South tower, 9 37 flight 77 when it struck the pentagon, 9 59 when the South Tower fell and then at a little after 10 03 when Flight 93 crashed near shanksville, pennsylvania, the last observance with the fall of the North Tower at 10 28 a. M. Remembering what few of us can ever forget. Welcome, everybody, im Neil Cavuto and continuing the Fox Coverage of the horror of that day and what they are making of this day. Well be monitoring all developments here about you weve got you covered with some of the names that made that day such a unique one and led us through it. Weve got George Pataki here, the governor of New York when the towers went down. Where was he then at the moment . Because we certainly know what he did afterwards. Well ask him, hes here. Well also talk to Jim Gilmore, the governor of virginia when flight 77 hit the pentagon. What was on his mind and all of a sudden the concern that this was now a nationwide terror event. And Jay Johnson, could he have known that some day he was going to become a Homeland Security Chief taking over responsibility for keeping americans safe, but expose the things you and i probably would not want to be exposed to. And then theres Dick Grasso, the chairman. New York Stock exchange. When did he decide to stop trading that day in it wouldnt resume for close to another week and what happened and what lessons we learned when it finally did happen and ray kelly, who could soon face the challenge at this time of, well, protecting this city. What went on that day that maybe prepared him for the days that he would be running the same new York City Police Department. So much to grasp and so much to handle. Lets begin with the guy who was on the ground among the first. Eric shawn, 20 years ago today, he was witnessing it firsthand, 20 years later hes looking at a very different world. Eric. Good morning, neil. Well said, thank you. 20 years have gone by, but it really seems as if it has not been one more day. Im reminded that the sky this morning is just so blue, we call it that September 11 Blue when the first plane, american Airlines Flight flew over my head and banked to the right before it slammed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center and right now ongoing here at Ground Zero, the familiar scenario of reading of the names. Weve had a Very East Motional Ceremony this morning that continues and perhaps more painful because of this Anniversary Mark of one generation and perhaps we know now that the taliban have retaken afghanistan. As usual, the names started to be read this morning of the 2,753 people so tragedy perished. 20 years feels like an eternity, and still feels like yesterday. Until we meet again, my love, rest in peace. Even after a generation, the emotion endures. As usual, there were the four moments of Silence Marking when the two airplanes hit both towers and of course, when those towers, the gleaming World Trade Center towers then fell to the ground. They were reminded and remembered the fallen heroes here, those who raced into the towers to help others, the day of tears and Sorrow And Tragedy that still seem so real. President biden attended along with first lady, as well as president clinton, mrs. Clinton, President Obama and michelle. Three President S paying tribute to those killed here, who gave their all in a Terror Strike at the very soul of our nation. People are talking about it more and more and it happens every year at this time and the memories come out and you start thinking for me personally, its about the loss. Its about the people we lost that day and have lost since then to illness and i think about the amazing sacrifice the bravery. And the losses tragically continue. More people have died from the toxic dust at the World Trade Center than were killed on that day. The tally, 4,627 additional names who have succumbed to a variety of ailments. 60 types of cancer have been diagnosed among those who responded or were here in Lower Manhattan that day. 24,000 Cancer Cases of Thyroid Cancer and prostate, and copd, asthma, including this reporter, but it was a day for the Loved Ones, those remembering their fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, aunts and uncles who were honored and remembered. Cassie, we have never gotten over about we have gotten on with it. Weve tried to live life fully each day in your Love And Companionship as a sister continues to inspire us and to inspire me. And tonight at sunset, there will be the evocative and emotional tribute in light, those are the two piercing beams that reach up into the heavens into the evening that are so reminiscent and evoke the vanished twin towers and there are thousands of ceremonies and remembrances in our nation today. Its a reminder of the cost and what we lost, so much on this day 20 years ago and sadly, the threat that still exists. Neil. Neil eric, thank you very much, my friend, Eric Shawn at Ground Zero as it used to be called. And they still actually call it that, but its a very different Ground Zero, and a refurbished and beautiful one. I want to take you to shanksville, the vicepresident is making remarks at a ceremony ceremony. We had differences of upon in 2001 as we do in 2021. And, i believe, that in america our diversity is our strength. At the same time we saw after 9 11 how fear can be used to sow division in our nation. As sikh and muslim americans were targeted because of how they looked or how they worshipped, but we also saw what happens when so many americans in the spirit of our nation stand in solidarity with all people and their fellow american, with those who experience violence and discrimination, when we stand together. And looking back, we remember the vast majority of americans were unified in purpose to help families heal, to help communities recover, to defend our nation and to keep us safe. In a time of outright terror we turned toward Each Other. In the face of a stranger, we saw a neighbor and a friend. That time reminded us the significance and the strength of our unity as americans. And that it is possible in america. So moments from now we will leave this hallowed place, still carrying with us the pain of this loss, this tremendous loss and still the future will continue to unfold. We will face new challenges, challenges that we could not have seen 20 years ago. We will seize opportunities that were at one time unimaginable and we know that what lies ahead is not certain, it is never certain, it has never been. But i know this, if we do the hard work of working together as americans, if we remain united in purpose, we will be prepared for whatever comes next. The 40 passengers and crew members of Flight 93, as we all know, they didnt know Each Other, most of them didnt know Each Other. They were different people from different places. They were on that particular flight for different reasons. But they did not focus on what may separate us. No, they focused on what we all share. On the humanity we all share. In a matter of minutes in the most dire of circumstances the 40 responded as one. They fought for their own lives and to save the lives of countless others at our nations capital. After today, it is my Hope And Prayer that we continue to honor their courage, their conviction, with our own. That we honor their unity by strengthening our common bonds, by strengthening our global partnerships, and by always living out our highest ideals. This work will not be easy, it never has been. And it will take All Of Us believing in who we are as a nation. And it will take All Of Us going forth to work together. Thank you all, may god bless you and may god bless america. Thank you. [applause] vicepresident Kamala Harris addressing a Crowd Gathering in shanksville, pennsylvania of course where Flight 93 crashed, the passengers on that Plane Overtaking it, ultimately crashing into shanksville, but it was bound for, we dont know for sure, maybe the White House, the capitol, it didnt get there, all 40 On Board. And we look to the reading of the names close to 3,000 of them, it can take hours, it gives you an idea the Gravity And Enormity of the loss. And doesnt my next guest know it, governor George Pataki, the threeterm governor, and he was keen at the time rebuilding and making this a promising spot where we could think and reflect and New York could thrive. And its that and then tomorrow now. Governor, thank you for being here. Thank you, neil. This is a very different scene from 20 years ago, its the understatement of the century, but could you have envisioned the Rebuilding And Everything thats happening here since . Oh, absolutely. I mean, thats what we had to do, but we were dealing with the horror of the moment and we had to do everything we could to save every life and to make New York as safe as possible, but at the same time we had to look forward and we had to look forward with confidence and i knew down here we had to do at least two things, honor those who died and the memory of those who died in the way that future generations would understand the magnitude of the loss and yet, rebuild in a way that would inspire not just New York, but america, and weve done that and that was the vision that we had and im very proud today, weve accomplished that vision. Neil governor, the years you and i, you as governor and then former governor, which each successive anniversary, wed be at various points around the area and seemed to take forever, you know, after after the horror that and looking for hope for survivors, perhaps a few, and then the rebuilding, and then the controversy over what you build and how you memorialize this event and you were fighting for the Freedom Tower itself. Tell me a little about that. Well, there were those who didnt want it. Those who didnt want us to build tall because right, i remember that. And it was very controversial. Neil i remember they had a series of smaller buildings, right. Smaller buildings and we didnt have the memorial that was absolutely essential, but we put together a tremendous Master Site Plan and we fought every day to make sure that that happened. And i look behind us now and the memorial, i think, is one that inspires people and one of the things we wanted to do is people who werent born on September 11th, who werent born 20 years ago, kids could come here and understand the magnitude of the loss and the courage of the response, and yet, weem people could come and see that New York has risen to new heights and the Freedom Tower did that. The vision was clear and. Neil it was a long, long time, enormous back and forth and i remember just deciding what to build, where to build it, how close the buildings would be together. And you know, it was incredible, but now its done. Its startling and this area, though even before the attacks, when you think about it, governor, downtown New York was not the first place people went. It was a place for business, commerce and all that. But now its a thriving, not only place for tourists, but for the arts and, now, obviously the restaurants that have popped up and hotels. Its changed completely. It has. That was part of the vision. Lower manhattan was the financial center. 6 00 at Night Everybody was out. Neil thats right. And we wanted to do, put back what was there, but better and part of that was making this a 24hour Community and now its a 24hour Community and you said it was hard. It was brutal. And the criticism was always there. But i always thought, the important thing was not to do it quickly, but to do it right. And now 20 years later, i look back and i think, we did it right. Neil you did it right indeed. Governor, thank you, very very much. An interesting little footnote on the Freedom Tower and youve heard a great deal about it, it is now New Yorks tallest building. Remember the World Trade Center was known, both towers were the tallest before that, for a brief while the Empire State Building held that honor and since slipped down with the skyscrapers at midtown and Freedom Tower 1,776 feet tall. What does it sound like to you. 1776. All right. And i want to go to Peter Doocy right now at the White House. The president has already been here in downtown New York and hes going to the pentagon and also going out to shanksville, pennsylvania, but hes not saying anything on these visits. He had a prerecorded remarks Last Night, but i believe hes leaving it at that, peter . Yes, neil. Right now the president is aboard Air Force one from New York heading to commemoration in shanksville, pennsylvania. Thats going to be the next place that we see him. He moves on to the pentagon afterwards and he is not expected to deliver any formal remarks at any point today. This is the first time he has attended three events of any kind in three different states on the same day since he became the president , and he is someone who often talks at solemn events about his own personal loss as a way to try to connect with people who are hurting, who are feeling grief, but today were not going to hear that. He did put out that Sixplus Video Last Night where he spoke about September 11th and he called for national unity, but the White House wants to leave it at that today. We know that he is standing side by side with some other President S today. He already was with President Obama and clinton. He is expected to Cross Paths with President Bush when he is in pennsylvania. Bidens own 9 11 story is unique, but its very joe biden. He was On Board an Amtrak Train making his daily commute from wilmington, delaware to the White House when he go the he got a call from his wife and informed him what happened and tried to get into the capitol shortly after arriving at Union Station and looking at the black smoke at the pentagon over the Potomac River and Security Officers wouldnt let him and he later went on Tv Congress for congress to come back into session and there were security issues late that morning as we all remember and he wrote in his book about getting a call from President Bush, who was on Air Force one at points headed for points unknown at the time, and bush, biden says, was thanking him for projecting a tone of calm from a senior Leadership Position in washington, something that the president was not able to do from the airplane. We expect to see the president a few times today we dont think were going to hear from him. But this is the first September 11th that he has marked as the president and he is visiting everywhere that he can in a day. Full day for the president , neil. Neil peter, thank you very much for that. I want to go back to the reading. Names, 2, 753 killed in New York, 184 at the pentagon, 40 in shanksville, pennsylvania. And each and every one of them, and prayer names are read as well as those that we lost in the 1993 World Trade Center attack. Lets listen in. [reading of names] [reading of names] and my beloved husband, beautiful shaun, were with you through the eyes of your incredible daughter and all around us, forever and eternal. All right, continuing with this very sad, very eloquent reading of the names. This has become an annual event here and Family Members and those very close to those who lost their lives here have never given up on that and have demanded that and the city has been more than receptive to continue doing that. Of course, this whole area, 20 years ago was Rubble And Smoke and rescue operations were underway. They would prove futile because ultimately a little more than a dozen were taken from the rubble. A couple of days later on the 13th that President Bush came to check things out. Lets just say at that time and with our coverage, it was a memorable moment. There were a lot of people recommending against George Bush being there, that the area is not entirely secure, there are some buildings whose foundations are in question, still concerned about Followup Terrorist movements, but from all sources, the President Said, you know, i dont care. Im going to go there. The president is about to speak to the troops there via bull horn. Cant go any louder. I can hear you [cheering] i can hear you, the rest of the world hears you and the people and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear All Of Us soon. [cheers and applause] you know, no matter how many times i hear that, play that im reminded of the fact that it was a few feet from where im sitting right now and im honored to be sitting next to the former department of Homeland Security Jay Johnson served that roll in the Obama Administration and you might recall that Homeland Security was set up to combine our various departments and operations in charge of keeping us safe and coordinate it all, but the stuff that comes across, the Homeland Securitys desk and sometimes can be pretty scary, and doesnt Jay Johnson know that. Kind enough to join us today. Secretary, thank you for joining us today. Thank you, neil. Neil and every time we talk, could something like this happen again . Could something like this happen again . Neil, i believe through our efforts over the last 20 years through multiple administrations, bush, obama, trump and now biden, we are safer when it comes to the threat of a large scale 9 11 Type Attack by a foreign Terrorist Organization. I used to tell my people at Homeland Security, weve got to stay One Step Ahead of the bad guys. Weve got It Plan for the next attack not the last attack. The Terrorist Threat to our homeland has evolved the last 20 years, we went from what we refer to as foreign directed attacks, where foreign organization directs an attack to a foreign inspired attack, where a foreign Terrorist Organization will inspire someone who is already here over the internet, and now, as you know, a lot of terrorist Attacks Today are domesticbased. On top of that weve got, of course, Global Warming and as i see it, the threats there are severe weather events on aging infrastructure, the impacts on aging infrastructure. Weve got aging infrastructure just within a couple of blocks of where you and i sit. Neil but the bad guys who might wish us ill, are you any more worried about what went down in afghanistan or the taliban back in charge, that they could provide cover for, even if they werent up to it, for others who might, like they did 20 years ago for alqaeda . I am worried anytime there is a place on this planet that could serve as the Launching Pad for a Terrorist Attack, whether that do you think that afghanistan could . That could be afghanistan, could be horn of africa, it could be yemen, iraq, syria, anyplace where a Terrorist Group can get a foothold, establish a caliphate, recruit, train. Isisk is on the rise now because of the profile of that attack the other week. Neil as you said, it doesnt only have to be isisk, it could be any Number One of a group domestic and otherwise and we talk, mr. Secretary, about attacks that have been stopped since 9 11, but there were many being plotted and planned. Your office saw them, your predecessor saw them, so is it a matter of weeding them out and catching them midterm, do we get lucky, both . A number of things, first of all, youre right. The american people would, i think, be proud of the job that our Law Enforcement, our Homeland Security, our military, our Intelligence Community does to stop something bad from happening before we hear about it in the public at large. But the issue is now when youre dealing with a Terrorist Organization, weve got to be concerned about those who are here who radicalize in secret, who can do a lot of damage and that is why when i was in office, i spent a lot of time trying to build bridges to communities where there may be someone in their midst who is radicalizing in secret. And so the threat to our nation evolved even as we speak 20 years later after 9 11 and so i hope that we never get complacent, were always trying to look One Step Ahead, stay One Step Ahead of the bad guys and anticipate something before it happens. There are a lot of plots that we catch in a very early stage. Neil and a lot of people are always after us, right . We forget the magnitude of hate that, its out there, its palpable, but you know, youve just got to be vigilant. Got to be vigilant. As i was entering Ground Zero this morning, i was heartened to see so many sso, Secret Service agents, all of whom use Today Work to me, at the magnetometers. Neil did they let you in . That would be kind of funny. [laughter] right, if i said i used to be secretary of defense, sure you were, get back of the line. Neil mr. Secretary, very good seeing you. Very nice on a Beautiful Day, much like the day started 20 years ago. Exactly. Neil and secretary Jay Johnson served in the Obama Administration. I want to go right now to a guy who if you think about it, about a year before had the first hint of terror when his ship the u. S. S. Cole was hit by terror bombing, guys who got out to the boat and were able to explode, kill 18 sailors, that was in october of the year 2000 and we know what happened about 11 months later and many say that was a preview to coming attractions. And the Commander Lipo with us right now. Commander, nice to see you. Where do you think we stand, commander 20 years after 9 11 and by extension, 21 years after the u. S. S. Cole . Well, neil, first thank you for having me on on a solemn day like this as we pause to remember those who paid a terrible price for a government that didnt do anything in response to the attack on the u. S. S. Cole. When i look back 20 years ago, 9 11, The One thing i would say is that morning americans didnt care about the status of their stock portfolio. Ne didnt care about the argument with their neighbor, what they cared about that morning, is my family safe . Is my nation safe . When you think about it, neil, National Security, both in the shortterm and the longterm that underpins everything we do as a nation unless we put National Security at the forefront were not going to be able to enjoy some things that we have in the future, our freedom, a robust economy, and a society that hopefully can begin to come together in reflection on this somber day. Neil you know, commander, we lose track of the Terrorist Groups and just, you know, blythely call them terrorists, but there are sects and groups and even as we speak in afghanistan, everybody thinks its the taliban, but theres isisk and other groups. Now that our soldiers are out, is it likely to fester there . Is the possibility of a Home Grown attack more likely . Neil, when you look at it, nature abhors a vacuum. And the that taliban while they truly control afghanistan tear tore territorywise, there are groups that would allow Alqaeda And Isisk to build and use the weapons we left behind and project global terrorism around our countries and others, so consequently, were going to have to be very much on guard because right now, over in afghanistan, were blind. When we pulled out, we pulled out assets and we dont have that critical eyes on to watch the society, the government, the economy and most importantly, those Terrorist Organizations and what they are doing because they are still aiming to attack the united states. Theyre going to work very hard to take down who we are as a nation and what we stand for worldwide. So consequently, i think theres a true danger there and this is where our National Security is going to play into it. Were going to have to be more vigilant now than we were on September 10th ten years ago or October 11th years before that. Neil you know, if i could just ask you a final question, i recently had the pleasure of speaking with the cocommission chair, the 9 11 commission chair, the former New Jersey governor, who says that not only could another incident happen, he always wants to make sure, and this is something that was revealed in the 9 11 commission report, that agencies werent talking to one another, the cia would have Information And Wouldnt share with the fbi, the fbi, Vice Versa and that was addressed supposedly after the commissions findings. Are you confident that agents of all sorts are communicating, are in sync, do Share Information about nefarious characters, for example, the commission revealed the cia knew a few of the terrorists in palm beach county, florida were monitored quite closely, but did not share that with the local fbi or Law Enforcement . Neil, thats a great concern. I believe that all of those walls between the agencies came down on September 11th. They worked together on September 11th 12th, and on september 13th, unfortunately, i think those walls began to get built Back Up, because people here in washington d. C. Have this bureaucratic mindset where they want to safeguard their budget and their ability to have power and control the things that theyre given purview over. And i think that while we have a lot of great communication these days, you still have information that is not being shared. People are people, and it goes back to the old saying of familiarity breeds contempt. We havent had an attack in 20 years so lets end The Forever War and pull out and when we did that, thats going to create that vacuum again where each of these agencies may, in fact, get indications and warnings of another attack, of a buildup. Its whether they truly understand what that threat is going to mean here at home that they share that across. And you have a number of people today, neil, theyre very worried about some of the Intelligence Information gatherings programs and i would remind people, we have a constitutional right to privacy in this country. We do not have a constitutional right to anonymity and we should not confuse the two when it comes to gathering information on Terrorist Organizations that may eventually allow them to attack us. I think thats the point that the Chair Tom Kaine said, i get worried when people stop worrying. And thank you for warning us about the dangers many, many years ago, commander of the uss cole, commander lippold. And remembering the 184 killed there at the pentagon 20 years ago, Jennifer Griffin is there with the latest, jennifer. Neil, the weather outside the pentagon is much the same as it was exactly 20 years ago, the chairman of the joint chiefs spoke and channelled much of the anger still felt by so many here today. Our daily lives were paid for with the blood of the fallen on this place at 9 37 on September 11th, 2001. Those ideas were and still are hated by our enemies, the fascists, the nazis, alqaeda, isis, the taliban, authoritarian dictators and tyrants of all kinds. At dawn this morning, here at the pentagon, A Giant American Flag unfurled over the exact spot where the Plane Hit. 184 people killed, 59 On Board american Airlines Flight 77, which took off from Dulles Airport for Los Angeles at 8 20 a. M. Five hijackers overtook the cockpit turning this commercial jet into a missile that struck the West Side of the pentagon near corridor four. Ive spoken to many of the survivors who crawled out on hand and knees through Smoke And Jet fuel. Many of them deployed the next day to the Middle East to begin hunting the attackers and until a few days ago there has been a constant deployment of troops to afghanistan for these past 20 years. Among those Master Sergeant Raymond lopez, a tier one Para Rescueman or pj, now the senior enlisted apologizer to the joint chief and he helped Hamid Karzai into the cell. And to say it affected, i had an i would say affected a lifetime, dont let anybody take your Honor And Pride away for anything you did over the last 20 years, one sentence at The End of the book, would write the whole book. If you know what awaited the country over the next 20 years, few know better than the u. S. Military and their families, exactly 20 years ago at 10 10 a. M. Part of the pentagon collapsed. At 10 53 a. M. , Donald Rumsfeld then Defense Secretary ordered the military to increase the Defcon Readiness and prepare for war. Neil, that war continues today even though there are no u. S. Troops left in afghanistan. Few here believe the war is over, neil. Neil Jennifer Griffin, thank you very, very much. Jennifers been there from the beginning continuing breaking News And Conference insights second to none since. We appreciate that. As jennifer said, its hard to imagine anything like this could happen and look at the coverage of the pentagon itself. Take a look. Individuals who committed these attacks on the people of the united states in New York and at the pentagon located in the state of virginia, sought a decisive strike, one that was designed to remake the world and in the postcold war era. The goal was to prove that the great democracies are not the way of the future. The goal was to in fact, establish a new future based on Tyranny And Force and fear, and which the united states stand as the ultimate Statement And Symbol of the human Freedom And Liberty across the world. Ladies and gentlemen, the people who committed these crimes with those goals in mind have failed. Neil you know, he might have been the first to coin that phrase, the postcold war era, and it was talked about all over the world in light of 9 11 how the theory and the view of war and of terror itself had just been upended. The former governor Jim Gilmore with us right now. Governor, thank you for joining us. Good, thank you, neil, a chance To Be With You and your viewers. Neil you know, you did get it right, sir, when you talked about what our new head think here. It had to be past post cold war, its Russia Or China or whatever, that there was a new, more secretive clandestine enemy, not fighting like Anyone Else and not understood like Anyone Else, and that really continues to this day, if you think about it. It does. I think that the united states needs to be focused, that message on preserving liberty and being the bulwark of liberty in the world. We really are. I finished a tour as ambassador for operational security in europe and im aware of the duality of this. Were focused on the deaths that occurred on 9 11. When i was the governor of virginia and particularly in the pentagon, i visited the pentagon, were focused on the sympathy involving those victims, and the significance of it, the larger significance that youre addressing. But we cant forget, also, the united states is very central in the world and we have a geopolitical responsibility and danger. And we have to be prepared to do all of these things at the same time and it requires a resolution of the american people that i hope we can continue in the days ahead. Neil you know, governor, 20 years ago if you were to poll people right after these attacks, the security, safety, it was, you know, Number One and it stayed that way for a good couple of years. More concerning than a dip in the economy, of when we went back into a slight recession and more importantly than any of that, more important than the debate over jobless claims and accelerating too quickly, safety was the Number One issue. Now it doesnt even crack the top five issues americans are worried about. Does that worry you . It does worry me. Foreign policy is never the Number One thing until it is. And it really worries me right now that the misconduct that weve seen in afghanistan over the last number of weeks increases the danger that we see in both taiwan and ukraine. And i have a great deal of experience with this now because of the work that ive been doing. And i think we have to be prepared to remember the dead, to remember the people who were victims, i went to the pentagon and saw the pentagon while it was still on fire, and to preserve our liberties here, to focus on not only our domestic issues, but also our Foreign Policy issues because america is just not in a position to segment this all and say All Or Nothing and stop and start. The danger is going to be permanent and ongoing. Were resolute people and people dedicate Today Liberty and freedom and we can do these things, but i think we have to keep our eye on the fact that we do have to be focused on the international dangers because theyre very real today, neil. Neil indeed, they are. Governor gilmore, thank you very much for taking the time and we appreciate it. And to the left of your screen youre noticing a familiar scene for those who watch the annual remembrances in downtown New York, the reading of the names, the nearly 3,000 we lost that day. Jack was six months old and michael was three years old when you were murdered. And all we do now is tell them about your past glory days. [reading of names] [reading of names] those are the names and wondering and contrasting as i have. Ive been out here almost every year for anniversaries and recognition of horrible events that transpired 20 years ago including talking to those who made it out safely, remembering some who did not. Take a look. Were making it towards the water and running away from the building and we couldnt run and we have to do whatever you have to do. Just keep moving and every time people would look back, unfortunately, theyd look back and they saw the second Plane Hit which was a very gruesome experience. So theyre running back, trying to get out of there, they look back and see the second Plane Hit and that was quite severe all of a sudden everything is falling out of the sky. Including bodies. You know, its hard to imagine today, especially for young people, including my two teenage boys who were not even born at the time, to fathom that this is more than a historical footnote. I guess as much as people of my generation would look back and study pearl harbor, but when we first got wind of these attacks and these towers had fallen behind me that were there and now the no memory of them, the fear was that Tens Of Thousands, Tens Of Thousands could have lost their lives because each building could have held 80,000 or more workers and that was the lucky part, but again, dont lose sight of the fact that 3,000 did lose their lives. And my next guest came pretty close. I want to stay close to him because he must be a very lucky guy, too. A retired new York City firefighter and survived helping people in the process. Tim, good to see you and honored To Be With You. Yes, sir. Tell me about that day. It started out a Beautiful Day and turned into a horrific day. I with as in 7 World Trade Center when the first plan flew over the roof your of our buildings and hit the North Tower. And not completely unprecedented. Wed had accidents, similar, not that day the various trade centers stormed a bit of a Semi Loop and we know the two big ones. There were seven buildings. Neil right. We went into the lobby, we were not immediately thinking that we were under attack. We thought possibly it was an accident, but certainly when the second Plane Hit we knew, as Chief Burton said to me, we are at war and those are some of the last words i ever heard him say. I was a witness to some of the greatest acts of heroism maybe this country has ever seen. The firefighters and Police Officers knew what they were going into. They spoke to me, my best Friend Terry had don, Chris Blackwell said The Words to me it was bad and dangerous and terry actually said to me, I Love You brother, i may never see you again. But he did he still went in that stairwell and went up. Thats an example of the bravery of the 343 firefighters, the 37 Port Authority Police officers, the 23 new York City Police Officers. Neil incredible. Heroes all. They knew it, but they still did it. And those acts of courage, to me, are the greatest acts of love ive seen in my life. They were able to give up their lives for people they didnt know. Neil well, and ive often said, firefighters, you know, police, Port Authority workers, crazy brave. And i remember vividly the firefighters and others rushing into these buildings, even the second tower when it looked problematic to put it mildly, and all of these other folks rushing out, theyre climbing the stairs and going up and they had to know that this was a Oneway Trip or could be. But they just wanted to get as many people out if possible. And its staggering. They fulfilled the oath they took earlier when they became firefighters and Police Officers, because you say in that oath that youre willing to give up your life for your neighbor. And you just dont know when that what will be called to pass when you tilely fulfill that oath and thats what these heroes did that day and we have to always remember them. We have to recite their names and teach our children about such courageous, brave, Men And Women. Neil did you ever rethink your profession after it . No, i would do the same thing again. Neil i had a feeling youd answer that. Absolutely. Neil every Man And Woman i talked to afterwards that said the exact same thing, tim, you know. My niece and my nephew are both firefighters, carrying on the tradition, even after what happened to me, im very proud of them and what theyve chosen to do with their lives. Neil looking back at it now, god forbid if something like this ever happened again, there was talk about the communications, firefighters couldnt talk about Each Other and various departments couldnt talk with Each Other and i think thats been addressed and corrected, but its easy to play Monday Morning quarterback after a disaster like this. But are we technically up, are you guys technically up and trying to do the unthinkable . I think its better, its almost an unsolvable problem because we all need to be on the same radio if something happens we can help Each Other, so its a very difficult problem to address successfully. Neil when you look back at that day, you talk about the 243 firefighters killed, and most crushed when the building collapsed, but in The End, some of them even risking that and knowing a possibility because they saw the first Tower Collapse and that that was a possibility. Right. Neil they were still, still, looking for people. Did any of them besides The One buddy get back to you to say, this doesnt look good . Well, ill address that were talking about captain Billy Burke and billy was with Pa Disabled Man who was in a wheelchair, and billy knew the North Tower or the South Tower collapsed. He was in the north and he sent his men out, he told he ordered his men to get out of the building, but he stayed with this gentleman in the wheelchair. He knew what was coming, but he stayed there with him. So that is another example of the Courage And Heroism and selflessness of the Police Officers and firefighters that day. Neil tell me a little about what youre trying to sort of pay it forward, 9 11 trail and some of the other things youre doing. Sure, sure. Neil to look after folks . This is part of the mantra never forget, right. And there are three beautiful memorials at each location, but theres a fourth memorial now that were that im on the board of, were trying to get The Word out, its beautiful, its a 9 11 trail and it connects shanksville and the pentagon and the World Trade Center, bicycle path, running, hiking, and what we can do is get out on this trail, get the air in your lungs, on your bicycle, go out with your children and remember all these stories and talk to your kids about them and teach them about all the stories of the innocent people who lost their lives in 2001, for me, after 9 11, music was my thing, music and getting outdoors and i would put on Andrea Bocelli in my ears. Neil you struck knee as a Rolling Stones guy. Dana no, his voice spoke to me. Neil absolutely. Dana and getting out on the trail and thats what im going to do, going out with bocelli in my ears and remember my friends. Neil what do you tell kids . We tell them the whole story, the whole story is the heroes, which we spoke about. The innocent people, and the horror, and im sorry, but its true, there was a lot of suffering, a lot of pain and then we also have to remember, who did this and why they did it to us and thats the whole story, and we cannot forget any of those pieces. Neil youre absolutely right. Thank you for all you do, all you are. Thank you. Neil and a different breed young man, i mean that in the highest way, highest respect. Neil tim brown, trying to pay it forward and help out. There are so many stories like tim and what firefighters and others are trying to do to remember their buddies and to remember all those who lost their lives, whose names are quietly and dutifully reed aloud so all can remember what happened that day. A lot of people forget the enormity of the event and for kids, i always recommend if i can make a cheap push for coming down to downtown New York and seeing the Freedom Tower and seeing the 9 11 museum, it comes alive for you there, and for those of all ages, this isnt just a place to remember the dead. Its a place to remember what their lives were like when they were not dead, and how randomly and suddenly they were taken from us through nofault of their own. Lets remember some of those names being read right now. For their courageous service and sacrifice, you are our real heroes. Thank you. And my brother, bart joseph, i speak for All Of Us who knew and loved bart when i say that 32 years was not enough and 20 years flts like yesterday. We remain forever inspired by his spirit embodied in his favorite quote, life is not measured by the numbers of breaths you take, but by the moments that take your breath away. And a heartfelt thank you from All Of Us to our amazing First Responders and our brave military serviceMen And Women who have kept the rest of us safe from terror on our homeland these past 20 years. May god bless you all. [applause] as we continue to read and hear a lot of the names, one of the things that people forget here is just the sheer loss financially for the families of the victims of 9 11 and they set up at the time a victims Compensation Fund and it was spearheaded by Ken Feinburg who has been popularized a new movie on netflix called work and i caught up with Ken Feinburg on this and how that was orchestrated. Remember, it was not going to be divided evenly among the victims families and those who signed up to be a part of it, but based on what an individual family Members Loss would mean without his or her income in the future. So a firefighter would be treated very differently than a hot Shot Wall Street broker, and Ken Feinburg Ran Into Pressure on that. But to get something going on a Mass Scale unlike anything weve seen in this country. Lets just say he had an uphill battle. The fund was over in december of 2003. That meant that people were First Responders and others, who had latent illnesses, they hadnt manifested yet, cancer, emphysema, other diseases, those diseases didnt be a decade later so congress, i think, correctly, had very little choice, Elementary Fairness that they have the fund, First Responders, 2013, 14, 15, today are now manifesting those illnesses. Neil and Ken Feinburg, of this huge settlement and gone on to same at a number of businesses after disasters, and raised eyebrows, how can you differentiate between the victims and the calamity, but It Set in Motion Something that did expand and did recognize early on that the list of potential victims had to grow, so it went to firefighters and others who were working in this rubble and picking up all sorts of horrific diseases and dying from them and some of the money grew to include them and not all. Enter, nicholas, the attorney and negotiated settlements. Can you tell me how that differentiated. And let me take a moment to offer condolences to the 2,977 people who just didnt lose their lives, but were murdered on 9 11. In terms of the fund, you know, the first fund that Ken Feinburg headed in 20012003 provided compensation for those who had been killed on 9 11 and those who had been seriously injured because the illnesses started, you know, manifesting themselves not long after. We started off with what was called the World Trade Center cough and that soon developed into asthma and other respiratory illnesses. Neil and the magnitude of that wasnt appreciated. Because at the time the epn and others said dont worry, and it turned out to be quite hazardous. Two weeks after 9 11 the epa announced they tested the Air And Air was safe to breathe. Neil i was down here, it didnt feel very safe. It wasnt. My offices are only two blocks away and every day i would get out of the Subway Car and it lingered forever. Months. It went into. Neil how did this get going then . Ken feinburg got it going. He did wonderful work and my partner Mike Block worked with Ken Feinberg in establishing the fund. Now, my firm has been, as you mentioned, General Counsel to the ufa, uniformed Firefighter Association for many years ap my partner Mike Block came to me when the fund opened up we have to do something here. And we ended up doing more than just something, we represented some 362 injured firefighters and families of fallen firefighters. We obtained 260 Million dollars for those families and firefighters for no fee. We did it completely pro bono. We had to give back something to those from whom so much had been taken. And i emphasized The Word taken. They didnt just lose, it was taken from them. And you know, as we hear the names, neil, read and how important that is, we have to remember that there were lives behind those names. Neil absolutely. People who had taken from them seeing the birth of children. Neil thats right. Being present for birthdays, being present for graduations, whether it was kindergarten, or college. They were missed at those graduations and they missed those graduations because of what was taken away from them for one reason, they were americans. And thats why i think its so important when we hear never forget, and we should never forget, we should never forget why they were murdered because they were, what we all are, americans. And we have to honor them beyond the anniversary dates. We have to honor them in our everyday lives. When i think about those 343 firefighters and those 71 Law Enforcement officers who put their lives on the line, who went into those towers to get people out, and some good people out and went back in. Neil yeah, quite a few. And went Back Up those stairs and never to be seen again. Neil you helped them out, nick, and continue to. Thank you for that. Nicholas pappin, attorney. And this is a staggering statistic correct me if im wrong. We talked about the nearly 3,000 victims lost that day. Almost 4,000 more have died since that day helping here and elsewhere and looking through the rescue, dealing through the rubble and thats not counting thousands of soldiers who have lost their lives in various wars in Afghanistan And Iraq so the names and the people we are remembering lost this day and they are very important and we should never forget, nor should we forget those who tried to save them, to tried to find them, who tried to get through the rubble and find hope for this city and beyond, who are gone now as well. To remember them as well. Thats right, neil. [reading of names] [reading of names] [reading of names] and my brother, Firefighter Gregory thomas, Ladder Company 5, greg, we were together 31 years and never went more than 20 days seeing you, i cant believe its 20 years. And my uncle and godfather, youre missed by all and loved by everyone and your memories keeping us laughing, believing, living as if well live 100 years and tomorrow. We love and miss you, god bless america. [reading of names] to continue reading of the names here. You know, its such a tragic time and i know it sound redundant talking about this, but when you think of those lost here and those who fought to go back and those who paused this year, you know, the other 3900 Men And Women who were sickened Cleaning Up and digging through the rubble here, were talking well over 11,000 Human Beings Senselessly Snuffed out in what started as an attack on american soil by those who wished to cut us down not only physically, but financially. I can tell you, on the financial side because well never get over the loss of these great Human Beings and all they sacrificed, but on the financial side and thinking they would bury us and that would be The End of capitalism, that didnt happen. We were shaken, but afterwards stirred and well get to that with the man around the New York Stock exchange at the time. Remember trading would not resume for about another week, man, oh, man, did the selling go nuts, but didnt last very long and one of the worlds quickest Bear Markets represented a turnaround and that had much to do with the people who lost their lives would probably hope that we would Go On with hours and so would everything shortly. And lets go out to Bryan Llenas in shanksville, pennsylvania, how theyre remembering heroes of their own, bryan. Good afternoon, this is the Flight 93 national memorial. The deamble here is a common field one day, a field of honor forever. This is where 33 passengers and seven crew members on united Flight 93 died courageously fighting back against the hijackers, and a Bell Rung for every person who died. Listen. [bell ringing] family and friends read the names of their Loved Ones, mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, grandparents who died on that day, both former president george w. Bush and vicepresident Kamala Harris spoke about the courage in unity displayed. These americans were brave, strong and united in ways that shocked the terrorists. But should not surprise any of us. This is a nation we know. On the days that followed September 11th, 2001, we were all reminded that unity is possible in america. Vicepresident harris laid a wreath down at the 17ton Sandstone Marker where it went down. Its a holy site reserved for the families and the families remember the heroism displayed by those on that flight, neil. Neil Bryan Llenas, thank you very much for that. Back in New York where obviously this was the core of the attack, bet theyre 2700 people lost their lives, largely the towers behind me. Of course, theyre no longer there and any remembrance of that is gone and the pools that represent the foundations of both of those towers, the north and South Tower and a stunning Freedom Tower just to the left of that, a reminder that we can rebuild, but at the time it was looking pretty dicey. As this day continues, security is very, very tight, even very, very early this morning when i was getting here, security was everywhere, obviously preparing for the arrival of the president , a number of former President S, a number of big officials from the surrounding spaces, Security Directors and chiefs from every city in the country gathering here, and it will all be capped later on with a game at Citi Field between the new York Yankees and New York mets, and this just the Subway Series, this has certain badges of Honor And Alex hogan with more at Citi Field. Hi, neil, the pregame show doesnt start for about seven hours time so the Parking Lots are still quite empty besides a Security Presence that we do see here, 20 years ago today, this was Shea Stadium and it essentially became a Staging Area for anyone who needed supplies at Ground Zero. So mets players, coaches, managers, all jumped into action helping at the time, loading vans and unloading them. Bringing supplies to those people at the scene. And 10 days after the terror attacks, baseball returned. The mets faced off against the atlanta braves. The announcer over the loud speakers welcoming fans to the stadium telling them that america can and will Go On. Now, two decades later, fans are back for the Subway Series as are many of the coaches, managers and players from Na 2001 team. On this solemn anniversary, the city is ramping up security across the board. As you mentioned, Mayor Deblasio confirming there are no credible threats against New York and the Commissioner Guaranteeing the safety of the City Today and the governor echoing the remarks, but warning that New Yorkers will see increased Security Presence today. Weve deployed more resources for the Port Authority, the mta, youll see more people, youll see individuals with long arms, youll see them looking a little bit militarized, but the idea is to let anyone know that you mess with New York, there will be consequences. Now, both teams here today will wear hats of First Responders paying tribute to them and the sacrifice that they made now 20 years ago today. Neil. Neil hard to believe. Alex, thank you very much. Alex hogan for that big event later tonight. We want to go to ray kelly, a familiar face to a lot of you, certainly in the New York metropolitan area, the former Police Commissioner 20022013 now the guardian group ceo. Commissioner very good to see you. You know, you come into your job this just shortly after these attacks and youve got a Tender On Tenterhooks and concerns about terrorists moving out and No One wanted to be here and there was a fear that this would be a ghost land. That didnt happen. Why not . Well, i think we did a lot of things quickly to sort of buoy the confidence of people in the city. We brought in experts in counterterrorism from the federal government. We brought in technology, we brought in in a very short portfolio literally thousands of computers. We assigned Police Officers to the cities overseas to be our listening posts. We had the biggest Police Department in the country and the most diverse. And we wanted to use those resources who had undercover operations, that sort of thing. That kicked in pretty quickly and i think people sort of saw that, gradually, but i can tell you this, right after, we took office, Times Square was empty still. Neil oh, i remember. People were voting with their feet as you said, so we knew whatever we were going to do we had to do it quickly. We had large amassing of Police Officers so people would see them in key location. Neil and i remember, you had your guys everywhere. By the way, thats not the case today. But thats a separate story for later, that worries me about the Crime Factor and all that. But you and the mayor Mike Bloomberg at the time were keen on getting things back here where you and i sit behind us, because it was rubble for a long time and there were a lot of people who werent keen on renovating or trying to make this an attractive area again because they figured this never could be, but you were very intent on that. Explain what was going on in those first couple of years . We wanted to get people comfortable coming back here, so we created the Lower Manhattan Security Area and manhattan to canal street. We put in cameras, and special posts for Police Officers, visibility posts, as i say, a large amassing of cops in cars, and we once actually had 100 of them just to get the wow factor going, and sit back, wow, what was going on. But i think it worked. We had 16 plots on our watch. None of them came to fruition. Neil i went to ask you about that commissioner, too, i was talking to tom cane, cochair of the 9 11 commission and one thing he discovered in that report you know better than anyone, there wasnt adequate communication between agencies, local Police Departments, the fbi, the cia, i could Go On and on and he want todayeded wanted to improve that and communicate with local Police Departments. If you know of questionable characters in certain areas, Share It with the new York Police chief and Vice Versa. And did that improve in the 2003, 04 period yes, i think it came out quickly, one of the issues was that the Fbi And Cia were not coordinating. Everybody knew that because they new the mandate was to share communication. We added 100 detectives to the fbi joint terrorism Task Force, to sort of force that communication, that collaboration. And i think it certainly happened and now, youve got, i think the fbi might have as many as 70 joint terrorism Task Forces throughout the country. All of those involved local police agencies. That, you know, thats their goal to get that communication going. We started fusion centers, again, aimed at sharing information. And i can assure you that its much better now, im certain, than it was in 2001, but much better than maybe 10 years ago or five years ago. Neil but were never dangerfree. No. Neil i think that people forget that. Absolutely. There are no guarantees. You can do all of these things, bring in all the technology, put people overseas, all of that stuff, but we are vulnerable. This is the most important target in the world and they want to come back to New York, they want to kill people, thats the stark reality of it. Its a pour porous city and we had them before. And a lot of people dont want to go back to the city, a local poll says its about the crime and safety issue. Eric adams, leading democratic mayoral Candidate And Curtis sliwa has anything to say about that, do nt doesnt think thats going to happen. But concerns people, their safety. I think particularly in the subways, ridership in Lower Manhattan is down 82 . Thats incredible number. Neil right. We have to get people backk on those trains, its the Life Blood of the city. We need Police Officers on platforms. We need to raise that Comfort Level that people have. Neil but its not happening. We dont she that at all. We have to keep working at it, because its so important, the city. You can go to Midtown And Youll see not many people on the streets. Neil youre right. Somethings got to change. Neil got it. Commissioner always good seeing you. Ray kelly, thank you very very much. Thanks a lot. Neil you havent really gotten old, i was hoping youd show up really old, but you look the same. Ray kelly former New York Police Commissioner, and lets go back down to Ground Zero, they call it, and remember the people who used to work there. Theyre so much like you. I can still feel you watching over us, i will love you forever. And my father, joseph p mcdonald. I miss you every day and wish you were here to experience all of lifes moments with me. I miss your smile, your hugs, and your never ending jokes. Seven years was not enough time together, but im grateful for my memories of you and the stories that i hear about you from my Family Members which make me feel like youre still here. I love you and i try my best to live up to your legacy every day. [reading of names] [reading of names] as we remember all of those who lost their lives this tragic day and then the thousands who would follow just cleaning and trying to deal with all of this Rubble And Rescue operations turned Recovery Operations that went on through the years to say nothing of the thousands of soldiers we lost in Afghanistan And Iraq, it does give us pause as to what we learned from this and whether it could ever happen again. Its an issue that over the years are taken up with a number of key people of that time, including rudy giuliani. Take a look. Did we sufficiently learn our lessons . And did we sufficiently, you know, button up the chatter that we were focusing on pre9 11 that we got better on focusing on after 9 11 because it was the same type of chatter we were getting out of libya, right . Absolutely right. I worry on the 12th anniversary. Not that certain people have forgotten, look, people move on, death is a horrible thing to deal with, the trauma of it is horrible, but people deal with it in different ways, some point they move on, if they dont they learn to live with it. The part of forgetting September 11th thats bad, forgetting what caused September 11th, forgetting the fact that weve let our Guard Down before September 11th. Neil rudy giuliani, americas mayor, as they used to call him, but a point he mentioned is a point ive heard echoed in the 20plus years ive covered this story from the attacks themselves to every year thereafter when wed look where weve come and progressive show from downtown you might recall, that the construction was starting and then pr rubble, and then less rubble, and then the beginning of a terror, but year in and year out when we did the shows and updates, The One issue would come up, could it happen again, could it happen again . Until we get some top Security Officials to average folks visiting what is now the 9 11 museum, they would say, yeah, if we let our Guard Down, if we let our Guard Down. Thats a key, a key thought for New Yorks republican mayoral candidate right now Curtis Sliwa, kind enough to join us. Curtis good to see you. A pleasure. Neil i think youve said a number of times that you can never let your Guard Down. You always have to be vigilant, but you know, theres a whole young generation, curtis, who werent born there and dont even know about it, perhaps outside of a history book. Does that worry you . It isnt so much our generation, its the jihadist generation, newborn, young, ideaistic wanting to strike at us, at some cave it could be in yemen, could be iraq, it could be afghanistan. Theyre going to look at new York City, where we defunded the police, and domestic terrorists, rioted, shooting arrests and basically streets turned over to a criminal element. Neil youve argued that that crime far bigger immediate issue right now. And its still, still pretty bad. It is, but the Number One issue is Police Department that has to protect us from the international attack. Remember it got so bad you had former Police Commissioner kelly here, that they decide today set up their outposts under the Bloomberg Administration assigning to ports in jordan and and Middle East, and they couldnt trust the federal government that would sit on information rather than Share It. I dont believe were as vigilant as we should be. Neil if you became mayor, curtis, and you talk about crime quite a bit. And that is the more dominant than people wanting to return to the city after the pandemic, worried about the spikes in cases, theyre worried about the spikes in crime. Look we have an antiterrorism Task Force thats the best that policing in the world have done. But theyve been depleted because of retirements, early retirements, theyve been defunded. So we dont have as many personnel dedicated day in and day out. Neil we dont have as many personnel to handle the everyday Thief Or Guy going nuts and shootings up in Times Square. Thats why the priority in this is to fund, we need a minimum 38,000 Police Officers just to attend to the Daytoday Policing of the huge city, five boroughs and Men And Women on three separate terrorist Task Forces, one is joint Task Force with the n. Y. P. D. And the fbi. And do they communicate with Each Other. You worry about outside that. They do, but, exactly. We know there are embedded individuals here within our city who are sending information back to whoever the shot callers are there. And it will make us vulnerable if we dont realize on this 20th Anniversary. Look what just happened in afghanistan. They saw that as a total sign of weakness. Its almost like clark kent, right. Instead of superman, the united states was exposed to kryptonite and we cut, we ran, we left. So now theyre in power. Neil and galvanized and the various Terrorist Groups you hear, well, dont worry about the taliban, and theyre fighting with isisk. But i just see a lot of bad guys in the same country to do what they want. They might be fighting amongst one another No Doubt and theyre united in one cause, and they spew the same rhetoric. Death to America And Death to the state of israel. Neil they hate us a lot more than Each Other. And let me get a sense from you about the future here in New York and obviously, 20 years ago, a lot of people who thought they wouldnt come back to downtown let alone the city, they did. How would you as mayor make that happen . Well, you have to provide the public safety. If you dont have safe streets, safer subways, safe parks, safe schools people are not going to return. The Number One duty is to keep the people here, instead of them joining the exodus To Shows states south of the mason dixon line, so many New Yorkers ive talked have fled, virginia, north carolina, south carolina, georgia, tennessee and florida. Guess what theyre not coming back and weve got to rally up our residents to improve not to move. Thats the way i was brought up in the streets of brooklyn and that has to be our battle cry, improve, dont move. That means we have to deal with the normal crime and we really have to ramp up our efforts because im telling you, the terrorists out there, theyre salivating. They want another shot at us and the third time for them in their minds is the charm. Because theyre going on the Paradise Express to their heaven if they become martyrs. We doesnt want to die, but they want to die for a cause. Neil and the 93 World Trade Center attack and obviously this one. Yes. Neil do you think that New York then remains a target . Its a big target. A lot of people in New York say, okay, weve had our nightmare, and now other cities and theyve seen it since, you know, in paris, in spain, and maybe where were not a target anymore. Listen to the previous terrorists who have been arrested. As you mentioned, the first Terrorist Attack 92, Shaq Rahman was the inspiration for that and obviously alqaeda, Kaled Mohammed was the Master Mind of that even though it was Osama Bin Laden the shot caller. They chose New York because its the epicenter of capitalism in the world which they despise and because its where more jews live than anywhere else, theyve told us this over and over, this is their mantra, their dogma and they dont mind dying for their cause. We have to man up and woman up and be prepared to meet with them equal if not greater force to not only deter them, but to stop them the moment they attempt another attack, which is going to come. I tell you, i feel it in the marrow of my bones. Neil are you and eric going to debate. Yes. Neil when . Public safety and did . Neil he has agreed to the debate. He has no choice. Neil hes sitting on a nice poll, why should i bother . This republican, Curtis Sliwa has gone into neighborhoods where they havent seen a republican since Abraham Lincoln on a 5 bill. [laughter] i have the street cred, neil, you know that. And the streets is where i do the politics. Neil and youre an impressive Candidate And State your mind. But youre kind of like the Rodney Dangerfield of politics. I know its a heavily democrat city, but weve had republican mayors and republican governor, George Pataki was on. Why do republican candidates still get that. Of course i get no respect, did i get respect when i started the guardian angel. I was called a hells angel, a vigilante. Did i get respect when the gambinos had me shot five times . I superceded that. Neil they tried to kill you. Attacked me twice. Im used to be david versus goliath. Never go to sleep on Curtis Sliwa. And the lesson, never go to sleep on the enemies of america, it doesnt matter how many generations, they hope to eventually strike us again and we have to, if necessary, preemptively hit them. If they strike us, we have to hit them with greater force than theyre coming at us with. Neil curtis, great seeing you. A lot of people might say, we might stop thinking of them, but boy, they dont stop thinking of us. Thats Priority Number one. Street crime is my privy, and terrorism, starts with the n. Y. P. D. , the heroes in new York City. Neil curtis, good luck. Coming out of your shell, seems to be working Curtis Sliwa candidates for republican mayor of New York and we did put a call out to his democratic opponent. Does he return our calls anymore or whatever, were doing laundry or whatever . Anyway we dont bite, curtis could say we dont bite here, youre welcome. I want to continue to go to the readings of the names here and see whats next. [reading of names] President Biden has arrived in shanksville, pennsylvania. Of course, that is where the, you know, Flight 93 crashed after passengers took over the plane, tried to seize the plane from terrorists, crashed it and 40 people lost their lives. Former President Bush was there earlier Today And Vicepresident Kamala Harris. Lets listen and see if we can pick up anything here. inaudible inaudible , [silence] [silence] all right, the president checking things out in shanksville, pennsylvania, his third and final stop will be the pentagon. He was in new York Right behind me not too long ago, no remarks. He had a taped statement in remembrance of all those who lost their lives. One things things weve learned as the loss of life where The Field crash, its remembering the sacrifice so many have made, including Frank Stiller who lost his brother in the 9 11 attacks and he has devoted his life since year in and year out as you know by now to making good on his memory and doing some good from that memory. Take a look. Ive been greeted by so many Beautiful Americans who love america, who get it. They will never forget what happened 20 years ago, but its very encouraging to me that there were so many young families that had greeted me along the way. I want to do good on a day that was so evil 20 years ago because what my brother did, im going to always make sure, my family is always going to make sure that good steps on evil every single time. Neil and he did make it officially this morning, all is well, hes well and enough to continue to help firefighters and now extended it to anyone injured, harmed or killed and just doing their job providing mortgagefree homes to Family Members and others who have been similarly affected. Youre looking live in the meantime at President Biden, hes in shanksville, pennsylvania this is where Flight 93 crashed. Remember, the people On Board that plane had gotten wind of the prior attacks, and decided to seize the plane to take it from the taliban leaders who were on that plane. And take their control away. It was obviously gotten to be a horrific scene back and forth. You probably heard some. Audio that since has been released, but they did seize the plane, but the plane crashed nevertheless, but they probably prevented what some say it was an imminent attack or a planned hit on either the united States Capitol or the White House. They dont know for sure, just that had it succeeded many, many more lives would have been lost. Lets go to michael right now. Hes a 9 11 Witness And Attorney represented a lot of those First Responders in New York and a lot of the survivors 20 years later hes still fighting for them. Michael, very good to have you. It was an interesting time in terms of how do you copensate a Loved One Out Of The Blue you have to consider their kids, their role. That had to be legally confusing. Well, it sure was, neil, and ill tell you something, Ken Feinburg did a wonderful job as Special Master of the victims combination fund. The epa lied when they told us that the air was safe to breathe. They want today reopen wall street. I went back to my Law Firm and we did our jobs. 9 11 didnt end on 9 11, people continued to get sick and die from those toxins we were inhaling. Neil how do you work with Ken Feinburg, michael . I know his original fund was expand Today Cover more individuals, including some of the firefighters, and Rescue Workers you talked about who were exposed to all of these toxins who gave them all sorts of diseases and you know, killed a lot of them. But that was not part of the original plan. Maybe you can explain how that grew. So the original law was passed two weeks, just two weeks, can you imagine congress doing anything like that today . And two weeks after 9 11, but it really was just for those who died on 9 11. And then to fortuitously, i ran into mr. Feinburg and i explained i represented all of these firefighters and cops who were suffering from what was called at the time the World Trade Center cough, well we know from jimmys autopsy, jimmy was my client, n. Y. P. D. Officer to died in 2005 of pulmonary fibrosis. They did an autopsy and in his Lung Tissue they found ground glass, asbestos, benzene. And that was the proof that niosh linked 68 casinos to the World Trade Center toxins. And there was the act in 2010, so was the victim Compensation Fund, it was reopened, The One that Ken Feinburg had administered. Its still open for another 70 years, neil. The only problem is getting The Word out to the nonresponders that they were inhaling the same toxins, theyre getting the same illnesses. Theyre entitled to the benefits of the Health Program and the victim Compensation Fund, but only 7 of the nonresponders have enrolled so far. So i appreciate your helping us get The Word out. Neil what do you do for the others . Do they know that this exists, michael, that theres this opportunity for them to have some financial support for what theyve dealt with . Yeah, you just hit the nail on the head, neil. Over 80 of the First Responders have enrolled in the free Health Program thats nationwide, by the way. Because their unions have done a great job educating them. But nobodys educating the workers at Goldman Sachs and the New York Stock exchange and the New York merchantile. There are tons of businesses down here and these people just dont know it. There were 50,000 students and teachers and 25,000 residents and 300,000 office workers, that the real challenge now is getting The Word out to them, enroll. Register in the free programs, youre entitled. Neil all right. Word is out, michael. Thank you very, very much. And for all youre doing to help these people for a while were not getting any help at all and they deserve it, each and all. Thank you. Neil thank you. To the left of your screen, youre seeing President Biden, he is in shanksville, pennsylvania. Of course for Flight 93 crashed. We remember that day well because by the time we got word on Flight 93, and then the pentagon and all, we knew we were under Terrorist Attack and Dick Grasso knew at the time there would be no trading that day. The Big Open Question was, would there be trading at all . I want to go back in time with what he was dealing with shortly thereafter. Certainly, youve got to be a little surprised that even in the face of uncertainty and a multiyear campaign as the White House says this could be, that the markets still advance. What do you make of that . I think what the market is telling us is that this nation, the strongest economy on earth, is unified, perhaps, more so than ever since the second World War in the pursuit of economic growth and in pursuit of freedom and what this Market Snapback is saying, were inspired by our leaders. Neil all right. And Dick Grasso the stocks exchange chairman. This is october a month after the attack, an important i think this we should point out at that time was very few people thought the markets could come back, is that when they first opened, and Dick Grasso, good to see you. We forget, we tumbled mightily, but you were open and things stabilized, but it looked dicey, didnt it . Well, we were down 7 , neil, but that was just a fraction of what happened in 1987. And the more important thing was we were open and we sent a message to the world that the terrorists had killed 3,000 people, destroyed billions in property, but The American Way Of Life rises from Those Ashes and goes on and that how do you decide in retrospect when, certainly, you were going to open, but you had to do this in coordination with other exchanges and also agree on a time to reopen. Take me back to that. Well, it was truly a great public partnership with the private sector and the private sector, of course, the markets were overseen by the then chairman. Fcc, harvey pitts, and basically i had worked with in private Practice And Harvey and i together said, look, No One is the lead Sled Dog here. Were a team, were a partnership and all the market, equities markets, commodities markets, we will do this together. We did. Neil but things were pretty banged up, right . We forget that, right . They were very banged up, neil. When number seven came down late in the afternoon, it basically put 140 west street, which was the Communications Hub for the entire Securities Industry, put it out of commission. Neil you couldnt trade if you wanted to. No. And the reality was, until we got power and until we got communications connectivity, we werent going to be able to trade, but trading, neil, and this is where the public partnership was so important, because right from the getgo, mayor giuliani, governor pataki, the President S representatives principally Paul Oneill, the treasurysecretary. We all agreed trading is secondary to hand, Foot And Mouth human lives. And we didnt know whether the firefighters and Police Officers digging behind us were going to find people alive. Neil right. And answer was when were confident that the rescue has been exhausted, thats when trading should resume. It turned out the following monday and in reality, the President S representative, Paul Oneill was with me on the bell podium. Harvey pitt, all of the markets our two senators were there, but we all recognized that the Opening Bell was such an important message to the terrorists, and to the rest of the world that america can never be defeated. Who should ring that Opening Bell, neil . Cops and firemen. Neil i remember that very well. Who did the job no One Thought could be done. Neil and looking back at that, and we had Foe Trading for a week, understandably given everything that was going on, but now everything seems electronic, you dont need all of these people on the floor, and fracture of what they were when i was covering the exchange. So could it happen again that god forbid something horrific like an attack like this, would all Trading Stop for that long . Or could it continue if it wanted to or at least to test the system and see how fluid it is today . Its a great question and i think the answer is, technology has basically given the markets the alternative of being either physically convened or electronic. Covid was a very good example, the floor of the exchange was closed true, a very good example. It was closed, but the exchange continued to trade electronically. And i think, you know, whatever the challenge, neil, you first have to remember people come before trading. People before stocks. Lives before investments. And thats what drove the public partnership and i was so proud, neil, of how we came together. The industry came together, No One represented their own interests. We represented americas interests. If you were and in the heat of the various trading firms, you know, dropped their customary me, me, me, im looking out for my firm. And you look at woods, Cantor Fitzgerald and a host of others. They put that aside to help others get back on their feet. The reality was, a firm, whether it was Cantor Fitzgerald or Sandler And Oneill you mentioned before, all of their people or a good part of their people, all of their facilities. Firms that were traditionally their competitors said come in and use our facilities, use our people, well help you get back on your feet. It was an american effort. It wasnt a Securities Industry effort and i was so proud of how the heads of our firms reacted. When they were told that, for instance, Sandler And Oneill needed trading space, lehman jumped up and said well give it to them. When cantor needed something, merrilllynch jumped up and said, well give it to them. Goldman sachs was there, all the major firms. Morgan stanley, whatever we can do to help our traditional competitors who we under normal circumstances would love to see them disabled, okay. Neil and now, 20 years later, the Big Thing is the pandemic and getting back to work. Most financial firms i think said they want their people back, the seener the better, dont delay it. Others are saying we deened ma you be vaccinated and some to their customers and Morgan Stanley the same. What do you think about all of that . Well, i think the protection of employees is critical, okay, and its got to be balanced with the fact that when you bring the you know, and these are the best and brightest youre going to see, kids out of Business School and come out of my alma mater, and when they come together, when theres a certainty they physically need, the argument these guys make they physically need fob together. Thats it, but you need to balance it for the safety of employees and customers. Neil on the other side, brokers, you know, those are The Ones not delaying the inperson in return. Wells fargo, i think is an exception, but most are saying, no, no, come back now. I think that when you have that human factor, okay, its kind of a waterfall effect, you know, like i look at you, neil, you know, when you and i covered the markets right after the civil war. Neil thats right, i remember it quite well. [laughter] people shooting at us and it was rough, it was rough. I could never fit into that uniform. Dick grasso, very good seeing you. Great To Be With You, lets all say a prayer for those 403 First Responders who allowed 25,000 to come out of the towers. Neil youre very, very right about that. Many of them are among the names being mentioned and i want to get into this and it takes hours to do and they do a dutifully, and it serves as a reminder of how many people we lost that day. [reading of names] my father, jorge velazquez. We remember his dedication, sacrifices, love,laughter, support, the Wisdom And Humility and his hard work. He wasnt just a 9 11 victim and hero, he was a father, husband, Brother And Friend and he will never be forgotten. We love him. And my father norbert who i never met because my mom was only pregnant with me. Thank you for my life, my name, and everything in between, thank you for alex and my mom. I miss you every day and love you so much more. Mommy, alex and i miss you more and love you. I will meet you one day, but today i will live your legacy on. [applause] [reading of names] [reading of names] [reading of names] [reading of names] [reading of names] [reading of names] and my cousin, and camy, who are both brothers and sisters and my uncle latchman. Its been 20 years, but theres not a day that goes by that we do not think of you. We miss your smiles, your laughter, your hugs and the joy that you brought to our families. We love you and until we meet again. Thank you. And my brother nicholas losing him has left a hole that nothing can replace. And thank you to the people of New York for giving the families this beautiful space where we can honor and remember our Loved Ones. [applause] [reading of names] [reading of names] [reading of names] [reading of names] my brother, my little brother, steven gerard hoffman. He loved and lived in a big way. May we never forget. [applause] [taps playing] Applause Applause remembering the 2,997 people killed this day 20 years ago. One of them was a fellow by the name of ronald fazzio, his son is here. For those who have watched our shows on anniversaries, youve probably grown up now appreciating rob. Ive seen him grow up myself and married and two beautiful children, but the story of ron always sticks out in my mind as among the most moving of all of this sad day. And i have talked to hundreds of victims families, but ron stands out because when the planes hit, particularly in the South Tower, he was on the 99th floor, his only wish was to get people out and rush them out and he opened the door, checked the offices and cleared them out and he himself had gotten out, but wanted to check back to make sure every did. He died. Rob is back with me today. How are you doing my friend. Good to see you, neil. Neil youre another one who is not aging. This is a mixed day for you. It is mixed. First of all, if im not on the show, i get Relatives Texting and calling me, Whats Neil doing. A little italian. Neil no sauce for him. Nator, thats right its mixed because 20th Anniversary is heavy. You did some great coverage of it which is awesome. But then, the day of, and walking around the city, brought my little girls around, and teaching them about New York. You know, we were my Daughter Reese likes to bring acorns to grandpa at the memorial and she dropped the bag of acorns and flew on the street on Church Street and my wife had the baby and we were frantic and a gentleman we didnt know ran out in the middle of the street, got the acorn and brought it back to my daughter and i said, reese, this is New York. This is New York. One of the many stories i love about your dad and your family is, hes a big guy and you know, there are moments and hours and days after the attack, you relay that he loved Reeses Peanut Butter cups and if you left them for him he would show up and to this day. Yeah. Neil there are the cups. Its a memorial. It is incredible and its been something that has been part of our family for years and its so endearing. Matter of fact, you named your daughter for reese. Named our Daughter Reese and neil, i actually got something for you, youll notice its wrinkled and not ironed. Neil oh, yeah. A Reeses Peanut Butter tie. Neil its beautiful. And the reason, i got it for you five years ago, but i have worn it. [laughter] lovely. I love the story, it never fails, you were relentless and trying to track down in those days, did he make it, did he make it, you found out he had and holding the doors for others so they could get out. And i ask you every year, does it anger you, he could have been safe and hed be alive today. Everyone is different. Anger is never part of the equation. Neil youre not italian. Im sicilian. But it is an italian thing. I got hyper focused on what are we going to do. This happened to him. Our towers got knocked down, we have to rebuild, we have to rebuild something and the way that we did that withhold the door was finding ways to helping people through adversity, in toughest times helping them be tough. Neil we have pictures of your family and i see your little girl now, and what do you tell them about your dad, their grandpa . Oh, i they tell me about him. Neil oh, okay. And we talk about in our house, we are kind and helping others. And in america, one in five mental illnesses and we have to find ways to pick Each Other up and keep them strong. Neil youre a psychologist by training and written book on this issue and beyond this issue, better ways to work, but people carry a lot of baggage and how do you get them through tragedy. It takes time, the best tool are conversations, teaching people that you dont want to run away from your feelings. Move in, understand them, move forward, use them as a catalyst for growth. And realize that since this memorial is called reflection, a lot of people arent here that are First Responders, people who dug through rubble, people who are veterans this is a trigger for them and struggling. And it is, it was trigger for me and i didnt serve. Neil i know youve helped out with other places where theres been violence to help them cope with that. What reaction do you get . A very positive one. The beauty of September 11th is, its an equalizer, people know and understand. It gives you credibility so theres some fortune in that when we hold the door, talk about September 11th people want to listen to us because they know what weve been through. Neil youve been through a lot and done beautiful things. I want to thank you and taking a look at the Cutie Pie of a daughter not too far from us, but reminds you, life goes on, tragic as it is and we cant forget the fact those lives lost were meaningful and changed everything in this country. Ive covered this year in and year out for 20 years now, and i will never stop as long as im working because what happened that day changed the fabric of who we are. Not only the beautiful lives lost, but the message that from death theyre sending to us, do not forget. 20 years later this is a day of tears and tributes of solemn and respectful remembrance as america renews its promise to never forget. Our country coming together on Saturday Afternoon to honor the nearly 3,000 lives lost on September 11th, 2001 after hijacked airliners crashed into towers and pentagon and