00:00 - I'm Francine Schertzer, senior vice president of politics at policy at PCN.

00:04 - President of the Pennsylvania Press Club and your host for today's luncheon.

00:08 - Joining me at the head table is Tom Foley.

00:11 - President of the Association

00:12 - of Independent Colleges and University of Pennsylvania.

00:15 - Thank you for your support.

00:16 - And thank you for being here.

00:19 - The Pennsylvania Press Club luncheon series could not be possible

00:21 - without the support of the generous organizations

00:24 - listed on our sponsor banner.

00:26 - Today's program is streaming

00:27 - live on PCN select and airing live across the state on PCN TV.

00:31 - Our guest speaker today is governor Mark Schweiker.

00:34 - Mark Schweiker served as Pennsylvania's 44th governor.

00:38 - During his tenure, he strengthened Pennsylvania's homeland security readiness

00:42 - in the days and months following the terrorist attacks of 9/11.

00:46 - He gained widespread

00:47 - acclaim for his leadership during the successful 77 hour rescue

00:51 - operation of nine trapped miners in Quake Creek, Somerset.

00:54 - County, in July 2002.

00:57 - Now working in the private sector, he continues to lend his considerable

01:01 - experience in emergency management, crisis response and counter terrorism

01:05 - as an executive in residence for Writer University's Homeland Security program.

01:10 - Today, nearly 25 years since the attacks, he will offer his reflections

01:14 - on nine over 11.

01:15 - Where we are today as a nation that promised to never forget

01:18 - the brave Americans who lost our lives that day.

01:21 - Please welcome governor Mark Schleicher.

01:29 - And have a big hand for our sponsors who bring us here today.

01:32 - I know

01:34 - it make this gathering possible, and I'd just somewhat jokingly said

01:38 - to Tom Foley that I'm impressed you here on a

01:42 - Monday in late August, considering all that's going to come at you in the fall.

01:47 - So I appreciate your interest in,

01:50 - thank you for your,

01:52 - introduction as well.

01:54 - I have to I have to say that I feel like I'm part historian this morning.

01:58 - I mean, it's 25 years ago.

02:00 - I can look around the room and one of the one of the dividing lines, so to speak.

02:06 - When we talk about something to happen, 25 years ago, depending on your memory.

02:11 - I mean, if you're age 30,

02:14 - maybe, and above,

02:16 - you probably have some feel for what happened,

02:18 - you know, and really, the only parallel of this gorgeous mundi.

02:23 - Francine, as far as blue skies and comfortable temperatures

02:27 - is on that Tuesday of 2001, a similar kind of day.

02:32 - And then havoc and violence that visited this country,

02:37 - and all of it really completed by, 10:03 a.m.

02:41 - that morning when United Flight 93 hit, hit the ground upside down

02:46 - and close to 600mph in,

02:49 - the Shanksville area, where we will be, in a matter of days

02:54 - when we, in a formal sense, at the at the impressive national memorial,

02:59 - gather so many people and there will be thousands.

03:02 - And, of course, the 40, family members

03:05 - and their surviving, brothers

03:08 - and sisters and uncles and siblings will be there, to reflect as well.

03:12 - So in that regard, I feel some, you know, feel like I'm the historian today,

03:17 - not just the former governor, lieutenant governor who had the role

03:21 - and the important responsibility to drive emergency response and crisis management,

03:25 - in our Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, for eight years.

03:29 - This, friends, I must say, right up

03:31 - front, is not your normal lunch time topic.

03:38 - We're talking about the second bloodiest day

03:41 - on American soil in the history of the Republic.

03:45 - We're talking about

03:47 - 40 brave passengers and crew members.

03:50 - 40 homicides.

03:52 - As the coroner of, Somerset.

03:55 - County, defined the outcome

03:58 - and forced suicides on the part of the four,

04:01 - kind of terrorists who commandeered flight 93,

04:04 - just over Ohio, a short time after

04:07 - they had left Pennsylvania airspace.

04:10 - In that regard,

04:12 - no one is interested in hearing too much of the very difficult detail.

04:17 - Its associated with all that happened as far as those four planes

04:21 - going down at three particular locations.

04:24 - And you remember think about this as Francine asked, that

04:28 - I kind of reflect on, direct experience, and I will,

04:31 - but I'm much more comfortable talking about the first responders

04:35 - at each of those locations, particularly the many who, descended on

04:40 - the Shanksville, Stoney Creek Township area

04:43 - of Somerset County, to help,

04:46 - although to our tremendous disappointment and so to speak, yours

04:49 - truly was the top executive in emergency response.

04:53 - You know, our biggest motive, our our

04:55 - our biggest, pursuit, our biggest kick,

04:59 - if you will, is that you can help and save someone.

05:05 - That was not to be the case.

05:06 - Only recovery.

05:08 - They had all you can imagine.

05:10 - You know, at that point, when the, the terrorists decided that

05:15 - they were going to, to the plane, that not much is going to come of that.

05:20 - And so we had the, the 40 fatalities.

05:22 - And I can tell you this, I, I think back and there are so many questions that

05:27 - at least I still raise when, I'm asked whether it's by a journalist or,

05:33 - or a regular Pennsylvanians who wants to talk about where they were

05:36 - on that beautiful Tuesday morning.

05:38 - And some of them will never be answered.

05:40 - So in that regard, I might raise more questions than I may.

05:44 - The answer today,

05:45 - you might raise questions that that I might not be able to answer.

05:49 - But I love the fact that, and thank you, Francine, for the opportunity to visit,

05:54 - to be part of the program because we all made a commitment,

05:57 - whether it was those who were on the ground in Somerset County.

06:00 - And I do remember, you know, FBI, trainees

06:06 - and so many volunteers literally on their hands and knees

06:09 - for attempting to gather the forensic evidence

06:12 - because it was the largest crime scene, I believe, that had ever been managed,

06:17 - by, in this case, ultimately, the FBI and at first the Pennsylvania State Police.

06:22 - So a very difficult time.

06:25 - But each of those governors

06:28 - who led the state and I'm talking about, then Governor Warner, now a U.S.

06:32 - senator representing Virginia, George Pataki, and, of course, my friend

06:36 - Tom Ridge, the four of us are part of that pledge that we will never forget.

06:40 - So in my mind, it's an opportunity, to be ever so reflective

06:44 - and respectful of the families and all who lost so many people.

06:48 - And we're talking almost 3000 people.

06:50 - By 1003 that morning, that were lost.

06:54 - So it's an opportunity for me, to engage here and to look you in the eye and.

06:58 - Yes, honor and reflect and make sure that you two,

07:02 - regardless of your age, never forget, that

07:06 - that incredibly, distressful day.

07:10 - I can remember heading up the Northeast extension once the, the National defense

07:14 - protocol had kicked in, and and then ultimately to really kind of

07:19 - elevate the challenge, the intensity of that morning,

07:23 - to have the the Cleveland Center, the FAA contact

07:27 - Pennsylvania, our emergency operations center,

07:29 - and under just to cite the federal statute the way it works in

07:33 - the United States of America, when you have that kind of challenge,

07:36 - they are obligated, to in first inform

07:40 - the FBI, you know, a hijacking

07:43 - that is on the on the prosecution and crime management pursuits aspect.

07:48 - And then there's the crisis management side, which is the responsibility

07:52 - of the states under what's called the Nunn Lugar Act.

07:55 - And they're specifically they're expected to contact.

07:58 - You have the the executive officer in charge, when they think,

08:02 - it has in this case, I moved in to over top Pennsylvania airspace.

08:08 - They the terrorists made their move

08:11 - somewhere right around the Pennsylvania Ohio border.

08:14 - And then suddenly, the transponder turned off.

08:17 - But as we all know, that the, path of that plane was not headed

08:21 - to San Francisco.

08:22 - As an aside, when they left Newark, right around the time,

08:26 - that perhaps they could there could have been a communication that,

08:31 - there had been three successful hijackings before they lifted off into the air.

08:34 - They're out on the tarmac at Newark Liberty International Airport.

08:38 - The, situation is,

08:44 - now,

08:45 - dealing with Pennsylvania's responsibilities,

08:49 - particularly for the dispatching of the Urban search and rescue team.

08:52 - And I'll come back to that as we talked about what the brave first responders

08:56 - and what they were responsible to pursue

09:01 - is that at that point, I was now live

09:04 - with the Cleveland Center of the FAA, and it was straight to the point.

09:09 - It was we were and invited party Cleveland Center to the Cleveland Center,

09:13 - the 93, Cleveland Center to 93, Cleveland Center to 93.

09:18 - No responses.

09:19 - You know, they they stopped communication and the transponder

09:22 - had already been turned off.

09:23 - That indicated to the FAA where they were.

09:25 - But the surmise was based on when they turned around,

09:28 - that it seemed like they're headed toward West Virginia and, of course, Western.

09:33 - And they crossed over the Pittsburgh area, over Westmore land County,

09:37 - even to the point had gotten so low, that that they had phone service

09:42 - and that explains why some of the passengers,

09:45 - like Ed Felt, who's the brother of Gordon Felt.

09:48 - Gordon felt who will be in charge and the Shanksville area in two weeks.

09:52 - His brother Ed had contacted the Westmore land County.

09:55 - Communications Center to say, hey, something's awry here.

09:59 - We might need some help.

10:01 - And, you know, at that point, they were only seconds away, from,

10:06 - I should say that the passengers were ready to invade the cockpit

10:10 - and take out that cockpit door, using the food cart

10:14 - and be, only minutes away from being in Washington, DC airspace.

10:20 - And as you likely have heard, the the the,

10:23 - implication is that they were headed either to the white House or the Capitol.

10:27 - Although Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who sits at a, you know, a supermax facility

10:33 - in Colorado, has, orally confirmed,

10:38 - that, 93 was supposed to reach the Capitol.

10:42 - So at that point, we're live.

10:46 - And, suddenly it was, governor,

10:50 - we'll be back with a report in a second, which is short for a situation report.

10:56 - And, in a matter of a minute,

10:59 - an agent came back on no longer the FAA.

11:02 - We think that's down. We think that's down.

11:04 - Might be in western Pennsylvania. And so

11:08 - game on.

11:09 - And as you know, the sequence

11:12 - was the two planes hit at the Trade Center.

11:16 - You know, earlier by by about 65 minutes.

11:19 - Then the American airliner hit, it was taken.

11:22 - It went into the Pentagon.

11:24 - By the way, those three, those three flights were all destined for LA.

11:29 - The only one destined, for non la

11:33 - San Francisco, nor to San Francisco was 93.

11:37 - The point being there, friends,

11:38 - that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, for all of his evil ways,

11:42 - and his conspiratorial arrangement with Osama

11:46 - bin laden was also,

11:50 - pretty smart guy relative to how you can impose this

11:53 - kind of evil effort on the United States of America.

11:56 - Remember, every one of those terrorists were American hating,

11:59 - jihadi terrorist.

12:03 - There's no question about their motives, their intent.

12:06 - And, the fact that when they decided five years earlier, remember, this was 60

12:10 - months in the making

12:12 - and digress even more,

12:14 - I mean, it was Ramzi Yosef, the the nephew of KSM

12:18 - who's responsible for the 1993 bombing,

12:21 - of the World Trade Center complex.

12:24 - When he parked that van, underneath a Vista hotel in southern Manhattan.

12:30 - So there is a history here of,

12:33 - animus and, disrespect, to say the least, for

12:38 - for your, your country, the United States of America,

12:42 - and a little bit of a marketing, side to him as well.

12:45 - Look at the four airlines, the four airliners,

12:50 - two united, two American,

12:53 - United States of America.

12:55 - So they were they were they were, to say the least, quite motivated.

12:59 - So you might imagine and maybe you ask me about the, you know,

13:02 - the decision some two summers ago when, all of a sudden you heard about this deal

13:07 - with KSM, where if he would acknowledge, that he was the engineer of the attacks,

13:12 - you know, that, the white House would be comfortable

13:16 - affording him life imprisonment rather than pursuing the prosecution

13:20 - by the military tribunal when he was, cornered, in Guantanamo Bay.

13:25 - So, that is, quickly, a 90 minute set

13:32 - in one's life and

13:33 - how it can completely change, the direction, of our relationships

13:39 - with those in the Middle East who have nothing but animus and and,

13:44 - questions for the United States of America.

13:46 - And as a result, the second bloodiest day on American

13:51 - soil in the history of the country, almost 3000 people died.

13:55 - What hasn't left my mind and should not be of yours.

13:58 - There are 82,000, first responders,

14:02 - who are, whose names are on the World Trade Center

14:06 - response list and dealing with a variety of respiratory ailments.

14:10 - They call it the World Trade Center.

14:12 - Cough if you worked there.

14:14 - So, it doesn't end at 1003

14:18 - when that plane crashed upside down in that minefield in Shanksville.

14:23 - It doesn't end on 9/11.

14:25 - You stop and think, you know,

14:27 - there's I believe, almost 7000 deaths from the World.

14:32 - Trade Center respiratory set of ailments and the cough.

14:36 - So the damage was done.

14:39 - And that's, my reference just a few minutes ago about how

14:42 - this is not, a pleasant topic, a pleasant realm,

14:47 - but I would

14:48 - I would now, rush to assure you

14:52 - that there are so many compelling positives that that had arisen

14:57 - as the minutes and the days went by, after,

15:02 - you know, we moved into the next day, a Wednesday.

15:06 - I mean, I think I, I, you see about to see this, but

15:10 - the most demanding day in the,

15:13 - history of the New York Fire Department was 911,

15:17 - the most number of calls in an emergency since that went out.

15:22 - The largest dispatch of personnel,

15:25 - the the largest number of, volunteer,

15:30 - self assigned, had already finished the night shift,

15:34 - jumped in their vehicles and drove to Manhattan,

15:37 - drove to the incident, drove to

15:41 - to to that particular location,

15:45 - even knowing for some of them that one building had already fallen.

15:50 - These are in my mind.

15:51 - They personify the American volunteer spirit that we want to help.

15:56 - They are really the, a group that I just

16:02 - I wonder, as I'm sure you, upon hearing this, is

16:06 - what kind of drive and and compassion and concern for others,

16:10 - inclined you to get back in the car after you finish your shift

16:13 - and still get over to southern Manhattan to help out

16:16 - what inclines the

16:18 - the the the over 200 volunteers

16:22 - through the Western Pennsylvania Emergency Response Network,

16:25 - to descend on that location

16:28 - and in, in the Shanksville area,

16:31 - I believe it's it's a unique talent and civic minded

16:35 - aspect of life in America where we we value greatly volunteers.

16:40 - Whether you're there in EMS, in your hometown or,

16:44 - a career in Harrisburg Fire Department, or those who wear the badge

16:50 - and make sure that that blue line is preserved,

16:52 - that separates the law breaking, from,

16:56 - the, the law abiding,

16:59 - it is our volunteer sector and marine emergency response.

17:04 - And I regard this as a look

17:05 - at someone like Steve Miskin, who was with me on a trade trip in India.

17:08 - We came to know something, be proud of your your United States of America,

17:12 - because we're one of the few countries, perhaps the only one with the.

17:16 - This amply sized volunteer sector doesn't exist in other countries.

17:21 - Friends,

17:22 - to the extent that we've got it

17:23 - across our country, it's either the national government

17:28 - that responds as you see it, in a place like Venezuela

17:31 - some time back, or the corporate sector.

17:34 - There is no there is no.

17:36 - And Tocqueville is talk about this, the amazing number of, of self-defined,

17:42 - self-motivated volunteers that speak to any number of social,

17:48 - situations or community situations in our communities.

17:53 - And so I saw it firsthand.

17:56 - So if I could let me just take another few minutes,

17:59 - because there might be some reactions to questions here.

18:01 - I'd like to talk about the responders, talk about the families,

18:05 - and, and, and talk about the survivors, of course.

18:08 - And then talk about the amazing community, the people of Somerset County

18:14 - and Cambria and that particular area, because we have a unique event coming up.

18:18 - And I have to tip my hat to Christine, and, Chip,

18:22 - minimizer, the editor of the Johnstown Paper, who will lead

18:28 - an important panel that evening at 630 in Shanksville High School,

18:33 - a building

18:34 - that literally shook when 93 hit the ground.

18:37 - I mean, that's give you an idea how close it was

18:40 - and the impact of,

18:43 - of a large airliner going down in a rural area like that,

18:47 - that the building shook and those kids certainly have,

18:50 - never forgotten that particular experience when their teachers

18:54 - and staff were wide eyed and like, you know,

18:57 - we have to check on this.

18:58 - We have to check on this because it just it came out of the blue.

19:02 - That was obviously not a normal flight path for a big airliner

19:06 - to come out of Ohio and head to Washington, DC.

19:10 - So the responders, yours truly had the responsibility to,

19:16 - take the call on dispatching, our,

19:19 - expert urban search and rescue team,

19:23 - called the USAR team.

19:25 - We were the, Pennsylvania was the first non-New York State urban search and rescue

19:31 - team on the pile, as they call it, in Manhattan there that evening.

19:35 - Many of them are suffering from the World Trade Center cough.

19:39 - And believe me, the cough does not speak to the,

19:42 - the, the, the impact of that ailment.

19:45 - And, we're helping and that's, you know, this is this is a unique group,

19:50 - of very dedicated, trained, high level, responders,

19:55 - you know, from the physicians who know how to conduct surgeries

20:00 - in tight quarters, perhaps under a concrete,

20:04 - piece of large concrete or or, steel girders

20:09 - to those who guide and follow,

20:12 - the the, cadaver dogs, as they're called,

20:16 - looking for those who are looking for human beings who ideally are alive

20:20 - and those who have perished.

20:21 - So this is a this unique group, we had worked hard to,

20:26 - support and financially, we had worked hard to provide

20:30 - the the best personnel

20:32 - should this happen, it's improbable that they're often dispatched.

20:35 - But I think, you know, the federal authorities deemed it a matter of let's

20:41 - let's get to this promptly and get them up to Manhattan. So,

20:47 - and I can remember this.

20:49 - You talk about reflections and questions is the.

20:52 - And I've talked to Josh, our current governor, about this and every governor

20:55 - since

20:57 - all that talent of ours was, was that on the pile in New York State

21:01 - in Manhattan.

21:05 - What were we to do

21:07 - if we had a second incident in a place?

21:10 - Well, I'm not going to I'm not going to dare speculate about it.

21:14 - A, you know, one of Pennsylvania's second tier cities.

21:18 - What were we to do?

21:20 - So we did work hard to begin to,

21:25 - formulate the ability to have a second backup crew.

21:28 - And, you know, it's in my mind.

21:32 - And I think those who are members of the fourth state

21:35 - know that I've taken the time over the last couple of years

21:37 - to continue to beat the proverbial drum, for some kind of stand up entity.

21:43 - In case that were to happen. It seems unlikely.

21:47 - Wanted to remain unlikely.

21:48 - I think it depends how this country comports itself

21:51 - in foreign policy and international fare matters across the country.

21:55 - You know, and that's a matter of not just hard power, you know.

21:58 - Are we comfortable with using smart power?

22:00 - As well, because that is so important to stop.

22:03 - You know what?

22:05 - You I think what we see is the increasing rental ization,

22:10 - and the recruitment of, jihadi warriors.

22:15 - It's picking up again.

22:17 - Friends.

22:17 - Just, it's something that I,

22:20 - I see from time to time, given my my professional work,

22:24 - in the Homeland security, effort and unit at Rider University.

22:30 - But our first responders did the job.

22:34 - I do want to really tip my hat to

22:37 - the many motivated members that showed up in Shanksville.

22:40 - At some point, I can remember

22:44 - just surveying this large crime scene

22:49 - and the care and the fastidious

22:51 - nature of of these folks,

22:54 - and what they did on their hands and knees in order to respond,

22:59 - you know, to the demanding nature of carrying out,

23:02 - the typical investigatory

23:05 - and forensic evidence gathering effort in Shanksville was.

23:10 - I I've never forgot that

23:13 - that picture, that that example of dedication.

23:18 - So and it allowed me to,

23:37 - Talk to Todd Beamer, his wife,

23:40 - and say, I think we found a ring

23:41 - that means a lot to you. So.

23:50 - And I think she greatly appreciated that.

23:53 - That is the only.

23:56 - I mean, that's a concrete

23:59 - example of what happens when you have that kind of dedication.

24:03 - So, thank you for the opportunity

24:06 - to reflect and offer the compliments and my sense of gratitude

24:11 - and what I saw in Shanksville,

24:15 - the families,

24:18 - and I mentioned

24:19 - positive actions and reactions and really,

24:24 - for the sake of others, I mean,

24:29 - you know, Todd Beamer was heard by the the,

24:32 - dispatcher in Westmore land County,

24:36 - in the background to say,

24:39 - are we ready?

24:41 - Let's roll.

24:44 - Under the heading of questions,

24:47 - I think of

24:49 - their attempt to shove that coffee

24:51 - cart down the the cart way, the walkway,

24:56 - the doors locked,

24:58 - the, three, they believe

25:01 - three of the of the four terrorists were inside the cockpit.

25:05 - And the muscle guy was outside.

25:07 - They had to decide.

25:10 - Talk about drive, talk about courage.

25:13 - And with no military assistance or equipment,

25:18 - they had to decide to take him out.

25:21 - These are passengers flying to San Francisco on business

25:25 - or family, or leave, whatever it might be.

25:30 - You talk about heart,

25:32 - and courage

25:34 - and believing at that point, since many of them had had conversations.

25:39 - And the idea was, this is an attack on the United States of America.

25:44 - These planes are down in two other locations.

25:49 - They they concluded that

25:50 - they had a responsibility to you and to you and to the 320

25:55 - million Americans, so to speak, to give it a go to stop this.

26:00 - And beyond the fact that they they only had coffee pots with,

26:04 - you know, hot coffee and some utensils.

26:08 - Such moxie,

26:11 - the guts to try that,

26:13 - to take on the muscle outside the

26:16 - the cockpit.

26:18 - And the belief is by those who know better than I,

26:22 - who I've had the opportunity to to listen,

26:26 - to the recordings.

26:31 - There was a sequence there.

26:34 - They, they believe that they were about to get in,

26:37 - that they were about to enter

26:39 - the cockpit and,

26:43 - you know, violent and blood

26:45 - flying, activity.

26:49 - And at that point, the lead terrorist

26:52 - said, I think it's over.

26:55 - We're not going to make it.

26:56 - We're not, we're not we're not going to get to Washington, DC airspace.

27:00 - Should we should we go into the ground?

27:04 - And they did.

27:06 - So, tremendous courage.

27:10 - I mean, it is,

27:13 - these are questions and

27:16 - and thoughts that just invade my mind, as I'm sure

27:20 - each of those who, read the account.

27:24 - And if you can, you take a look at the after

27:28 - after action report, which the 9/11 Commission had produced.

27:32 - If you really want to understand the sense of commotion

27:36 - and how how, intense it was,

27:40 - you can actually go online and hear, the two jet pilots

27:46 - who were screaming up the Atlantic coast toward New York City airspace.

27:51 - They were dispatch sitting there so quickly

27:54 - that they reached, another ad officer at Fort Drum in New York.

28:00 - And you hear you hear them saying.

28:04 - What do we do when if we see this plane?

28:09 - They were not armed.

28:12 - We, they were prepared to ram the plane.

28:17 - But we had no protocol.

28:19 - Remember, one of the real,

28:22 - alarming discoveries.

28:24 - And it's not the case now because at this very moment,

28:29 - the sense of vigilance and interoperability between

28:32 - civilian assets and military assets

28:35 - as far as this airspace and security is high,

28:39 - that there is no there, no planning for it, no anticipation of it.

28:44 - In fact, the people at Fort Drum believed that it was,

28:50 - a, unexpected, tabletop exercise.

28:55 - And that was the beginning of it.

28:57 - And thus this contact by the pilots.

29:00 - So, in that regard, the country was not prepared.

29:05 - And, that is something you can listen to yourself online.

29:09 - So, quite a day.

29:11 - Quite a morning.

29:13 - And, all of these, crashes occurred by 1003

29:18 - and finish that day, relative to the families.

29:22 - It will be, during

29:26 - the commemoration, the 25th commemoration is coming up.

29:30 - I don't think the families referred to it as an anniversary at all.

29:34 - In their mind, an anniversary is your wedding anniversary.

29:37 - The birth of your kids?

29:39 - They're not using those terms.

29:40 - It's a commemoration.

29:42 - And they will be there. Not all.

29:45 - I don't think some at this point of their life.

29:47 - And I stay up with the number of them, have the the capacity

29:51 - and the stomach to, to to to deal with it.

29:54 - But I can tell you this,

29:57 - they are strong in their own right, especially, my friend Debbie.

30:00 - Boris, who lost the youngest.

30:02 - The youngest passenger was her daughter.

30:04 - So she will be there.

30:06 - It will be important for them to be together, to see each other,

30:10 - to reflect and to bring kids and grandkids and say,

30:13 - this is where your loved one, your uncle or your aunt might have perished.

30:17 - It means a lot that they can be there

30:21 - just to reflect and in their own family, with their own family.

30:26 - Sentiments describe what occurred.

30:29 - I understand that point

30:32 - is, it's it's absolutely amazing

30:34 - to me as I look back and I want to finish with this,

30:37 - how the the people of Somerset County,

30:42 - you want to mention something that's going to occur on September 8th

30:44 - that Francine and Chip are going to to guide as far as the panel,

30:48 - the, the the inspired

30:51 - reaction and effort of so many people in the Somerset Cambria

30:57 - area, Western PA from Pittsburgh on down even points north.

31:03 - Came to the site and stayed there

31:06 - and really led to what they, what was an informal group of ambassadors.

31:10 - And anyone been there?

31:12 - A year or two after 911, 2001?

31:17 - You know, it was some years before the national memorial took shape

31:21 - and, and was to be funded by the federal government

31:24 - and a lot of the assistance and the guidance and the storytelling,

31:28 - you know, the living history aspect of,

31:32 - helping Americans and Pennsylvanians remember what occurred here,

31:36 - what was carried forward by these folks,

31:40 - regular volunteer residents, and,

31:44 - they, will be they should be recognized.

31:49 - And I can tell you that

31:51 - they have never forgotten.

31:53 - For example, then I'll move to a close here.

31:55 - They have never forgotten when, they,

32:02 - busses,

32:03 - the families on the busses were headed to the crash site for the first time.

32:08 - And it was, you can imagine.

32:11 - I mean, I really must say

32:15 - that one doesn't know overarching grief

32:18 - and what it does to people until you are in their company.

32:22 - Do you realize it was so sudden?

32:26 - And the end of their loved one's life.

32:29 - But they've never forgotten the the attention,

32:33 - the effort, the signs, the support.

32:35 - The hugs they got,

32:38 - and received from the people of that area

32:42 - to me, it's a real revelation

32:45 - and a point of uplifting,

32:48 - an uplifting memory that they gave of themselves.

32:52 - That way.

32:52 - And when the busses were leaving Seven Springs and route

32:55 - to the to the crash site, the state police were at full salute.

33:00 - And these are the kinds of behaviors,

33:04 - and actions that that are precious to them.

33:09 - So in that regard,

33:12 - Pennsylvania acquitted itself so well to the extent that they could

33:16 - because no one was going to bring back their loved one.

33:19 - But we could respond, in a way

33:23 - that was, impressive and mechanical and operational.

33:27 - And that's investigatory sense.

33:30 - But also, on an a sensitive,

33:35 - way, providing comfort and some of the support

33:40 - that we, should provide because many, many children

33:43 - did arrive to and just was a bit of a surprise for us.

33:47 - I mean, we there is an annex in the in the emergency response,

33:51 - platform in Pennsylvania for,

33:54 - caring for, survivors, when this happens

33:58 - and, much of it kind of adult centered.

34:01 - And we had so many children.

34:04 - And that's why I want to,

34:05 - I want to acknowledge, the participation of Doctor Glenn Kushner.

34:08 - But on September 8th, Glenn was a, physician,

34:13 - psychiatrist, accomplished, greatly respected, and had to turn on the dime

34:19 - because we had probably 50 children, that, at varying ages,

34:25 - that had had dealing with

34:28 - just the impact of losing a loved one.

34:31 - So in that regard, on on September 8th, from 630 to 8 p.m.

34:37 - at Shanksville High School.

34:38 - And I know that those of us are going to participate and perhaps

34:42 - Christine can talk about it for a second.

34:44 - It is a chance.

34:45 - I it's a little bit different,

34:48 - in terms of program purpose and what's occurred out there in the past.

34:52 - I mean, all all that what will happen is immensely

34:55 - important and and, essential.

34:58 - As far as, demonstrating and showing

35:01 - respect to the families, particularly on September 11th.

35:05 - But on September 8th, we're going to take time out to,

35:10 - talk about

35:11 - and reflect on this kind of effort.

35:15 - Regular citizens, good.

35:17 - Vineland, Pennsylvania volunteers stepping up, to be supportive of the families.

35:22 - So in that regard, I think it'll be a special experience.

35:27 - I know for me, I'm looking forward to it because it's,

35:30 - much different, and essentially positive

35:34 - and supportive of humanity compared to all that we had to endure.

35:39 - Once that plane hit the ground and we found out that

35:43 - that there was no, there would be only a recovery operation.

35:47 - So in that regard,

35:49 - it'll be a, I think, a special gathering at Shanksville High School.

35:53 - So, Francine, I'm happy to,

36:10 - Do you believe

36:10 - the current administration is prepared to stop a similar attack? Now?

36:15 - Yes. Governor, are you satisfied that the direct supporters and enablers

36:22 - of the hijacking have been identified and brought to justice?

36:27 - A, no.

36:28 - With an asterisk.

36:31 - Khalid Sheikh Mohammed,

36:36 - It's just puzzling to me what happened.

36:39 - As far as, the,

36:43 - a deal that has blood

36:46 - on its hands, to for someone who

36:52 - point blank said

36:54 - I'm the engineer.

36:57 - I recruited the pilots.

36:59 - I asked Obi Al to fund it.

37:01 - I talked to him 16 months before 911, 2001.

37:05 - In my mind, I think it was,

37:10 - I remember there were a number of administrations and even one that was

37:14 - of the mind to,

37:18 - hold the prosecution and the trial in Manhattan.

37:23 - Now that, fizzled.

37:26 - And in my mind, it was it was the right decision,

37:29 - relative to, prosecuting the terrorist.

37:33 - So, in my mind, I mean, it's done now,

37:39 - and he will sit

37:42 - in Colorado and, you know, perhaps atone for his sins.

37:46 - I, I think he's just an evil person.

37:51 - And so in that regard.

37:56 - We've done the job.

37:59 - I feel like we missed on

38:01 - on the prosecutorial level.

38:05 - Do you think enough attention is being paid to preventing

38:07 - another September 11th and increasing America's,

38:10 - superpower influence abroad?

38:13 - I, I do feel,

38:16 - my assessment,

38:18 - whether at the federal level and this, this,

38:23 - over many administrations,

38:26 - I think our sense of vigilance

38:28 - and preparedness, is high.

38:32 - And in terms of,

38:36 - a hard assets response, a military response,

38:41 - I think, it seems to me that,

38:44 - our current fight

38:48 - with Iran, for the moment, putting aside, you know, the many,

38:54 - geopolitical tentacles of it,

38:56 - we don't have the time for me to elaborate there.

38:58 - And you don't want me to, I'd be happy to, but this isn't the place.

39:03 - I would say that,

39:07 - we have to deal with Iran

39:10 - now, and I believe that we are, you know, there's a term in the

39:14 - in the commercial world called, OEM, an original equipment manufacturer.

39:19 - You probably know it whether you're in the commercial world

39:22 - where world or not.

39:25 - Iran is the OEM of many, many,

39:31 - militant and terroristic weapons,

39:36 - around the world

39:38 - and need to be stopped.

39:42 - So I think we're coming down to it,

39:45 - and it's about time.

39:48 - The events of 911 brought out an enormous amount of American,

39:51 - because I think there's also I don't want to it's

39:54 - not only about hard power to use kind of a the DC terms.

39:58 - There's also something called smart power.

40:02 - And this is where I

40:03 - don't completely see, you know, the,

40:08 - you know, the, the president's outlook, on, on

40:13 - the elimination of, of important,

40:16 - efforts overseas

40:19 - in terms of international relationships and some call it soft power.

40:24 - You know, that that is

40:26 - there are examples of smart power where, in my mind,

40:31 - to oversimplify, we keep the bad guys over there,

40:36 - and out of our country.

40:38 - So, you know, the reduction in that

40:41 - realm over the last couple of years concerns me.

40:45 - And there's a bit of a fallacy out there,

40:49 - you know, that, that this country, through its federal government spends,

40:54 - an unaccountable way, billions and billions of dollars.

40:58 - It's just not true.

40:59 - Less than 1% of what the federal government expends

41:03 - in terms of international relationships and foreign policy

41:07 - and state Department operations, ambassadorial operations.

41:11 - It's less than 1%.

41:12 - I do think that it's, regardless of who's in the white House,

41:18 - a and, and effective use of taxpayer funds and should continue.

41:22 - But all that's part of what we refer to as smart power.

41:26 - I mean, think about it.

41:27 - I listened to an interview the other day of,

41:31 - the former president of Afghanistan,

41:34 - who the Taliban took out.

41:37 - And when he says that, at the age of 12,

41:41 - no female in Afghanistan can avail themselves of education.

41:46 - That is just ripe with the opportunity for the Taliban

41:50 - just to continue, the,

41:54 - the, their terroristic ways,

41:58 - and that that is the case in Afghanistan right now.

42:01 - In fact, I can remember the gentleman who just finished up,

42:05 - who passed away, the senator, from North or South Carolina.

42:11 - He he was noted to say, the most alarming,

42:17 - look and picture

42:20 - in a place like Afghanistan or,

42:22 - Indonesia is a young girl with a book in her hand

42:27 - provided by the United States.

42:31 - As in, were fostering

42:31 - education and a comfort with democracy.

42:35 - And it should be open to all, regardless of gender.

42:38 - But that kind of that kind of,

42:41 - condition and atmosphere in those countries allows,

42:45 - the recruitment of American hating jihadi terrorists to continue.

42:51 - In that regard, smart power is a is a remedy for that.

42:57 - The events of 911 brought out

42:59 - an enormous amount of American pride, even though it was a tragic event.

43:02 - Do you have any thoughts on something positive that could happen

43:05 - to have the same effect on our country?

43:09 - That's I haven't faced that one before.

43:14 - Yeah.

43:14 - I think, I think we can agree I my read is the last time

43:19 - the country was truly together was, was in the years after that

43:23 - after 2001 and.

43:27 - Yeah that that good.

43:28 - Well, to, to a great extent has expired.

43:34 - So I don't think I'm going to answer, I don't think

43:38 - I have a good answer for you.

43:41 - I think some things have to change,

43:43 - relative to, the, leadership that we,

43:49 - should expect from those,

43:51 - on the national scene in Washington, DC.

43:57 - I think

43:58 - if I might, I feel like part of part of my obligation.

44:01 - And then we're going to finish up is, is this that,

44:06 - not forgetting, is important,

44:10 - as far as that translating to being financially supportive

44:15 - of what we got to do for an effective military,

44:19 - and the effective use of smart power and being comfortable with it

44:24 - and letting your members of Congress know, and those in the Senate,

44:29 - that this is the smart way to comport ourselves around the world. So,

44:36 - And we have to realize that, you know, evil

44:40 - is I, I came across a very interesting piece

44:44 - by an elder French essayist,

44:48 - and it's come as evil, shrewdest trick

44:51 - is that over time, it convinces is that it doesn't exist.

44:59 - It does exist.

45:00 - The reality is, there are those who hate our way of life

45:03 - who resent that you can get your daughter educated.

45:05 - They want to fight it.

45:07 - They they're motivated to fight your way of life.

45:10 - KSM has said this again and again and again.

45:14 - And he is.

45:15 - He was the point of the spear.

45:17 - Thank God.

45:18 - He's he's, behind bars.

45:23 - Is there an aspect to 911 that has not been reported

45:26 - that you think should be publicized 25 years later?

45:35 - I think we can expect the airlines,

45:37 - and TSA to do their job, and I and I, I, I appreciate what they do.

45:42 - So that's got to continue.

45:44 - I'm going to squeeze in 1 or 2 political questions before I run out of time.

45:47 - What should the GOP focus on to recover trust heading into the midterms?

45:55 - That a gasoline has to drop to $3.75.

46:03 - But,

46:05 - but yeah, I mean, the.

46:10 - I think we all know that affordability is, you know,

46:13 - whether you're involved in, you know, this town or DC,

46:17 - you feel for Americans

46:20 - who are paying more for groceries and,

46:24 - you know, as I've said many times, the most important poll in our life

46:28 - is when you go past that service station and you see that

46:32 - a gallon of outlet of gasoline is for $4.21.

46:36 - So in that regard, I think,

46:41 - gumption,

46:43 - and at least on the federal level, to deal with some of the big issues.

46:48 - I mean, this is, you know, what's the what's the debt now?

46:51 - 40 trillion.

46:54 - 40 trillion.

46:57 - And, I'm a big believer in it relative to connecting with

47:02 - and persuading folks, especially those with and younger families.

47:06 - That we've got to deal with that.

47:10 - I mean, we're probably only seven years away from a Social Security payment

47:14 - that you might be enjoying right now going to be dropped by 20%.

47:19 - That that seems likely.

47:21 - I mean, they've got to that that that has to be addressed.

47:25 - I don't know if that's going to happen yet.

47:28 - When you, we've got a couple of grandchildren and.

47:32 - I'm not going to whisper to them, oh, your mortgage payment could be,

47:36 - would be, 1% lower if we didn't have a $40 trillion national debt.

47:42 - But they are.

47:43 - But but when they go to buy a home, they are competing

47:46 - with the federal government

47:48 - to land that mortgage.

47:51 - It is higher because of a $40 trillion national debt.

47:55 - So I think, Christine, aside

47:58 - from public policy efforts by those in the House and the Senate, is,

48:02 - I think it's important for America's economic literacy to grow.

48:07 - And, you know, part of it is,

48:09 - I think having some backbone and making some tough decisions

48:14 - as far as at least relative to the national debt

48:17 - and, wow, this is meant to be a not a Partizan observation.

48:22 - I mean, I think it's pretty clear that probably a third of that $40 trillion

48:26 - has been originated by, the Trump White House and the Biden White House.

48:33 - Is Josh Shapiro an acceptable

48:35 - presidential nominee for Democrats in 2028?

48:39 - That's not that's not a decision for me.

48:43 - I, I think that's not a decision for me.

48:46 - I see Josh

48:51 - as a hardworking governor.

48:57 - Would you accept an endorsement from U.S.

48:59 - Senator John Fetterman?

49:03 - For a reservation at a restaurant?

49:11 - He would have no reason to endorse me.

49:14 - We'd like to thank Governor Schweitzer and wish him well.

49:16 - We have some mementos for him. Thank you.

49:19 - These are compliments of the World Affairs Council

49:22 - of Harrisburg, PCN and the Pennsylvania Press Club.

49:25 - In closing, we want to thank you for being with us.

49:27 - Our next luncheon is Monday, September 28th.

49:30 - Our guests will be Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman.

49:32 - For scheduling information, visit our website at Press club.org.

49:36 - Thank you.

49:37 - Thanks everyone. Speaker.