Was Bush and his staff complicit with the 9/11 attacks?

Complicit - Associated with or participating in a questionable act or a crime; having complicity.

SHOCKING VIDEO CLIPS OF BUSH AT BOOKER ELEMENTARY BELOW!

Last updated:  11/25/02

Q  Had there been any warnings that the President knew of? MR. FLEISCHER:  No warnings. -White House (09/11/01)

"I was sitting outside the classroom waiting to go in, and I saw an airplane hit the tower ...it must have been a horrible accident. And I was sitting in the classroom, and Andy Card, my Chief of Staff, who is sitting over here, walked in and said, 'A second plane has hit the tower, America is under attack.' I knew I needed to act...one of the first acts I did was to put our military on alert," Bush. -White House (12/04/01)

"President Bush and his top advisers were informed by the CIA early last August that terrorists associated with Osama bin Laden had discussed the possibility of hijacking airplanes, according to reliable sources." -Washington Post (05/16/02)

"I don't think anybody could have predicted that...they would try to use an airplane as a missile, a hijacked airplane as a missile," National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice. -CBS (05/17/02)

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. -September 11 News.com

"Suicide bomber(s) belonging to al-Qaida's Martyrdom Battalion could crash-land an aircraft packed with high explosives ... into the Pentagon, the headquarters of the CIA, or the White House." -CBS (05/17/02) 1999 federal report

On the morning of Sept. 11, while at a school in Sarasota Florida, President George W. Bush is told of the 2nd attack on New York City.  (Click photo for source.)

Florida under martial law? WHO KNEW? Jeb Bush signed Florida TWO YEAR emergency order 4 days BEFORE ATTACK -WorldNetDaily

"In the early 1960s, America's top military leaders reportedly drafted plans to kill innocent people and commit acts of terrorism in U.S. cities to create public support for a war against Cuba." -ABC (5/01/01)

"I want the troops here to know that I take my job as the commander in chief very seriously, that my most important job is to protect America." -Bush

"Anyway, it was an interesting day."-Bush referring to 9/11

"Lucky me. I hit the trifecta." -Bush

"If this were a dictatorship, it'd be a heck of a lot easier, just so long as I'm the dictator." - Bush

"You are either with us or against us." -Bush

"We must speak the truth about terror. Let us never tolerate outrageous conspiracy theories concerning the attacks of 11 September - malicious lies that attempt to shift the blame away from the terrorists themselves, away from the guilty." -Bush

Video of Bush morning of 9/11 at Booker Elementary

THE SHOCKING VIDEO OF BUSH AT BOOKER ELEMENTARY! Click here

The video is about 10 minutes long.  The most important part to watch is about 3 minutes into the video when Bush is sitting down listening to the kids read.

NOTE: Watching this video is a must to fully understand our allegations.

The video clips below show a brief synopsis of the event.

Bush's Poll Ratings Pre 9/11

"Bush is spending a month's vacation at his ranch here, bringing with him a retinue of aides, Secret Service agents and the White House press corps. Bush is on what the White House calls a "working vacation," meeting with senior staff between time spent jogging and fishing on the 1,600-acre ranch." -CNN (8/07/01)

Bush knew of terrorist plot to hijack US planes In a top-secret intelligence memo headlined 'Bin Laden determined to strike in the US', the President was told on 6 August that the Saudi-born terrorist hoped to 'bring the fight to America' in retaliation for missile strikes on al-Qaeda camps in Afghanistan in 1998. -Guardian Unlimited (5/19/02)

Q  Is the President satisfied...with the performance of the intelligence community...? MR. FLEISCHER: ...clearly, something yesterday took place in New York that was not foreseen, that we had no specific information about. -White House Press Briefing (9/12/01)

"White House officials acknowledged that U.S. intelligence officials informed President Bush weeks before the Sept. 11 attacks that bin Laden's terrorist network might try to hijack American planes..." -ABC (5/16/02)

Bush's timeline on 9/11/01

Note: This site is using these timeline sources for a general guideline.

Complete Timeline of President George W. Bush on September 11, 2001. White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer provided the following details of President Bush's day on Tuesday, Sept. 11. All times are EDT. 9 a.m. – Bush arrives at Sarasota, Fla., school for speech. White House chief of staff Andrew Card tells him a plane has crashed into the World Trade Center. 9:05 a.m. – Bush is visiting a second-grade class when Card whispers to him that a second plane has struck the towers. President delays plans to address the tragedy, deciding to get more information first. 9:30 a.m. – Bush meets privately with National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, who briefs him. He delivers first remarks on the tragedy. 10 a.m. – Aboard Air Force One en route to Louisiana, Bush calls Vice President Dick Cheney and puts America's military on a high alert status. Sifts through reports from staff, including erroneous report that a car bomb had struck the State Department. Gets news that plane has crashed near Pittsburgh. 11:40 a.m. – Bush arrives at Barksdale Air Force Base, La., where he makes series of telephone calls from a general's conference room. Tells Cheney in telephone call, "It's the faceless coward that attacks." He also talks to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and New York Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. 1:15 p.m. – Bush departs conference room for Air Force One in a camouflaged Humvee. Talks to Cheney again en route to Nebraska air force base and schedules a 4 p.m. meeting of his national security staff. Also talks to New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Gov. George Pataki. "I know your heart is broken and your city is strained and anything we can do, let me know," Bush says. 3:07 p.m. – Bush arrives at U.S. Strategic Command at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska. 4:36 p.m. – Bush departs for Washington. En route, he calls first lady Laura Bush and says, "I'm coming home, see you at the White House." Works with aides on his prime-time speech. 7 p.m. – Bush arrives at White House to prepare for address. 8:30 p.m. – Bush speaks to nation (text below). 8:35 p.m. – Bush attends national security meeting. 10:21 p.m. – Meeting has ended. Secret Service radio squawks with news that Bush has gone home to bed: "Trailblazer. Second floor of the residence." -September 11 News .com

September 11, 2001: Timelines President's Travels 9:00 A.M. - President George W. Bush arrives at Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida and is informed of the first airplane crashing into the World Trade Center by chief of staff Andrew Card. 9:05 A.M. - While preparing for a photo op with a second grade class, chief of staff Andrew Card gives President Bush news of the second crash. 9:30 A.M. - President Bush is briefed by National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice. 9:31 A.M. - President Bush makes a short statement to reporters. 9:54 A.M. - President Bush leaves Sarasota Bradenton International Airport onboard Air Force One. His destination is kept secret for security. 9:57 A.M. - President Bush calls Vice President Dick Chaney and puts the American military on high-alert status. 11:44 A.M. - President Bush arrives at Barksdale Air Force Base near Shreveport, Louisiana. 1:04 P.M. - President Bush makes his second statement of the day from Barksdale Air Force Base near Shreveport, Louisiana. 1:38 P.M. - President Bush leaves Barksdale Air Force Base. 3:07 P.M. - President Bush arrives at U.S. Strategic Air Command at Offutt Air Force Base near Omaha, Nebraska. 4:36 P.M. - President Bush leaves Offutt Air Force Base near Omaha, Nebraska. 6:55 P.M. - President Bush arrives at the White House. 8:30 P.M. - PresidentBush addresses the nation from the Oval Office. 8:35 P.M. - President Bush attends a national security meeting. 10:21 P.M. - The national security meetings ends and President Bush heads to bed. -Patriot Resource

Revealed: what really went on during Bush's 'missing hours' Three months after the attacks on the Twin Towers there remains a mystery as to what happened to the President that day. William Langley pieces together the vital moments in the transformation of a presidency. -Telegraph.co.uk (12/16/01)

America's Chaotic Road to War Bush's Global Strategy Began to Take Shape in First Frantic Hours After Attack -Washington Post (01/27/02)

6:00 - 6:30 a.m.

Is it just a coincidence that Bush was in FLORIDA the day of the attack?

"...you're not going to believe what state I was in when I heard about the terrorist attack.  I was in Florida," said Bush. -White House (12/04/01)

The previous evening Mr Bush had dined beachside with his brother Jeb, the governor of Florida, the state that had, albeit controversially, handed him the presidency. -Telegraph.co.uk (12/16/01)

6:30 a.m. -President Bush rose early the morning of Sept. 11, and went for a four-mile run around the golf course at the Colony Beach and Tennis Resort on Longboat Key, Fla., where he was staying. On Bush's schedule that day was what White House aides call a "soft event"-reading to about 16 second-graders in Sandra Kay Daniels's class at the Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota. The night before, Bush had dined with his brother, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, former governor Bob Martinez and other state Republicans. It was a relaxed evening, full of joking and talk about politics, including some handicapping of Jeb Bush's possible opponents in his 2002 reelection campaign. -Washington Post (01/27/02)

What are the odds that the school at where you teach gets a visit from the President of the United States? And then... what are the odds that the day the President visits your school is a day that goes down in infamy? 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." -Laura Wunderlin-vanArsdall, EEB Staff (No date.)

Was there a failed assassination attempt on President Bush the morning of 9/11?

At about 6 a.m. Sept. 11, Longboat Key Fire Marshall Carroll Mooneyhan was at the front desk of the Colony Beach & Tennis Resort as Bush prepared for his morning jog. From that vantage point, Mooneyhan overheard a strange exchange between a Colony receptionist and security guard. A van occupied by men of Middle Eastern descent had pulled up to the Colony stating they had a “poolside” interview with the president, Mooneyhan said. The self-proclaimed reporters then asked for a Secret Service agent by name. Guards from security relayed the request to the receptionist, who had not heard of either the agent or plans for an interview, Mooneyhan said. The receptionist gave the phone over to a nearby Secret Service agent, who said the same thing — no one knew of an agent by that name or of any poolside interview. The agent told the occupants of the van to contact the president’s public relations office in Washington, D. C., and turned them away from the premises, Mooneyhan said. -Longboat Observer (9/26/01)

Why did Jeb Bush, George W. Bush's brother, call up the National Guard in Florida FOUR days BEFORE the 9/11 attacks?

EXECUTIVE ORDER NUMBER 01-261 "WHEREAS, the Florida National Guard has the statutory responsibility to provide support to law-enforcement personnel and emergency-management personnel in the event of civil disturbances or natural disasters;" Jeb Bush, Governor of Florida (9/07/01)

Florida under martial law? WHO KNEW? Jeb Bush signed Florida TWO YEAR emergency order 4 days BEFORE ATTACK WorldNetDaily investigated. The articles provided links directly to the executive orders themselves, and these were exactly as described. Bush, through Executive Order 01-261, had activated units of the Florida National Guard on Sept. 7, four days before the kamikaze assault on the Trade Center. -WorldNetDaily.com (10/25/01)

Florida Gov. Jeb Bush

Why did Jeb Bush declare a state of emergency for Florida after the attacks?

EXECUTIVE ORDER NUMBER  01-262, (Emergency Management) WHEREAS, on September 11, 2001 a combination of persons unknown carried out a series of terrorist acts resulting in the destruction of the World Trade Center in New York City and an explosion at the Pentagon, costing the lives of many persons and resulting in injuries to many more; and WHEREAS, the scale of the destruction and the coordination, orchestration, and timing evident in these acts of terrorism suggest that they may be part of a larger pattern of acts of terrorism; and Section 1. - Because of the foregoing conditions, I hereby declare that a state of emergency exists in the State of Florida. Jeb Bush, Governor of Florida (9/11/01)

His second executive order, EO 01-262, did in fact delegate awesome powers to a non-elected official, the interim head of the Division of Emergency Management, the agency responsible for implementing Florida's Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan. Moreover, the governor issued it shortly after the attacks, strongly suggesting he had been apprised of events ahead of time and was ready to sign the order with a stroke of his pen as soon as he received an appropriate signal. -World Net Daily (10/25/01)

FLORIDA EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY AFFAIRS > DIVISION OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT

8:00 a.m.

On his return to the Colony, the President...sat down for the first routine intelligence briefing of the day. It was 8 am. The President's briefing appears to have included some reference to the heightened terrorist risk reported throughout the summer, but contained nothing specific, severe or imminent enough to necessitate a call to Condoleezza Rice, his 47-year-old National Security Adviser. -Telegraph.co.uk (12/16/01)

8:20 a.m.

At 8:20 Bush said farewell to Murf Klauber and his daughter Katherine, the Colony's general manager. -Telegraph.co.uk (12/16/01)

8:30 a.m.

Bush's motorcade left for the school at 8:30 a.m. -Washington Post (01/27/02)

8:38 a.m.

8:38 a.m. - FAA notifies NORAD of a hijacking.

8:43 a.m.

Why hasn't Bush been informed yet by the FAA or NORAD about two planes being hijacked?

8:43 a.m. - FAA notifies NORAD of a second hijacking.

8:46 a.m.

8:46 a.m. - Flight 11 crashes into the North WTC

8:47 - 9:00 a.m.

What time did Bush learn of the first plane crash in the WTC?

"The first sign something was wrong Tuesday came just before the president stepped into a second grade class at Emma E. Booker Elementary School." -St. Petersburg Times (AP) 9/11/01

9:00 A.M. - President George W. Bush arrives at Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida and is informed of the first airplane crashing into the World Trade Center by chief of staff Andrew Card. -Patriot Resource

9 a.m. – Bush arrives at Sarasota, Fla., school for speech. White House chief of staff Andrew Card tells him a plane has crashed into the World Trade Center. -September 11 News .com

Click photo for Booker Elementary.

Did Bush learn of the first plane crash before or after he entered the school?

Mr Bush arrived at the school, just before 9am, expecting to be met by its motherly principal, Gwen Rigell. Instead he was pulled sharply aside by the familiar, bulky figure of 51-year-old Karl Rove, a veteran political fixer and trusted aide of both Mr Bush and his father, George Sr. Mr Rove, a fellow Texan with an expansive manner and a colourful turn of phrase, told the President that a large commercial airliner (American Flight 11) had crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Centre. Mr Bush clenched his teeth, lowered his bottom lip and said something inaudible. Then he went into the school. It might have been an accident - as Bush has since said, he saw footage of the crash on a TV in the school "and I used to fly myself, and I said: 'There's one terrible pilot. It must have been a horrible accident.' " But Mr Bush soon learnt that it wasn't. -Telegraph.co.uk (12/16/01)

What did Bush mean when he said he "saw" the first plane crash in the WTC?

"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 used to fly, myself, and I said, well, there's one terrible pilot.  I said, it must have been a horrible accident," Bush -White House (12/04/01)

"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," Bush -White House (01/05/02)

September 11, 2001 Bush glances at TV at Sarasota, Fla. school after he was told of the attacks.   (Click photo for source.)

Where these photos taken before or after Bush went into the classroom to read?

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). (Click photo for source.)

President Bush and news coverage of the World Trade Centre attack at the Emma Booker Elementary School in Florida on September 11, 2001. (Click photo for source.)

Did the Rear Admiral Deborah Loewer, Director of the White House Situation Room, suggest that the 1st crash might be an act of terrorism before Bush went into the classroom?

Loewer, a Springfield native who was raised in St. Joseph Parish, is currently the director of the White House Situation Room. She was the one who informed President George W. Bush of the Sept. 11 attacks. Captain Loewer traveled to Florida with President Bush on Sept. 11 to visit a school. She received the message from her deputy in the White House Situation Room about the plane crashing into the first tower, and she described running from her car in the motorcade to the president's car to pass along the information. Once they reached the school, they watched events unfold on television, along with others in America. A short time later, she recognized the attacks for what they were and reported, "Mr. President, I think it's terrorism." -Catholic Telegraph (12/07/01)

Ohio native Deborah Loewer was the first person to inform President Bush that terrorism had struck New York City the morning of Sept 11. Loewer, 47, is the director of the White House Situation Room, the White House's crisis-management center. Normally, National Security Adviser Condoleeza Rice would have informed President Bush of the attacks. But it was Loewer who had traveled with the president on Sept. 11 to Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Fla. Shortly before 9 a.m., Loewer got a call telling her that "an aircraft had impacted the World Trade Center." Loewer said that when she arrived at the school, she ran hard and fast to the president. Loewer told the president and his chief of staff, Andrew Card, that an aircraft had hit the World Trade Center. "This is all we know," she told them. Like most Americans, Loewer was watching television when the second plane struck the second tower. "I tell you, I was so stunned, as I'm sure many of you were," Loewer recalled. "Well, it took me about 30 seconds to realize that this was terrorism." She relayed that thought to Card, who then whispered to the president, "Capt. Loewer says it's terrorism." -NewsFlash (AP) (11/26/01)

Rear Admiral (Select) Deborah A. Loewer United States Navy Director, White House Situation Room Director, Systems and Technical Planning Staff (Click photo for source.)

Why did Bush and his staff automatically think the 1st crash was just an accident when just weeks before there were warned by our intelligence agencies of possible hijackings?

As it was arriving, pagers and cell phones alerted White House aides that a plane had hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center. Bush remembers senior adviser Karl Rove bringing him the news, saying it appeared to be an accident involving a small, twin-engine plane. In fact it was American Airlines Flight 11, a Boeing 767 out of Boston's Logan International Airport. Based on what he was told, Bush assumed it was an accident. "This is pilot error," the president recalled saying. "It's unbelievable that somebody would do this." Conferring with Andrew H. Card Jr., his White House chief of staff, Bush said, "The guy must have had a heart attack." -Washington Post (01/27/02)

White House officials acknowledged that U.S. intelligence officials informed President Bush weeks before the Sept. 11 attacks that bin Laden's terrorist network might try to hijack American planes, and that information prompted administration officials to issue a private warning to transportation officials and national security agencies. -ABC 5/16/02

"Exactly two years before the Sept. 11 attacks, a federal report warned the executive branch that Osama bin Laden 's terrorists might hijack an airliner and dive bomb it into the Pentagon or other government buildings."  -Washington (AP)

"President Bush and his top advisers were informed by the CIA early last August that terrorists associated with Osama bin Laden had discussed the possibility of hijacking airplanes, according to reliable sources." -Washington Post

In response to inquiries from CBS News over why Ashcroft was traveling exclusively by leased jet aircraft instead of commercial airlines, the Justice Department cited what it called a "threat assessment" by the FBI, and said Ashcroft has been advised to travel only by private jet for the remainder of his term. -CBS (06/26/01)

Why did Bush implement a military response when he just said he thought the 1st crash was just an "accident" and how did he do that since he said he whisked off and "didn't have time to think about it"?

"Immediately following the first attack, I implemented our government's emergency response plans. Our military is powerful, and it's prepared." Bush -White Houes (09/11/01)

"I said, it must have been a horrible accident.  But I was whisked off there, I didn't have much time to think about it." Bush -White House (12/04/01)

Why didn't Condoleezza Rice, our National Security Advisor, get in touch with the FAA or NORAD right after the first plane crash in the WTC?

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. -September 11 News.com

About six blocks from the school, a news photographer overheard a radio transmission. Press Secretary Ari Fleischer would be needed on arrival to discuss reports of some sort of crash. The radio also said that Mr. Bush had a call waiting for him at his holding room in the school from national security adviser Condoleezza Rice. Mr. Fleischer told the press what Ms. Rice told the president - a plane had just hit the World Trade Center. Nobody knew how serious the situation was. -CS Monitor 9/17/01

Normally, National Security Adviser Condoleeza Rice would have informed President Bush of the attacks. -NewsFlash (AP) (11/26/01)

The last time a plane crashed into a New York City skyscraper was July 28, 1945.  -ABC (09/11/01)

8:53 a.m.

8:53 a.m. - Jetfighters scramble out of Otis AFB

Why didn't Bush's staff postpone this "soft event" of no major importance after the 1st plane crash in the WTC just to make sure everything was O.K.?

"But I was whisked off there, I didn't have much time to think about it," Bush. -White House (12/04/01)

When he arrived at the school he had been whisked into a holding room: National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice needed to speak to him. But he soon appeared in the classroom and listened appreciatively as the children went through their reading drill. -Time.com 9/12/01

8:55 a.m.

8:55 a.m. - Flight 77 turns away from it's intended course

9:02 a.m.

9:02 a.m. - Flight 175 crashes into the South WTC

9:05 a.m.

"And I was sitting in the classroom, and Andy Card, my Chief of Staff, who is sitting over here, walked in and said, "A second plane has hit the tower, America is under attack." Bush -White House (12/04/01)

Why did Bush resume listening to the kids read when he was just told our nation was under attack?

9:05 a.m. – Bush is visiting a second-grade class when Card whispers to him that a second plane has struck the towers. President delays plans to address the tragedy, deciding to get more information first. -September 11 News .com

9:05 A.M. - While preparing for a photo op with a second grade class, chief of staff Andrew Card gives President Bush news of the second crash. -Patriot Resource

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. -September 11 News.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." -DetroitNow News (9/11/01)

Chief of Staff Andy Card whispers into the ear of the President to give him word of the second plane crashing into the World Trade Center, during a visit to the Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Fla., Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001. (Click photo for source.)

At 9:05 a.m., United Airlines Flight 175, also a Boeing 767, smashed into the South Tower of the trade center. Bush was seated on a stool in the classroom when Card whispered the news: "A second plane hit the second tower. America is under attack." Bush remembers exactly what he thought: "They had declared war on us, and I made up my mind at that moment that we were going to war." A photo shows Bush's face with a distant look as he absorbed what Card had said. He nodded and resumed his conversation with the class. "Really good," he said before excusing himself and returning to the holding room. "These must be sixth-graders." -Washington Post (01/27/02)

At the moment the second plane was slamming into the south tower, President Bush was being introduced to the second-graders of Emma E. Booker Elementary in Sarasota, Fla. When he arrived at the school he had been whisked into a holding room: National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice needed to speak to him. But he soon appeared in the classroom and listened appreciatively as the children went through their reading drill. As he was getting ready to pose for pictures with the teachers and kids, chief of staff Andy Card entered the room, walked over to the President and whispered in his right ear. The President's face became visibly tense and serious. He nodded. Card left and for several minutes the President seemed distracted and somber, but then he resumed his interaction with the class. "Really good readers, whew!" he told them. "These must be sixth-graders!" -Time.com (9/12/01)

"Today we've had a national tragedy," Bush said from Sarasota, Florida, where he had been reading to children at Emma E. Booker Elementary School." "Earlier, the president was reading to children in the school when reporters asked him if he was aware of the two crashes and explosions. The president nodded and said he would talk about the situation later." -CNN (9/12/01)

Why did Chief-of-Staff Andrew Card immediately leave the President of the United States without waiting for a response right after he just informed him that our nation is under attack?

Why didn't Bush, our Commander-in-Chief, even respond to Card right after he was just informed that the United States was under a terrorist attack?

As he listened to Card's stunning news that sunny morning in Florida, Bush's eyes widened in disbelief. The color drained from his face. But he managed to keep a poker face, fearing he might alarm the schoolkids or the TV cameras rolling in the back of the room, Card noted. ``He looked up - it was only a matter of seconds - but it seemed like a matter of minutes,'' said Card. ``I tried to be succinct . . . so that he understood the enormity of the problem . . . I was uncomfortable about interrupting the president . . . But I felt if I were president, I would want to know.'' Card walked away from Bush immediately after delivering the bad news. ``I did not want to have a discussion with the president in front of that audience and in front of those cameras,'' he said. -Boston Herald (09/08/02)

President Bush was reading to children at Emma E. Booker Elementary School when an advisor whispered the bad news in his ear. When reporters asked him if he was aware of the two crashes and explosions, the president nodded and said he would talk about the situation later. -CNN (12/13/01)

Why didn't Bush politely excuse himself from the classroom at this point and quietly leave the room since no one knew how many more hijacked planes were still in the air and that he was supposedly the only person who could authorize a shoot down of a civilian aircraft ?

At 9.05 the White House Chief of Staff, Andrew Card, 53, another long-time Bush friend and confidante, leaned in close to the President and whispered: "A second plane has hit the World Trade Centre. America is under attack." This time Bush visibly flinched and caught his breath, but he said nothing. "I am very aware of the cameras," he recalled later. "I'm trying to absorb that knowledge. I have nobody to talk to. I'm sitting in the midst of a classroom with little kids, listening to a children's story and I realise I'm the Commander in Chief and the country has just come under attack." -Telegraph.co.uk (12/16/01)

The president also spoke of making the difficult decision to order the military to shoot down any civilian airliners that might be in the hands of terrorists, like the planes that crashed into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a Pennsylvania field. "That's a tough decision to make, but you've got to understand that I was the commander in chief and the president of a nation that had just been attacked by four aircraft, and we didn't know if other aircraft were coming or not," he said. -ABC (12/05/01)

"Military planes could not take aim and pull the trigger unless they received permission from the White House because only the president has the authority to order a civilian aircraft shot down." -CNN (10/26/99)

President Bush is seen here picking up and opening a book to see what the kids are reading.   Is our country being under attack by terrorists not that urgent to him?

Why did the Secret Service evacuate Vice President Cheney at the White House and not President Bush from a school that is only 3.5 miles from an international airport when we were in the middle of a terrorist attack?

At that moment in Washington, 900 miles north, a squad of Secret Service agents stormed into the office of Vice-President Dick Cheney. Seated in front of a television set watching CNN, Cheney, 60, who, like Bush knew only the barest details of events, was seized by the arms, legs and his belt and physically carried through 150 yards of corridors, then taken by lift, down to the Presidential Emergency Operations Centre (PEOPS) - a subterranean bunker capable of withstanding an overhead nuclear explosion.  He was quickly joined there by Ms Rice, and Norman Mineta, the Secretary of Transportation. -Telegraph.co.uk (12/16/01)

Mr. Bush was reading to a group of schoolchildren at Emma Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Fla., yesterday morning when an aide whispered to him word of the first attack on the World Trade Center. For some reason, Secret Service agents did not bustle him away. Instead, within minutes, even before the attack on the Pentagon, the President made a statement to reporters, promising "to hunt down and to find those folks that committed this act. Terrorism against our nation will not stand." -The Globe and Mail (9/12/01)

Why didn't the hijackers try to crash a plane into Booker Elementary when it was publicly known that the President would be there and that the school is only 3.5 miles away from an International Airport?

THE PRESIDENT'S VISIT Bush to speak at Booker Elementary Published on September 8, 2001, Article 1 of 1 found. The centerpiece of President Bush's visit to Sarasota next week will be an education speech Tuesday morning at Emma E. Booker Elementary School.Principal Gwen Rigell said Friday evening that school officials are still working out the details."Right now we're just excited that we were actually selected to do it," she said.The president is scheduled to arrive Monday evening at Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport and to depart on Tuesday. -Sarasota Herald-Tribune (09/08/01)

Bush Presses Education Agenda in Sunshine State W A S H I N G T O N, Sept. 10 — President Bush headed to Florida today to push for quick passage of his education reforms as the flagging economy commands increasing attention back in the nation's capital. Bush is set to take part in a reading program demonstration and address parents and teachers at Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota on Tuesday. The Democratic Party is set to meet in Miami later this week in an effort to raise more questions about the legitimacy of the 2000 election. But the 2002 elections also factor into Bush's visit, as he raises the profile of his brother Jeb, governor of the state. "Obviously we were raised right because Jeb's priority and my priority are the same," the president said in Jacksonville this afternoon. -ABC (09/10/01)

1. Emma E. Booker Elementary 2350 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Way Sarasota, FL 34234 2.  Sarasota Bradenton Intl Airport 6000 Airport Cir, Sarasota, FL 34243 Distance:  3.5 miles Approximate Travel Time:  8 mins

9:10 a.m.

9:10 a.m. - Flight 77 turns around and heads back east

9:12 a.m.

When did President Bush finally leave the classroom?

At 9:12 Mr Bush left the classroom. By now the reporters' mobiles were ringing non-stop, and no one needed to ask why the school visit was being cut short. In a small, back office, the President scribbled a brief statement in black felt tip on a yellow legal pad. -Telegraph.co.uk (12/16/01)

9:25 a.m.

FAA 9:25 a.m. - Notifies NORAD Flight 77 heading toward Washington

9:30 a.m.

9:30 a.m. – Bush meets privately with National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, who briefs him. He delivers first remarks on the tragedy