On September 14, 2001—just three days after the worst terrorist attack on American soil in the history of our nation—President George W. Bush gave an impromptu speech to hundreds of rescue workers at Ground Zero. Arm draped casually over the shoulder of retired FDNY firefighter Bob Beckwith and standing on a heap of rubble, President Bush exemplified servant leadership, wearing the same clothes and joining in the same crowd as the American heroes helping with rescue and clean up.
President Bush did not wax poetic about American values; he personified them. “I want you all to know that America today, America today is on bended knee”—bended not in failure or defeat, but in prayer to God. When a voice from the crowd shouted that he could not hear, President Bush responded with the now epochal remark:
“I can hear you! I can hear you! The rest of the world hears you! And the people — and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon!” President George W. Bush, Ground Zero, September 14, 2001
In this impromptu, two-minute address, President Bush reminded us that it is not our leaders or towers that keep America strong, but our faith, our people, and our freedom. Both he—and the heroes who broke out into chants of “USA! USA!” after these remarks—reminded the world that no terrorist attack would defeat us. If anything, this tragedy would inspire us to greater resilience, firmer devotion to our principles, and a renewed commitment to our nation.
Today, many have forgotten or were not yet born to experience the devastation of the September 11 attacks. They do not remember the vulnerability, the fear, or the uncertainty that followed. Nor do they remember what it meant to us all to see our president unafraid, standing atop the rubble, pledging American strength. As President Bush showed then, and as we should remember now, that strength derives from humility, from fellowship, and from a willingness not only to love our nation, but to defend it at all costs.
