Transcript of President Bush's Speech

— -- Sept. 20 — Mr. Speaker, Mr. President Pro Tempore, members ofCongress, and fellow Americans: In the normal course of events, presidents come to this chamber to report on the state of the Union. Tonight, no such report isneeded. It has already been delivered by the American people.

We have seen it in the courage of passengers who rushedterrorists to save others on the ground. Passengers like anexceptional man named Todd Beamer. And would you please help mewelcome his wife Lisa Beamer here tonight?

We have seen the state of our Union in the endurance of rescuersworking past exhaustion.

We've seen the unfurling of flags, the lighting ofcandles, the giving of blood, the saying of prayers in English, Hebrewand Arabic.

We have seen the decency of a loving and giving people who havemade the grief of strangers their own.

My fellow citizens, for the last nine days, the entire world hasseen for itself the state of union, and it is strong.

(APPLAUSE)

Tonight, we are a country awakened to danger and called to defendfreedom. Our grief has turned to anger and anger to resolution.Whether we bring our enemies to justice or bring justice to ourenemies, justice will be done.

(APPLAUSE)

I thank the Congress for its leadership at such an importanttime.

All of America was touched on the evening of the tragedyto see Republicans and Democrats joined together on the steps of thisCapitol singing "God Bless America."

And you did more than sing. You acted, by delivering $40 billionto rebuild our communities and meet the needs of our military.Speaker Hastert, Minority Leader Gephardt, Majority Leader Daschle andSenator Lott, I thank you for your friendship, for your leadership andfor your service to our country.

(APPLAUSE)

And on behalf of the American people, I thank the world for itsoutpouring 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 prayoutside our embassy in Seoul, or the prayers of sympathy offered at amosque in Cairo.

We will not forget moments of silence and days of mourning inAustralia and Africa and Latin America.

Nor will we forget the citizens of 80 other nations who died withour own. Dozens of Pakistanis, more than 130 Israelis, more than 250citizens of India, men and women from El Salvador, Iran, Mexico andJapan, and hundreds of British citizens.

America has no truer friend than Great Britain.

(APPLAUSE)

Once again, we are joined together in a great cause.

I'm so honored the British prime minister had crossed anocean to show his unity with America.

Thank you for coming, friend.

(APPLAUSE)

On September the 11th, enemies of freedom committed an act of waragainst our country. Americans have known wars, but for the past 136years they have been wars on foreign soil, except for one Sunday in1941. Americans have known the casualties of war, but not at thecenter of a great city on a peaceful morning.

Americans have known surprise attacks, but never before onthousands of civilians.

All of this was brought upon us in a single day, and night fellon 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 ofloosely affiliated terrorist organizations known as al Qaeda. Theyare some of the murderers indicted for bombing American embassies inTanzania and Kenya and responsible for bombing the USS Cole.

Al Qaeda is to terror what the Mafia is to crime. But its goalis not making money, its goal is remaking the world and imposing itsradical beliefs on people everywhere.

The terrorists practice a fringe form of Islamic extremism thathas been rejected by Muslim scholars and the vast majority of Muslimclerics; a fringe movement that perverts the peaceful teachings ofIslam.

The terrorists' directive commands them to kill Christiansand Jews, to kill all Americans and make no distinctions amongmilitary and civilians, including women and children.

This group and its leader, a person named Osama bin Laden, arelinked to many other organizations in different countries, includingthe Egyptian Islamic Jihad, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.

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