Isabela D.

Purcey

Professor D. Colvin

English Comp 1101

18 October 2019

President George W. Bush: Address to Joint Session of Congress Following 9/11

“Fellow citizens, we'll meet violence with patient justice -- assured of the rightness of our cause,
and confident of the victories to come. In all that lies before us, may God grant us wisdom, and
may He watch over the United States of America. Thank you.”

-George W. Bush

This is one of my favorite quotes by the president during this speech; his vow to go after those
who attacked us on American soil. I love his determination and his composure, he is not
speaking hastily, like a madman, drunk on revenge, he speaks with wisdom and clarity. He
reassures his audience that seeking justice is without question what we must do.

It is clear that the president’s thesis is in favor of attacking and bringing to justice the group of
individuals that attacked us on 9/11 as well as any others that may side with them. He is also in
favor of defending our land and people and has made it clear to the rest of the world, that they
need to either stand with us or against us.

As commander and chief of the armed forces at the time and by simply being George W. Bush
he has established his ethos. He has been briefed on the events of this day, he has knowledge
the military has because they report directly to him. He makes himself relatable to the rest of
the nation when he addresses the audience before him and those viewing at home on their
televisions and speaks with absolute inclusion; he does this by mentioning the empathetic
actions of his fellow Americans as well as that of, the people of many other nations of the
world. He mentions the prayers and quiet moments of observance, of many in other countries
like South Korea, Egypt, Australia, Africa, and Latin America. Then he goes on to mention the
number of foreign nationals that died during these attacks. He does a wonderful job of
appealing to our pathos by creating a feeling of unity and inclusion.
“The terrorists' directive commands them to kill Christians and Jews, to kill all Americans, and
make no distinctions among military and civilians, including women and children.”

He did a good job of using logos to appeal to me and I’m sure many others, in this statement.
Naturally, we want to ensure our families are protected, especially our children. Although I was
young and not old enough to join the military when the attacks of 9/11 occurred, this
statement had my sense of patriotism and duty to country at an all-new high. Now as a mother
and veteran of the armed forces, it still makes me feel like it did back then.

The speech is strong in content for persuading the American people as well as other countries
of the world, into agreeing with his thesis. Not only does the president include all people by
mentioning other countries that were touched by this tragedy but he goes on to remind us that
these terrorists aren’t only a menace to us, they inflict pain and suffering on their own people,
their power comes from inflicting fear.

“The leadership of al Qaeda has great influence in Afghanistan and supports the Taliban regime
in controlling most of that country. In Afghanistan, we see al Qaeda's vision for the world.
Afghanistan's people have been brutalized; many are starving and many have fled. Women are
not allowed to attend school. You can be jailed for owning a television. Religion can be
practiced only as their leaders dictate. A man can be jailed in Afghanistan if his beard is not long
enough”.

This speech was well structured, first off the events of 9/11 already had the audience feeling all
kinds of emotions, people were still struggling to figure out what happened and why. This had
the audience intrigued and engaged wanting to know; now what? Because of who he is, the
president's credibility was established, he had a lot of knowledge and information to share.

As the President, he has the power and influence to actually bring these terrorists to justice,
and he already had plans to make it happen. He had us clinging to his every word. He was
willing to go to battle, to protect us, and all that we hold dear. He empathized with us and pulls
at our heartstrings, especially when he mentioned, he was holding a badge that belonged to
someone lost in the attacks. He showed his likeability when he said, the badge was given to him
by this man's mother. The fact that she gave him something that belonged to her son,
something that meant a lot to her son and one of the last momentos she had of him, is huge.

I found this speech to be extremely moving. The president presented his audience with the
issue at hand, presented facts, shared his thoughts, revealed his intended plan, and how it was
going to be implemented. He established his thesis clearly and he spoke with such feeling and
sincere empathy for those lost, those left behind as well as those of Muslim faith that may face
persecution for the actions of a few radical extremists. I believe his words helped unite not only
the American people but the world, if only for a brief moment.
 Works Cited

Bush, George W.. “Address to Joint Session of Congress, Following 9/11 Attacks.”
American rhetoric: Rhetoric of 9-11, Sep. 2001,
https://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/gwbush911jointsessionspeech.htm