US Commemorates 22nd Anniversary of 9/11
On Monday, Americans and their elected officials honored the 22nd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks. Vice President Kamala Harris, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, and New York City Mayor Eric Adams attended the name-reading ceremony for victims in Lower Manhattan, with Pres. Joe Biden ...
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Facts
- On Monday, Americans and their elected officials honored the 22nd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks. Vice President Kamala Harris, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, and New York City Mayor Eric Adams attended the name-reading ceremony for victims in Lower Manhattan, with Pres. Joe Biden planning to attend a ceremony at a military base in Alaska.1
- US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) announced that at 8:46 a.m., the time the first plane hit the north tower of the World Trade Center (WTC), Congress would 'recognize Patriot Day by observing a moment of silence.' The attacks were also honored by the New York Police Department's 19th precinct as well as Rep. Anthony D'Esposito (R-N.Y.).2
- Elsewhere, the small county of Goochland, Va. held two ceremonies, 911 dispatchers in Columbus, Ind., broadcast a remembrance message to first responders, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts raised and lowered the flag in Fenton, Mo., and Monmouth County, N.J. made 9/11 an official holiday this year.3
- Though politicians at first steered clear of using 9/11 in campaigns, former Pres. George W. Bush in 2004 used footage of remains being carried out in a re-election ad. Subsequently, presidential candidates John McCain, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and, Ron DeSantis have all mentioned it to some degree.4
- Candidates for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination took to ceremonies and social media on Monday. Former Vice President Mike Pence attended an event in Ankeny, Iowa, former N.J. Gov. Chris Christie spoke at a barbecue in New Hampshire, and Trump posted 'God bless the memory of all of those who perished' to Truth Social.1
- The attacks, in which hijackers crashed planes into the north and south World Trade Center buildings, the Pentagon, and an empty field near Shanksville, Pa., killed more than 3K people. According to the 9/11 Memorial in NYC, a Tribute of Light will run from dusk to dawn Monday to honor both the victims and the 'unbreakable spirit of New York.'5
Sources: 1New York Post, 2Washington examiner, 3Nbc new york, 4New York Times and 5Deseret news.
Narratives
- Republican narrative, as provided by Townhall. Joe Biden disappointingly chose not to visit one of the three 9/11 crash sites. When asked why he couldn't, the White House said 'presidents were not still going to visit Hawaii' 22 years after Pearl Harbor. His lack of attendance is a major gaffe.
- Democratic narrative, as provided by Abc news. Pres. Biden is not the first president to commemorate this sad day from somewhere other than a crash site, and that includes presidents Bush and Obama. Sept. 11 is a day to mourn the Americans we lost and boost the morale of the soldiers and first responders who continue to protect us from the threat of terrorism — not to engage in petty politics.
- Cynical narrative, as provided by Intercept. Partisan politics aside, Americans must not forget to demand transparency from their government regarding the tragedy of 9/11. Though Bush downplayed it for years, we now know that the CIA was following two of the hijackers all the way up until they entered the US just weeks before the attacks. This, and probing the pretenses for the decades of casualties caused by the 'War on Terror' are legitimate questions that deserve answers.
