cnn.com - September 27, 2001 Rumsfeld: Flying safe despite shoot-down policy

"The president, the secretary of defense and the combatant commanders are never more than a minute or two away from a secure phone... Very, very senior people are able to address a matter in real time and ask the right questions and make the right judgments," Rumsfeld said.

On September 11, after it became clear that the United States was under terrorist attack, President Bush authorized the shoot-down of any commercial jet that entered unauthorized air space and refused to turn around. The military never shot at any of the four hijacked jets because they crashed before fighter jets could take any action.

cbsnews.com - Videos: Sept. 11, 2001

dominionpost.com - This article appeared in the Dominion Post Newspaper on September 11, 2001.

President Bush was on his way into a classroom to hear second graders read an idyllic tale from a children's storybook when White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card whispered in his ear. The president, smiling broadly as the children read, raised his eyebrows and sat down, a bemused smile on his face as the children of Emma E. Booker Elementary school read--the full extent of the situation in New York apparently not clear yet. Minutes later, Bush left the classroom and appeared at the school's library, where guests and children had gathered to here him talk about literacy. Instead, a solemn president shocked them with the announcement that America was under siege. ''Ladies and gentlemen, this is a difficult moment for America,'' Bush told the hushed audience. ''Two airplanes have crashed into the World Trade Center, in an apparent terrorist attack on our country.'' ''I am going to conduct a full-scale investigation and hunt down and find those folks who committed this act,'' Bush vowed. ''Terrorism against our nation will not stand.'' With that, Bush asked for a brief moment of silence and then abruptly left--headed to Air Force One and an undisclosed location near Washington.

sptimes - At 9:05 a.m., the White House chief of staff, Andrew Card Jr., stepped into the classroom and whispered into the president's right ear, "A second plane hit the other tower, and America's under attack." The president blanched. But he stayed put, occasionally arching his eyebrows at the children. "Really good readers, whew," he said. "This must be sixth grade."

What did Bush know about the first plane crash before he sat down in a chair to have children read?

...Mr. Bush had begun today about 6:30 a.m., running 4.5 miles during a 42-minute stop at a golf course near the Longboat Key resort where he spent the night. It was dark when he started. He ran with a reporter, Richard Keil of Bloomberg News, and both were sopping wet after keeping a 7-minute, 20-second pace. A Secret Service agent ran with them, and they were trailed by three golf carts.

At 9:04 a.m., before his speech, Mr. Bush went into a classroom for a brief reading demonstration. He smiled when he saw the 18 children. At 9:07 a.m., his chief of staff, Andrew Card, leaned over and whispered to him. Mr. Bush's face suddenly went grim.

At that point, officials apparently thought the crash was an accident. Mr. Bush sat with his hands folded and his legs crossed, with a bemused look. The second-graders read so well that Mr. Bush said, "Really good readers! Whoo! This must be sixth-graders."

Mr. Bush asked his standard question about whether any of the children read more than they watch television, and was pleased to hear that some do. Their reading included the phrase "more to come." Mr. Bush asked, "What does that mean, 'more to come?' "

One of the pupils said, "Something else is going to happen."

Mr. Bush said, "That's exactly right."

dallasnews.com - Stunned Bush: 'A difficult moment for America' 09/11/2001 By MIKE ALLEN Washington Post News of disasters interrupts visit to Florida school

cbsnews.com - Videos: Sept. 11, 2001

mediaresearch.org - What Bush did

september11news.com - Then, at 9:04 a.m., while Bush met with second-graders, staff chief Andrew H. Card Jr. whispered in his ear that a second plane had struck. Bush's sunny countenance went grim. After Card's whisper, Bush looked distracted and somber but continued to listen to the second-graders read and soon was smiling again. He joked that they read so well, they must be sixth-graders.

After Card's whisper, Bush looked distracted and somber but continued to listen to the second-graders read and soon was smiling again. He joked that they read so well, they must be sixth-graders.

After huddling with advisers, Bush entered the school's media center for what was to have been an education speech. He looked stunned, but by the time he reached the podium, he was composed and at 9:30 a.m. delivered the chilling news of "an apparent terrorist attack on our country."

mtmi.vu.lt/wtc/questions - Where was Bush

sptimes.com - Special report

...An inferno erupted when two jetliners crashed into the Trade Center's twin towers and caused the buildings to collapse, imperiling up to 40,000 people who worked there.

A short time later, another plane crashed into the Pentagon in Washington where up to 800 people remain Tuesday night.

gazettenet.com - What Andrew Card says the President said when learning of the first plane crash

Card, a Holbrook native and former Massachusetts state representative, made his comments during a speech before the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce lunch.

radio.cbc.ca - "VICE PRES. CHENEY: Didn't circle it, but was headed on a track into it. The Secret Service has an arrangement with the F.A.A. They had open lines after the World Trade Center was... "

DailyNews - 1945 Plane Crash Rocked NYC The last time a plane crashed into a New York City skyscraper was July 28, 1945. A U.S. bomber flying through thick fog at about 200 mph crashed into the Empire State Building, one of the most recognized structures in the world.

"A second plane hit the second tower. America is under attack." White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card leaned over and whispered these words into President Bush's right ear at 9:07 a.m. September 11 (2001)

As the children plowed through the story, the president kept gazing up, lost in a tumult of urgent thoughts. So the first plane crash had not been an accident after all. The second crash had proven that much.

A second plane hit the second tower. But what kind of plane? Another small, twin-engine job? Who were the pilots? Why had they done it? How many Americans had they killed? "But — the — goat — did — some — things — that — made — the — girl's — dad — mad."

"Let's clean that up," Mrs. Daniels said.

The president noticed someone moving at the back of the room. It was White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer, maneuvering to catch his attention without alerting the press. Mr. Fleischer was holding up a legal pad.

Big block letters were scrawled on the cardboard backing: DON'T SAY ANYTHING YET. The remarks drafted earlier would be woefully inadequate.

"The — goat — ate — things."

"Go on."

The president managed a wan smile at the teacher. He redoubled his efforts to appear as though he were concentrating. But it was no use.

Who could have perpetrated such a diabolical crime? No, this was more than a crime. Someone had suddenly declared war against the United States of America.

"Victory clicked into my mind," Mr. Bush told The Times. "The one thing that became certain is that we wouldn't let this stand. I mean, there was no question in my mind that we'd respond.

"I wasn't sure who the attacker was. But if somebody is going to attack America, I knew that my most immediate job was to protect America by finding him and getting them.

The second plane crashed into the south tower at 9:03, a minute after the president stepped inside a classroom to watch a teacher put her second-graders through a reading drill before his scheduled speech.

White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card had informed the president of the first, seemingly accidental crash just as Mr. Bush arrived at the school. Then, at 9:07, Mr. Card entered the classroom and seized a pause in the reading drill to walk up to Mr. Bush's seat.

"A second plane hit the second tower," he whispered into the president's right ear. "America is under attack."

From the holding room off the school's portico, Mr. Bush talked first over the secure line with Mr. Cheney back at the White House. The vice president had watched the second crash on live TV in his West Wing office. He was huddled there with Miss Rice, his chief of staff, Lewis "Scooter" Libby and political adviser Mary Matalin.

"First of all, we had to figure out what we were going to do and where we were going to make decisions from," Mr. Bush recalled.

"I didn't spend that much time about my own safety," the president added, "because I knew others were worried about that. What I was interested in is making sure that the response mechanism that was under my control was sharp and ready to go. And that meant defense, for starters."

Mr. Bush also called FBI Director Robert Mueller, then on the job all of six days. The FBI already suspected Saudi exile Osama bin Laden, the Islamic radical who led the al Qaeda terrorist network.

The president then consulted with New York Gov. George E. Pataki. He hung up and turned to the top aides present — Mr. Card, Mr. Fleischer, chief political adviser Karl Rove and White House Communications Director Dan Bartlett.

"We're at war," Mr. Bush announced.

Tampa Bay Online - 8 or 9 minutes

Daniels, you see, was standing near Bush last Sept. 11 when White House chief of staff Andrew Card whispered of tragedies in the presidential ear. Precisely what Card said is uncertain, but he reportedly told Bush who already knew a commercial plane had struck the north tower of New York's World Trade Center - that the south tower also had been hit. In that instant, Daniels says, she knew ``this wasn't the same person who had sat down in that chair.'' Bush grimaced and, obviously lost in thought, forgot about the book in his lap. Daniels squirmed, silently. Her second-graders stared. ``Pet Goat,'' the chosen story, was suddenly put out to pasture. Seconds passed in silence - 15, 30, maybe more. Slowly, Bush picked up his book and read with the students for eight or nine minutes. Then he advised the kids to stay in school and told them to be good citizens, stepped away to confer with aides, returned to give Daniels' a firm handshake, and left.

At 11:30 the President called Miller and Putnam into his private office in the front of Air Force One and explained what was going on. His demeanor, Miller reports, was calm and serious. They were flying at 45,000 feet, he told them, high above any other planes, and they were headed for an undisclosed location. There had been credible threats against Air Force One, and they were currently being escorted by six jet fighters. Even though the President had already ordered the grounding of all flights in the country—an order he issued from his car en route to the Sarasota airport—several were still unaccounted for. It was impossible to rule out the possibility of further attacks.

sarasotamagazine.com - THE PRESIDENT IN SARASOTA What started out as a press junket for editor-at-large Robert Plunket turned into a spot on the sidelines of history.

worldmessenger - How long did the president remain reading with children?

sptimes.com - The day that transformed the presidency ©New York Times © St. Petersburg Times, published September 16, 2001

startribune - Here is what children across the country are reading about that morning: As soon as the president left the school, Card said, it was clear that the Bush presidency had been transformed.

dailyillini.com/ - In Florida, Bush was reading to children in a classroom at 9:05 a.m. when his chief of staff, Andrew Card, whispered into his ear. The president briefly turned somber before he resumed reading. He addressed the tragedy about a half-hour later.

september11news - On the morning of Word of the tragedy first came to President Bush in the hallway of a school in Sarasota, Fla., moments after the first plane hit New York's World Trade Center. He went to a private room, where he spoke by phone with National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice; it appeared then that the matter could be just a terrible accident. Then, at 9:04 a.m., while Bush met with second-graders, staff chief Andrew H. Card Jr. whispered in his ear that a second plane had struck. Bush's sunny countenance went grim. After Card's whisper, Bush looked distracted and somber but continued to listen to the second-graders read and soon was smiling again. He joked that they read so well, they must be sixth-graders. After huddling with advisers, Bush entered the school's media center for what was to have been an education speech. He looked stunned, but by the time he reached the podium, he was composed and at 9:30 a.m. delivered the chilling news of "an apparent terrorist attack on our country."

petehamill - The Days That Shook New York

petehamill - Who is Pete Hamill?

timesrepublican.com - At 9:03, the second airplane hit between the 87th and 93rd floors of the south tower.

patriotresource - This site has a timeline which puts crashes at differing times of 9:05 for Card whispering in Bush's ear about second crash and says Rice probably informed Bush of first crash before he went into the school! @8:50 A.M. - President George W. Bush arrives at Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida and is probably briefed by National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice on the first plane crash. 9:05 A.M. - While preparing for a photo op with a second grade class, chief of staff Andy Card entered and gave him news of the second crash.

craig.blurfl.com - In Florida, Bush was reading to children in a classroom at 9:05 a.m. when his chief of staff, Andrew Card, whispered into his ear. The president briefly turned somber before he resumed reading. He addressed the tragedy about a half-hour later.

sptimes.com - Bush's day started in Sarasota, where he was scheduled to read to second-graders in Kay Daniel's school room. He smiled gamely for the students, even though he had just learned of the initial plane crash at the World Trade Center. A few minutes later, Bush's chief of staff whispered in his ear -- apparently to tell him that a second plane careened into the Trade Center -- and the president's face went dark. published September 12, 2001

- The president briefly turned somber before he resumed reading.

WXYZ-TV Scripps Howard Broadcasting Company - In Florida, Bush was reading to children in a classroom at 9:05 a.m. when his chief of staff, Andrew Card, whispered into his ear. The president briefly turned somber before he resumed reading. He addressed the tragedy about a half-hour later.

Sarasota Magazine - According to editor-at-large Robert Plunket in Sarasota Magazine, Mr. Plunket relates another (in-the-classroom) reporter's accounting:

I saw Linda Carson from Channel 40. She had been one of the two or three pool reporters with the President in the classroom when White House aide Andrew Card whispered into the President’s ear that a second plane had hit the twin towers and that it was now presumed to be a terrorist attack.

Linda described to Rebecca and me what had happened next. Mr. Bush absorbed the news without changing his expression. For the next six minutes he let the second graders and their reading lesson proceed. He seemed to be going in and out of focus. At one moment he would listen carefully and smile at the kids, then a faraway look would come into his eyes as he stared out into the distance, the horrible implications of what he had just heard going through his mind. Finally the kids put away their readers. As the President complimented them, aides descended on him. A reporter called out a question about the attacks. The President held up his hand.

"We’ll talk about that later," he said, not wanting to alarm the children.

Someone from the school board announced that the President would be making a short statement. An eerie silence descended over the room for several minutes as we all waited.

Mr. Bush entered looking grim and carrying several sheets of white paper. He made his now-famous remarks, which were brief and to the point, the only jarring note being his pledge to track down the "folks" responsible. I can only surmise that in moments of stress he reverts to the idiom of his Texas homeland.

Then he grabbed his papers, hurriedly shook hands with Frank Brogan, Wilma Hamilton, several of the teachers, and was gone.

telegraph.co.uk - As soon as the news was received, Andrew Card, the White House chief of staff, walked over to Mr Bush and whispered into his ear. The president's eyes narrowed and his tone became more sombre but he continued reading. When he had finished, a reporter asked him whether he had heard about the attack. He said: "I'll talk about it later." Officials said they were anxious not to alarm the children or to give any impression of panic.

washtimes - Don't Say Anything, Yet

AND THIS IS WHAT THE PRESIDENT TELLS JOURNALIST BILL SAMMON HE WAS THINKING AS THE CHILDREN WERE READING

washtimes - Bill Sammon FIGHTING BACK

amazon.com - From Publishers Weekly George W., this one's for you. In Washington Times correspondent Sammon's inside account of the Bush administration's reaction to 9-11 and the resultant war on terror, readers are tendered a breathless, highly complimentary portrait of the president and an overly simplistic moral tale about the great merit and unwavering moral vision of his inner circle. What could be an extremely interesting if one-sided account is often undercut by Sammon's penchant for editorializing (Bush was "more directly affected than most Americans by the attacks themselves"; Osama bin Laden "giggled" when speaking about the attacks; and the president often "twinkles" when he speaks) and novelizing (Bush "never thought he would be so relieved to see the White House again. He scanned the magnificent curve of the South Portico...He gazed at the Rose Garden"). Nor does Sammon seem to appreciate the irony of quoting some of the president's less eloquent statements, such as: "The role of a president is to seek great objectives for the country, big goals." Sammon, author of the bestselling At Any Cost, largely writes for the converted, so the intended audience for this volume will no doubt love it. Those more skeptical of the government's policies, however, will find his narrative more hagiography than history, and will want to wait for Bob Woodward's forthcoming Bush at War, which covers the same territory from a different angle. Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

whitehouse.gov/ - Photo of President Bush Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Fla., Sept. 11, 2001.

whitehouse.gov - Bush stayed in the media holding room for about 18 minutes. 9:12/13 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. when he made remarks to the nation.

whitehouse.gov - September 11, 2001 transcripts Bush speaks at 9:30-9:31 a.m.<

Someone from the school board announced that the President would be making a short statement. An eerie silence descended over the room for several minutes as we all waited.

Mr. Bush entered looking grim and carrying several sheets of white paper. He made his now-famous remarks, which were brief and to the point, the only jarring note being his pledge to track down the "folks" responsible. I can only surmise that in moments of stress he reverts to the idiom of his Texas homeland. Then he grabbed his papers, hurriedly shook hands with Frank Brogan, Wilma Hamilton, several of the teachers, and was gone.

whitehouse.gov - 9:30 A.M. EDT Bush gave his first remarks on the terrorist attacks

gazettenet.com -Card, a Holbrook native and former Massachusetts state representative, made his comments during a speech before the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce lunch. Friday, November 2, 2001 -- (BOSTON AP) - White House official recalls Sept. 11 "I remember when I took the phone call, what a horrible, horrible accident. The pilot probably had a heart attack and the plane went off course and crashed into the World Trade Center," Card said.

President George W. Bush's statement to a gathered audience after two planes crash into World Trade Center twin towers

whitehouse.gov - 9:30 a.m. Bush still at Booker School

wunderlin - Laura Wunderlin-vanArsdall, EEB Staff

He was with one of our 2nd gr. teachers, listening to her kids doing a reading lesson, when his chief of staff came in the classroom to lean over and whisper in his ear.

"The other World Trade Center Tower has been slammed into by a second jet. We are under attack."

The rest of us were all lined up to stand behind the President for his education speech while this was going on. Some of us had been grouped there for as much as an hour beforehand, soaking up the excitement with one another, taking photos, laughing. ...

Finally, someone told the group of us standing in our area behind the podium that two planes had hit the World Trade Center. We murmured shocked exchanges, imagining two, probably small, planes accidently hitting into each other and the buildings. Then someone said it had to have been on purpose. We wondered some more. Someone offhandedly remarked, "I guess this replaces us as the front page news". Having no TV footage in front of us to see what was happening, we couldn't know the catastrophic magnitude of what had taken place, and was continuing to take place, as we stood there... still waiting for the President.

whitehouse.gov - As Director of Communications Dan Bartlett points to news footage of the World Trade Center Towers burning, President George W. Bush gathers information about the attack at Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Fla., Sept. 11, 2001. Also photographed are Director of White House Situation Room, National Security Council, Deborah Loewer (directly behind the President) and Senior Advisor Karl Rove (right).

washingtonpost - Bush Reacts to Attacks, Moves to Nebraska By Mike Allen Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, September 11, 2001; 4:36 p.m.

One terrible pilot.

guardian.co.uk/september11 - Bush reveals first thought: There's one terrible pilot

http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0112/04/se.04.html - President Bush Holds Town Hall Meeting Aired December 4, 2001 - 15:18ET Well, Jordan (ph), you're not going to believe what state I was in when I heard about the terrorist attack. I was in Florida. And my chief of staff, Andy Card -- actually I was in a classroom talking about a reading program that works. And I was sitting outside the classroom waiting to go in, and I saw an airplane hit the tower -- the TV was obviously on, and I use to fly myself, and I said, "There's one terrible pilot." And I said, "It must have been a horrible accident."

whitehouse.gov - Transcript

whitehouse.gov - Video Bush town hall meeting January 2002

usembassy.state.gov - transcript: Anyway, I was sitting there, and my Chief of Staff -- well, first of all, when we walked into the classroom, I had seen this plane fly into the first building. There was a TV set on. And you know, I thought it was pilot error and I was amazed that anybody could make such a terrible mistake. And something was wrong with the plane, or -- anyway, I'm sitting there, listening to the briefing, and Andy Card came and said, "America is under attack."

An accident, pilot had a heart attack.

washtimes.com - Over a year later, Sammon reports Bush thinking that the pilot of the first plane probably had a heart attack.

from Fighting Back

After much shaking of hands and posing for pictures and saying pleasant things to local IPs who had been invited to the Colony to see him off, Bush clambered into his Cadillac limousine, which set off for the city of Sarasota at 8:39 a.m. ... the president settled for the brief nine mile ride... ...it was 8:46 a.m. when the president headed for that last stretch of causeway that had been built with timbers hauled by circus elephants... At 8:55 a.m. the president arrived at Emma E. Booker Elementary School... "We're on time, I like to stay on time; I like to be crisp," he told me later. "I'm heading into the event and somebody is whispering in my ear." He was referring to his personal assistant, Blake Gottesman, who was giving the president some final stage directions. "Here's what you're going to be doing; you're going to meet so-and-so-and-such-and-such," Bush recalled being told. "And Andy Card says, 'By the way, an aircraft flew into the World Trade Center." "And my first reaction was - as an old pilot - how could the guy have gotten so off course to hit the towers? What a terrible accident that is. The first report I heard was a light airplane, twin-engine airplane." The president was told that National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice was at the White House, waiting to talk with him on a secure phone line that had been installed in a holding room just off the school's portico. Standing outside the door to that room was the school principal, a black woman named Gwendolyn Tose-Rigell, who now greeted Bush. But before she could intoroduce him to the five dignitaries who were lined up next to her, the president explained that he needed to take an urgent phone call. He excused himself and disappeared into the adjacent room, which had been secured by the White House adance team. Bush picked up the phone and talked to Rice, who was sitting in her office in the West Wing, watching live television coverage of the stricken building belch black smoke into a cloudless sky. "There's one terrible pilot," Bush muttered. Turning to Card, the president speculated that the pilot must have suffered a heart attack. How else does one crash itno the tallest building in New Yourk without a single cloud to obstruct the view. Not that Bush had actually seen images of the burning building yet - there was no TV in the room. But he figured that even a small plane could cause significant damage. Some lives had undoubtedly been lost on impact and fire probably now endangered many others. Bush would need to reassure the public as soon as possible. He decided to pledge the full resources of the government, inclucing the Federal Emergency Management Agency, to cope with the disaster. Since his speech on education was thirty minutes away, the president would comment on the accident at the conclusion of a second grade reading drill, which was scheduled to begin momentarily. He and his aides hammered out a statement that would form the basis of his answer to the inevitable question from the journalists, who were already waiting in the classroom."

“I thought it was an accident,” says Mr. Bush. “I thought it was a pilot error. I thought that some foolish soul had gotten lost and - and made a terrible mistake.”

The president got his first look at the burning World Trade Center towers on a television that had been rolled in on a cart and hooked up for him in a holding room at Emma Booker Elementary School in a poor, crime-ridden section of Sarasota, Fla.

The president sat at a table with his ear pressed to a telephone while he spoke over a secure line to the White House. He craned to watch the sickening images from clear across the room.

"I told Ari to take notes," Mr. Bush recalled months later in an interview with The Times, referring to White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer. "I wanted Ari to have a full understanding of what he saw and my reactions to that.

"I recognized that a lot of this was going to end up being such a blur that I wouldn't have an accurate accounting."

The first airplane hit the north tower at 8:46 a.m., as the president's motorcade crossed the John Ringling Causeway on the way to Booker Elementary from the Colony Beach & Tennis Resort on Longboat Key.

The second plane crashed into the south tower at 9:03, a minute after the president stepped inside a classroom to watch a teacher put her second-graders through a reading drill before his scheduled speech.

White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card had informed the president of the first, seemingly accidental crash just as Mr. Bush arrived at the school. Then, at 9:07, Mr. Card entered the classroom and seized a pause in the reading drill to walk up to Mr. Bush's seat.

"A second plane hit the second tower," he whispered into the president's right ear. "America is under attack."

From the holding room off the school's portico, Mr. Bush talked first over the secure line with Mr. Cheney back at the White House. The vice president had watched the second crash on live TV in his West Wing office. He was huddled there with Miss Rice, his chief of staff, Lewis "Scooter" Libby and political adviser Mary Matalin.

Washington Times - Washington Times 'Right decision' By Bill Sammon October 8, 2002 Paul Begala, White House counselor to President Clinton, was more blunt. "He didn't come home for 10 hours — 10 hours, when all the planes were accounted for," Mr. Begala said on CNN. "And he gave us some cock-and-bull story about Air Force One being under attack." Such criticism angered Mr. Cheney and Bush aides, although the president didn't respond at the time — at least not publicly. "I knew full well that I had made the absolutely right decision, and history would record that," Mr. Bush recalled. "When the president is under threat, one thing for the good of the country is you want to remove the president from the immediate threat. "There's nothing worse for a country having been attacked than a destabilized presidency," he said. "It would make matters a lot worse."

pilot got lost

Videotapes of Bush at the Emma E. Booker Elementary School

buzzflash - videotape

greatwest.ca - videotape

cbsnews.com - Videos: Sept. 11, 2001 CBS Broadcasting Inc.

cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS - cnn transcript: UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dr. J, we're going to take a look at videotape just moment ago of the second plane hitting the World Trade Center. That is spectacular pictures. I don't know if you could see the plane, and that too was a passenger plane, if perhaps some type of navigating system or some type of electronics would have put two planes into the World Trade Center within it looks like about 18 minutes of each other. You want to go -- we have another copy. There is the second plane. Another passenger plane hitting the World Trade Center. These pictures are frightening indeed. These are just minutes between each other. So naturally, you will guess, and you will speculate, and perhaps ask the question: If some type of navigating equipment is awry, the two commuter planes would run into the World Trade Center's at the same time.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Judy.



A short -- a while ago I walked right up next to the building, firefighters were still trying to put the blaze. The fire, by the way, is still burning in some parts of the Pentagon. And I took a look at the huge gaping hole that's in the side of the Pentagon in an area of the Pentagon that has been recently renovated, part of a multibillion dollar renovation program here at the Pentagon. I could see parts of the airplane that crashed into the building, very small pieces of the plane on the heliport outside the building. The biggest piece I saw was about three feet long, it was silver and had been painted green and red, but I could not see any identifying markings on the plane. I also saw a large piece of shattered glass. It appeared to be a cockpit windshield or other window from the plane.

observer.co.uk - Bush was driving to the school in a motorcade when the phone rang. An airline accident appeared to have happened.

whitehouse.gov - September 11, 2001 9:30 a.m. official transcript Remarks by the President After Two Planes Crash Into World Trade Center

salon.com - September 11, 2001 By Jake Tapper Bush, challenged Bush's reaction is literally up in the air, as the world tunes in for an official -- and unofficial -- response from the government.

Love the chicken! tinchicken.com timeline - 09:10 EDT: In Florida President Bush is reading to children in a classroom when his chief of staff, Andrew Card, whispers news of the attacks into his ear.

avitop.com/war/timeline. - 9:10 a.m.: In Florida, President Bush is reading to children in a classroom when his chief of staff, Andrew Card, whispers news of the attacks into his ear.

BBC - 0930 EDT US President George Bush declares: "We have had a national tragedy. Two aeroplanes have crashed into the World Trade Center in an apparent terrorist attack on our country."

goobnet.caltech.edu/ - 09:10 EDT. US President George W Bush is reading to children in a Florida classroom. Chief of staff Andrew Card enters and whispers into the president's ear. Bush excuses himself from the classroom.

FOXNews.com - 9:10 a.m.: In Florida, President Bush is reading to children in a classroom when his chief of staff, Andrew Card, whispers news of the attacks into his ear.

Mr. President!

cbsnews.com - Videos: Sept. 11, 2001

"9/11: The Filmmakers' Commemorative Edition" DVD and videotape - Sept. 11, 2001 Of course, everything changes on the morning of September 11th. While responding to a small gas leak on a downtown street, the roar of a plane is heard overhead. Jules turns the camera upwards to the sky and catches sight of the first plane slamming into Tower 1 of the World Trade Center. Without any time to waste, Jules joins Battalion Chief Pfeiffer to respond to what is believed to be a terrible aviation accident, and documents the goings-on at the command post that is set up in the lobby of Tower 1. Meanwhile, Gédéon is with Tony, who has been left in charge of answering the phones at the empty firehouse, with little else to do other than watch the unfolding news coverage in astonishment and shock. What then unfolds is a minute-by-minute account of the events that have become all-too-familiar over the past year-- the second plane crashing into Tower 2, signaling that this was no accident; the collapse of both towers; and the subsequent rescue operations at what would be called 'Ground Zero'.

cnn.com - Aired September 11, 2001 - 08:48 ET

HARRIS: I want to bring up a couple points if I may. We have been told that President Bush has been informed of this incredible tragedy happening in New York. He did have an event scheduled at 9:00 this morning, which we were going to cover here, and he has just canceled that event. We expect he will have some comments fairly soon, and we will bring those to you live the moment that we understand he is available. But I'd like to ask you once again, Ira, if I can get to back asking you about this particular crash. Is it possible that those who are tracking planes, either at La Guardia, can give us some more information about exactly what happened here. Were these planes I guess using beacons to come in, or was there some sort of identification of these planes, as they approach the New York area? FURMAN: Yes, there should be, if they were under air traffic control. You've got one eyewitness telling you that The first aircraft flew from Westchester and flew down through Manhattan, and directly into the World Trade Center, presumedly the north tower. And now you've got -- you're showing the other aircraft coming in, looks to me like it would be from the West, into the other tower. Those planes could be, should be, normally would be under air- traffic control. But it is also entirely possible for aircraft to fly into, through or over New York, or in this case into a building in New York, without being under the control, and we use that word advisedly. All that means is information is what air traffic control is. And just operate and do whatever they want, if they don't follow the rules of air traffic control.

wrongwaygoback.com - 9:10 a.m. In Florida President Bush is reading to children in a classroom when his chief of staff, Andrew Card, whispers news of the attacks into his ear, after which he promptly leaves.

Question:

whitehouse.gov - September 10, 2001 President Visits Elementary School in Jacksonville Urges Quick Passage of Education Package Justina Road Elementary School Jacksonville, Florida 3:45 P.M. EDT

khilafah.com/ - As for the State Department advertisement, officials acknowledged it gives details that are either inaccurate or describe other terror suspects. The ad's creators ``took some liberties with some of the content,'' said a State Department official, who asked not to be identified.

cnn.com - September 11, 2001 FBI targets Florida sites in terrorist search The FBI used information from the planes' passenger lists to obtain search warrants for more than one location in south Florida, including homes and post office boxes, a law enforcement source told CNN. "We're looking at south Florida ties to some of the people we're looking at," the source said. One search will made at a location in Daytona, the source said. The White House announced late Tuesday that the first-ever nationwide grounding of flights would be lifted Wednesday and planes should be flying by noon.

telegraph.co.uk - Israeli security issued urgent warning to CIA of large-scale terror attacks By David Wastell in Washington and Philip Jacobson in Jerusalem (Filed: 16/09/2001)

Also, if this report is accurate:

The two airlines who had planes hijacked on Tuesday, United and American, released the number of people aboard each plane. The two planes operated by American Airlines had a total of 139 passengers and 17 crewmembers on board when they crashed. United Airlines reported 94 passengers on their two planes as well as 16 crewmembers. Everyone on those four planes, at least 266 people, is presumed dead.

Why weren't the names of the hijackers for those planes on the listing for the total of passengers?

channelonenews.com - Everyone on those four planes, at least 266 people, is presumed dead.

And that total of 266 is off by one, one less. Why was one more reported and whose name is it?

What will our youth learn about September 11, 2001?

Will they learn about President Bush being in and out of focus for six minutes while half-listening to second graders practice reading

Will they learn Bush was flashed a sign in the second-grade classroom: Don't Say Anything Yet?

Will they learn Bush asked Ari Fleischer to take notes for later?

teachervision.com - Pre-K - 12 Lesson Plans Time Line of Events: September 11-18, 2001

aynrand.org/medialink/fortheyoung1a - The Ayn Rand® Institute What Do We Tell Our Children about September 11th? By Dianne Durante

Call Olson to Olson And analysis other sites

standdown.net - 9:05 a.m.: Andrew Card walks up to Bush while he is listening to a Goat Story with 16 second graders in Sandra Kay Daniels’s class at Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida. Card whispers in his ear "A second plane has hit the World Trade Center. America is under attack." Bush (commander-and-chief?) keeps listening to this Goat Story with these children for at least 7 minutes, and perhaps as long as 18 minutes. Why he didn't excuse himself from these children right away, and immediately address this national emergency, is totally illogical and unexplainable.

Wikipedia | - Misinformation and rumors about the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks

Warning from talkacrosstown. Read carefully. The site assumes military planes were not scrambled, however, the following news report says planes were scrambled about 8:30 a.m.

However, the analysis of the report by the firefighters on the scene is interesting.

NY Firehouse Documentary - Major 911 Oddities Revealed In NY Firehouse Documentary

abcnews - Terror Hits the Towers How Government Officials Reacted to Sept. 11 Attacks

Remember now, the ABCNews report not only suggests jets were scrambled prior to the first plane crash, the report states that military jets were scrambled.

globeandmail.com/special/attack/video - What Bush does

istrianet.org - Timeline Sept. 11, 2001

sf.indymedia.org - excellent analysis (except for the part about the 2000 presidential election)

copvcia.com - Guilty for 9-11 Attacks Stories on Andrews AFB and Availability of Fighters Produce Controversy Additional Investigation Corroborates Story, Reveals Pentagon Lies FTW, November 20, 2001

cam.net.uk - Why did George Bush not give green light to shoot the planes down after it was obvious they were on a deadly mission

she made two calls to her husband, Solicitor General Theodore Olson. It was his birthday and she had changed flights to be with him before he left for work. In the first call, she said that the plane was being hijacked, passengers forced to the rear of the cabin. The call was then cut off, and her husband called the Justice Department command center.

petehamill - Calls

davesweb.cnchost.com - So what is it that distinguishes a 'conspiracy theory' from any other theory? Is it that the theory posits that two or more actors have worked together, usually secretively, to achieve a common goal? That, after all, is all that a 'conspiracy' really is. Or is it that the theory is unproven?

centrexnews.com - Headlines for Monday, 17 September 2001 Israeli Security Issued Urgent Warning To CIA Of Large-scale Terror Attacks Two senior experts with Mossad were sent to Washington in August to alert the CIA and FBI to the existence of a cell of as many of 200 terrorists said to be preparing a big operation More...

imprint.uwaterloo.ca - September 11 attacks a U.S. conspiracy? There are many troubling questions that surround the September 11 attacks. Given that "U.S. military leaders proposed in 1962 a secret plan to commit terrorist acts against Americans and blame Cuba to create a pretext for invasion and the ouster of Communist leader Fidel Castro" [Baltimore Sun, April 24 2001], the possibility of U.S. government, military, intelligence complicity in the attacks should not be discounted. However, we have others who tell us not to think about the possibility. Speaking to the United Nations general assembly, George Bush said, "We must speak the truth about terror. Let us never tolerate outrageous conspiracy theories concerning the attacks of September the 11th, malicious lies that attempt to shift the blame away from the terrorists themselves, away from the guilty." Yet others are not so sure. In the first footnote to his presentation "Why there is a war in Afghanistan," delivered at a teach-in/forum in Toronto on December 9 and sponsored by Science for Peace, University of Guelph professor John McMurtry stated, "With any such hypothesis, one looks not only for the evidence confirming it, but more conscientiously, for the evidence disconfirming it. "The evidence confirming U.S. and allied security awareness of and possible complicity in the 9/11 attack is considerable, but I have found no evidence disconfirming it," he said. Let's look at some of the questions that have been raised.

thornwalker.com - The theory of a conspiracy of inaction, which I have posited, does not require the government to have had detailed knowledge. It simply holds that the leading officials of the U.S. government wanted a terrorist event to take place in order to provide the rationale for their preplanned agenda. The terrorist event could have been anything of significance, and not necessarily the actual terrorist event that took place, with jetliners crammed with passengers crashing into the Pentagon and the World Trade Towers. Allowing a terrorist event to take place simply required that the federal government refrain from interfering with the terrorists' activities. And the government certainly followed that passive mode.

cbsnews.com - Videos: Sept. 11, 2001

Practicing counter-terrorist wargame on September 11, 2001

www.911pi.com - counter-terrorist wargame involving the same or a very similar scenario as what actually began to take place

airdisaster.com - Top US Intelligence Agency was to simulate plane crash into gov't bldg. on September 11, 2001. U.S. intgelligence agency was planning an exercise last Sept. 11 in which an errant aircraft would crash into one of its buildings. Full story at: http://www.airdisaster.com/news/0802/22/news.shtml

Bush briefed on hijacking threat before September 11

unknowncountry.com - Bush Was Warned About 911 15-May-2002 Whitley Strieber's http://www.unknowncountry.com/news/?id=1543

cnn.com - Bush briefed on hijacking threat before September 11 May 16, 2002 From John King CNN Washington Bureau

President Bush's daily intelligence briefings in the weeks leading up to the September 11 terror attacks included a warning of the possibility that Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network would attempt to hijack a U.S.-based airliner, senior administration officials said Wednesday.

But, the officials said, there was no speculation about the use of an airplane itself as a bomb or a weapon, and no specific, credible information about the possibility of a hijacking of any sort.

It marks the first time the White House has acknowledged there was a warning of a potential hijacking linked to bin Laden prior to the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.

August Memo: What was in it?

washtimes.com/upi-breaking - May 19, 2002 UPI Chief White House Correspondent Nicholas M. Horrock Bush: 9/11 questions persist Both Vice President Dick Cheney and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice were grilled on several Sunday talk shows about a briefing President George W. Bush received on Aug. 6 last year -- only weeks before more than 3,000 Americans died in terrorist attacks -- in which the CIA suggested Osama bin Laden was planning an attack in the United States and might hijack aircraft