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America Under Attack: President Bush Will Speak to the Nation Later Tonight

Aired September 11, 2001 - 17:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: Now to our own senior White House correspondent John King, who's just about a block and a half from the White House, on top of an office building up above the 10th floor there -- John.

JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Judy, a few quick bits of information. As we have been reporting, the president is on his way back to Washington and we can now say definitively, but when he arrives in Washington he will address the American people tonight. I am told by sources plans are for an address from the White House. The target time 9:00 p.m. That could be moved up a little, but 8:00 or 9:00 p.m. we are now told is the target time.

But for now, the administration will not confirm that the address will be broadcast from the White House. There have been security concerns throughout the day. We see now on the grounds of the White House, which was evacuated hours ago, some bomb-sniffing dogs and other security personnel securing the area around the White House. And we are told by administration officials the president will be back in Washington shortly and will address the American people tonight.

And as we reported a bit earlier, congressional leaders, who also as part of the protocol, the emergency evacuation protocol, were taken to secure locations themselves outside of Washington. The bipartisan congressional leadership is also making its way back to Washington, and it will deliver statements, the four leaders, from the steps of the Capitol tonight as well. All of these designed to offer signs of reassurances to the American people that their government is up and running at this time of great tragedy.

I want to add one other bit of information: A lot of lawmakers trying to get briefings from Capitol Hill police, from administration officials, from the CIA and the FBI and others. We are told that in those briefings there has been some speculations -- and again, law enforcement officials say this is just speculation at this moment -- that that plane that crashed outside of Pittsburgh may have been heading toward Washington. In those briefing, I'm told by several sources, three potential targets were listed: One, the presidential retreat at Camp David; two, the White House; and three, the United States Capitol building.

Again, though, lawmakers and other officials being given those briefing told that it's speculative, but based on the flight path and everything else we've seen unfold on this tragic day, that law enforcement officials believe at this moment that the potential targets for that plane that crashed outside Pittsburgh were perhaps Camp David, perhaps the White House behind me, or perhaps the United States Capitol.

WOODRUFF: John, and we can only imagine the struggle that must have gone on on board that aircraft, in the cockpit or wherever, in order to keep the plane from going where the people who wanted to bring it to Washington, they were obviously prevented from reaching their target.

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