Sept. 11 speech stirs campus controversy
President’s address gets JMU political organizations debating
By Kelly Conniff, staff writer
Posted on September 21, 2006

Ten days after President Bush’s Sept. 11 remembrance speech, Democrats and Republicans are still arguing over the aptness of the message, and JMU political organizations are echoing this sentiment.

The president and his wife started the day at New York’s Fort Pitt firehouse, where observers bowed their heads at 8:46 a.m. and 9:03 a.m., the times at which planes hit the World Trade Center.

Bush then moved to Shanksville, Pa., and laid a wreath at the site where United Flight 93 crashed after passengers diverted the plane from its intended target.

Finally, Bush arrived at the Pentagon, where he comforted family members of those who died in the attacks.

After these three visits, Bush closed his day of somber observance by delivering a speech that intertwined remembrance of Sept. 11 and the ongoing war in Iraq.

The speech began as a tribute to the citizens of the United States who acted heroically in a time of need, but then moved onto information about the War in Iraq.

Bush answered the question of why the United States is in Iraq if Saddam Hussein was not responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks, saying that “the regime of Saddam Hussein was a clear threat.”’

The president went on, describing what is still necessary in Iraq and why it is important for the American people to stand together in supporting the war effort and democracy across the world.

Bush also warned Osama bin Laden and other terrorists at large, issuing a polemic saying “no matter how long it takes, America will find you and we will bring you to justice.”

Reactions to the speech were varied. Democrats claimed that the president used the speech as an attempt to seek support for an unpopular war.

This sentiment was expressed in a letter to the major TV networks by Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. It stated that Bush used this speech as a platform to boost sagging poll numbers.

The JMU College Democrats agreed.

Junior Jamie Lockhart, secretary for the College Democrats, said, “I think that September 11, 2001, was a day of great tragedy and that all Americans should stand together in remembering those that died, not in using the day to further political agendas.”

Republicans praised Bush’s speech as strong and willful, accusing Democrats of turning the event into a political issue themselves. House Majority Leader John Boehner, in a Washington Post article, wondered if the Democrats were “more interested in protecting the terrorists than protecting the American people.”

Many Republicans feel the Democrats politicize the events themselves by encouraging division about terrorism and the ongoing War in Iraq.

 “House Leader Boehner was probably too defensive when he made the claim that Democrats support terrorists vis a vis their attacks on America’s anti-terror policies,” said JMU College Republican Chair junior Jarrett Ray. “However, past the obvious politicking of Boehner’s statement, I think he does have a point that Democrats have been the ones to politicize the War on Terror.”

Poll numbers following Bush’s Sept. 11 speech peaked for several days around 47 percent, but slowly fell to average around 40 percent in the last three days, similar to pre-Sept. 11.