of the defining events of 
their generation and has left an indelible mark on their world view.
  As we gather this weekend, all of us in our own way will take a 
moment to recall those feelings of sadness and anger and to honor the 
memories of those we lost. But that loss is not the end of the story, 
and grief is not the true legacy of 9/11. We are not defined by what 
happens to us but by how we respond when we are faced with adversity. 
September 11 did not cripple us as a nation. Instead, it brought out 
the best in all of us. Our story is really how we responded in the face 
of this attack--with courage, resolve, and unity. In the aftermath of 
September 11, we showed the world the true meaning of the American 
spirit.
  The story of America's response to 9/11 starts on that very day with 
accounts of heroism that we could never have imagined. We remember the 
firefighters and the other first responders climbing up the stairwells 
of the burning World Trade Center while others fled down, and how they 
made the ultimate sacrifice for their selflessness. We remember the 
courageous passengers on American Airlines Flight 93 who took away the 
terrorists' greatest weapon, fear, by fighting back even though it 
meant their lives. And who knows how many lives they saved, whether 
they stopped that attack.
  In the days that followed, all Americans stepped forward in any way 
they could. Red Cross centers were overwhelmed with volunteer blood 
donors. Millions of us donated money and offered up prayers. In New 
Hampshire in the days following the attack I remember joining a crowd 
of hundreds for a prayer service at St. Paul's Church in Concord. We 
came together to honor the victims and to comfort each other. The 
response was incredible. The crowd spilled out into the streets with 
many waving American flags, holding candles, and singing ``God Bless 
America.''
  In New Hampshire, our State government and our employees refused to 
buckle under the terrorist threat. We kept the State working on 
September 11.
  I will not forget the more than 100 fire departments across New 
Hampshire that called our State fire marshal's office to offer their 
services for assistance in New York or the countless physicians, rescue 
workers, and volunteers who made themselves available to help at a 
moment's notice.
  Of course, we cannot tell America's story without telling the story 
of the men and women in our military who have spent the last decade 
trying to make sure an attack like this never happens again. Since 
September 11, more than 5 million men and women have voluntarily joined 
the Armed Forces to protect America and defend her freedom abroad. More 
than 6,200 Americans, including 37 troops from New Hampshire, have 
given the ultimate sacrifice in our Nation's defense. Over 45,000 more 
have been wounded or injured and returned home with lasting scars. 
Millions of troops and their families have sustained the toughest, most 
debilitating tempo of deployments in our Nation's history, often being 
deployed into war five or six times, enduring constant mental and 
physical strains in service to our country.

[[Page 13018]]

  The resolve our troops have demonstrated since 9/11 has yielded a 
string of successes on an extremely complex battlefield. Our men and 
women in uniform have done everything that has been asked of them. 
Osama bin Laden has been brought to justice. Countless other high-level 
terrorist operatives, including the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, 
have been killed or captured, and the organization's bases in 
Afghanistan and Pakistan remain under constant pressure. Al-Qaida and 
its extremist affiliates' deadly ideology is being questioned around 
the globe, and the remnants of al-Qaida's diminishing leadership are 
disorganized and struggling to reestablish themselves in the face of an 
aggressive U.S. offensive.
  As our current Secretary of Defense, Leon Panetta, has remarked, we 
are ``within reach of strategically defeating al-Qaida.'' Although we 
can't be complacent and we must remain steadfast in our pursuit, our 
military should be honored for the gains our Nation has made against 
the terrorists who attacked us on September 11.
  In New Hampshire our Air National Guard deployed almost immediately 
after the attacks, and every day since September 11, 2011, they have 
been providing persistent air refueling coverage for homeland defense 
and for our command issues in Iraq and Afghanistan.
  I will forever remember walking through the New Hampshire airport 
with the New Hampshire National Guard when flights resumed after 9/11. 
As we walked through, people everywhere stopped what they were doing to 
applaud the National Guard for their efforts to keep the people of New 
Hampshire safe.
  In the decade since the attacks, Americans have found new 
appreciation for the service these citizen soldiers provide, and 
Americans outside the military have learned they have a role to play 
too. With the heroes of United Flight 93 as their inspiration, everyday 
Americans have stopped a number of terrorist plots from succeeding. 
Passengers and flight personnel stopped the December 2001 bomber, the 
attempt by shoe bomber Richard Reid, and they stopped the Christmas Day 
2009 attempt onboard the Northwest Airlines flight. The attempted Times 
Square bombing last year, as you remember, was in part averted by an 
alert New York City street vendor.
  Perhaps most importantly, as we remember America's 9/11 story this 
weekend, we should all reflect often the unity we demonstrated in the 
face of this terrible attack. On September 11 we were not Republicans 
or Democrats, Black or White, rich or poor. We were all Americans. The 
attack focused our attention on our common bonds and on the American 
ideals we all hold dear. We were determined to prove, despite our 
differences, that the United States of America would persevere and 
endure. While we have not always maintained that sense of unity in the 
years since, our memory of it has inspired us and continually reminded 
us of what is possible when we reach for the best within ourselves.
  When the history books are written and America's 9/11 story is told 
to the generations to follow, I hope it will tell of how we came 
together to remind the entire world of what this country stands for and 
who we are as a people; how after our darkest day we rose up with new 
determination; how instead of turning inward, we chose to confront the 
evil that had visited our shores and to fight on; and how we continued 
to be the beacon of hope, liberty, and opportunity that we have always 
been to the world.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Wyoming.
  Mr. BARRASSO. Madam President, I ask that the order for the quorum 
call be rescinded.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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