At one point, he clambered on to the rubble of what is now a mass grave and, with one arm around a fireman’s shoulders, addressed the crowd of rescue workers through a loud hailer.
He said: “I want you all to know that America today is on bended knee in prayer for the people whose lives were lost here, and for the workers who work here, for the families who mourn.”
One fireman shouted from the back of the crowd: “We can’t hear you”. The President replied: “Well, I can hear you.”
As the laughter subsided, Mr Bush added: “I hear you, the rest of the world hears you and the people who knocked these building down will hear all of us soon.”
By Philip Delves Broughton
The Telegraph, “The Rest of the World Hears You”
September 15, 2001
Shawn
Saw an interview with Bush last week. As much as we saw him a bit of a buffoon, his recollection of being thrown into this situation was astounding. I wish that on no one.