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CNN Sunday Morning
President Bush Returns to Ground Zero for Two-Month Anniversary of September 11 Attacks
Aired November 11, 2001 - 10:15 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.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: The winds of war swirl around the ruins of the World Trade Center today. President Bush returns to Ground Zero to mark the two-month anniversary of the attacks, and underline a Veterans Day that now resonates with somber, new meaning.
CNN White House Correspondent Kelly Wallace is traveling with the president and she joins us from New York -- Kelly.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Marty, that observance, which will be held about three hours from now at the site of the World Trade Center disaster, likely to be an especially powerful moment. Senior administration officials say a big challenge for them has always been to portray this as not as America's fight against terrorism but as a worldwide fight against terrorists. They say that image should come out today because the name of the 86 countries and regions that lost citizens in the September 11 attacks will be read aloud and then each country's flag will be presented during a military guard.
Now, as you mentioned also, the president taking time to pay tribute to America's veterans on this Veterans Day. He is saying it's especially powerful because of the fact that a war is now underway overseas in Afghanistan but also here in the United States. At an event earlier this morning with a host of New York City dignitaries, the president saying that people now look at postal workers, firefighters, police officers differently following the September 11 attacks and of course, have new regards for veterans and for the military. The president getting really his greatest applause when he said the U.S. military will definitely win this fight.
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GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES: Al Qaeda and the Taliban have made a serious mistake, and because our military is brave and prepared and courageous, they will pay a serious price.
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WALLACE: And those were getting really the longest applause that the Taliban and al Qaeda will pay a serious price. Now Martin as you know and as Nic Robertson reporting, Osama bin Laden claiming to have chemical and nuclear weapons, President Bush's National Security Adviser Dr. Condoleezza Rice asked about this. Basically, reiterating what President Bush said on Saturday that the administration simply does not know if bin Laden is telling the truth. But that the United States and the international community cannot take his words lightly.
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DR. CONDOLEEZZA RICE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: We are taking seriously his desire to have those capabilities. He said that it's the religious duty to have weapons of mass destruction capabilities. So we're taking it very seriously. We have no credible evidence that he has them at this point in time, but we're not going to take any chances. It makes even more urgent the shaking out of the Taliban, the shaking out of the al Qaeda network.
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WALLACE: And Marty, of course, we saw President Bush at the United Nations yesterday saying every nation could be a potential target of Osama bin Laden if he does use weapons of mass destruction, the United States hoping that spurs action on the part of some countries, Mr. Bush believes, may be turning a blind eye to the terrorist threat. Marty, back to you.
SAVIDGE: Kelly Wallace traveling with the president in New York City. Thank you very much.
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