911后的第九天，9月20号，布什总统在国会联席会议上发表了对国会和美国人民的讲话。在一大段开场白后，他第一个感谢的是国会: 我感谢国会在这个如此重要时刻的领导力。(I thank the Congress for its leadership at such an important time.)
整个美国都被在灾难发生后的当晚看到共和党和民主党联合一起站在国会大厦的台阶上高唱"上帝保佑美国"的场景所感动了。(All of America was touched on the evening of the tragedy to see Republicans and Democrats joined together on the steps of this Capitol singing "God Bless America.")
并且你们做的比唱的多。你们的行动是拿出了四百个亿来重建我们的社区和满足我们军队的需要。国会发言人Hastert, 少数党领袖Gephardt, 多数党领袖Daschle和参议员Lott, 我谢谢你们的友谊，你们的领导力和你们为我们国家的服务。(And you did more than sing. You acted, by delivering $40 billion to rebuild our communities and meet the needs of our military. Speaker Hastert, Minority Leader Gephardt, Majority Leader Daschle and Senator Lott, I thank you for your friendship, for your leadership and for your service to our country.)
掌声(APPLAUSE)
我还要代表美国人民感谢世界的倾力支持。(And on behalf of the American people, I thank the world for its outpouring of support.)
美国绝不会忘记我们的国歌响彻在白金汉宫，在巴黎的街头，和在柏林勃兰登堡门。(America will never forget the sounds of our national anthem playing at Buckingham Palace, on the streets of Paris and at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate.)
我们将不会忘记韩国的小朋友们聚集在首尔我们大使馆外面祈祷，也不会忘记开罗的一个清真寺里提供的同情的祈祷。(We will not forget South Korean children gathering to pray outside our embassy in Seoul, or the prayers of sympathy offered at a mosque in Cairo.)
我们将不会忘记在澳大利亚，非洲和拉丁美洲进行的默哀和几天的哀悼。(We will not forget moments of silence and days of mourning in Australia and Africa and Latin America.)
我们更不会忘记那些来自其他80个国家跟我们的同胞一起牺牲的公民们。数十个巴基斯坦人，130多个以色列人，250多个印度公民，来自萨尔瓦多，伊朗，墨西哥和日本的男人们和女人们，还有好几百英国公民。(Nor will we forget the citizens of 80 other nations who died with our own. Dozens of Pakistanis, more than 130 Israelis, more than 250 citizens of India, men and women from El Salvador, Iran, Mexico and Japan, and hundreds of British citizens.)
美国没有比像英国这样更真诚的朋友。(America has no truer friend than Great Britain.)
鼓掌 (APPLAUSE)
我们再一次为了一个伟大的事业联合在一起，我很荣幸英国首相飞越海峡来显示他与美国的团结一致。谢谢你的光临，朋友。(Once again, we are joined together in a great cause. I'm so honored the British prime minister had crossed an ocean to show his unity with America. Thank you for coming, friend.)
鼓掌(APPLAUSE)
随后，布什总统开始说911恐怖袭击，说到美国人都在问:"谁袭击了我们的国家" (Americans are asking, "Who attacked our country?") 然后说到基地组织，本拉登，塔利班。在详细说完这些之后，布什总统接着说:
今天晚上我也想直接对遍及世界的穆斯林说。我们尊重你们的信仰。它被数百万美国人和数百万被美国称为朋友的国家里的人所信奉。它的教义是好的和和平的，而那些犯下恶行的是以真主的名义亵渎真主之名。(I also want to speak tonight directly to Muslims throughout the world. We respect your faith. It's practiced freely by many millions of Americans and by millions more in countries that America counts as friends. Its teachings are good and peaceful, and those who commit evil in the name of Allah blaspheme the name of Allah.)
回顾19年前布什总统911后在国会的讲话，我们依然能感受到他带给美国人民的感谢，团结，包容，和自信。而他通篇的讲话里完全没提及自己在这9天里做了那些了不起的事。重温19年前布什总统的讲话，就很好理解上周末他发布的一个呼吁团结，应对新冠的短视频。视频的最后，他说: 我们不是党派的斗士。我们是人类，在上帝的眼里，我们同样脆弱，同样精彩。我们兴衰与共。我们决心崛起。上帝保佑你们。(we are not partisan combatants. We're human beings, equally vulnerable and equally wonderful in the sight of God. We rise or fall together. And we're determined to rise. God bless you all.) 视频中还有几个中国青少年舞龙的画面，耐人寻味。请看下面的视频。
