(6 of 20) At the moment the second plane was slamming into the south tower, President Bush was being introduced to the second-graders of Emma E. Booker Elementary in Sarasota, Fla. When he arrived at the school he had been whisked into a holding room: National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice needed to speak to him. But he soon appeared in the classroom and listened appreciatively as the children went through their reading drill. As he was getting ready to pose for pictures with the teachers and kids, chief of staff Andy Card entered the room, walked over to the President and whispered in his right ear. The President's face became visibly tense and serious. He nodded. Card left and for several minutes the President seemed distracted and somber, but then he resumed his interaction with the class. "Really good readers, whew!" he told them. "These must be sixth-graders!" 正当第二架飞机撞进世贸中心南楼时，在佛罗里达州萨拉索塔市，Emma E. Booker小学正在向二年级的小学生们介绍来访的布什总统。刚一到达学校，总统就被引入一间休息室，国家安全顾问莱斯有情况通报。但他很快出现在教室中，观摩孩子们的阅读训练。在准备和老师和学生合影时，白宫幕僚长安迪•卡尔德走到总统右侧在他耳边低声了几句。总统的脸色明显变得紧张和严肃起来。他点点头。卡尔德离开后，有几分钟总统看起来心神不宁，神态也很沉重。但他继续和孩子们交谈，并说到“这些小读者们真棒！有六年级的水平吧！”
Meanwhile, in the room where Bush was scheduled to give his remarks, about 200 people, including local officials, school personnel and students, waited under the hot lights. Word of the crash began to circulate; reporters called their editors, but details were sparse--until someone remembered there was a TV in a nearby office. The President finally entered, about 35 minutes late, and made his brief comments. "This is a difficult time for America," he began. He ordered a massive investigation to "hunt down the folks who committed this act." Meanwhile the bomb dogs took a few extra passes through Air Force One, and an extra fighter escort was added. But the President too was going to have trouble getting home. 与此同时，在另一间布什准备讲话的房间里，聚集了200多位听众。地方官员、学校教职员工和学生都在聚光灯下等待。飞机撞击世贸中心的消息开始在人群中传播，记者们给他们的编辑打电话询问。但一直没有具体消息－－直到有人想起旁边的办公室里有一台电视。最终，总统比原计划晚了35分钟出现在众人面前，并做了简短的讲话。“美国面临着艰难的时刻。”他这样开场。接着他命令展开大规模调查“缉拿那些制造这起灾难的人。”而与此同时，防爆犬已经把总统座机“空军一号”搜查了几遍。然而，尽管为空军一号增派了一架战斗机护航，总统本人此刻也是有家难回。
Even as the President spoke, the second front opened. Having hit the country's financial and cultural heart, the killers went for its political and military muscles. David Marra, 23, an information-technology specialist, had turned his BMW off an I-395 exit to the highway just west of the Pentagon when he saw an American Airlines jet swooping in, its wings wobbly, looking like it was going to slam right into the Pentagon: "It was 50 ft. off the deck when he came in. It sounded like the pilot had the throttle completely floored. The plane rolled left and then rolled right. Then he caught an edge of his wing on the ground." There is a helicopter pad right in front of the side of the Pentagon. The wing touched there, then the plane cartwheeled into the building. 就在总统讲话的同时，第二波攻击开始了。在袭击了美国的金融和文化中心后，凶手们又把目标对准了政治和军事中心。23岁的IT从业者大卫·马尔拉当时正驾驶着他的宝马从五角大楼西侧驶离395号州际高速公路。他看到美国航空公司的一架喷气客机俯冲过来，机翼来回摇摆，眼看就要直撞进五角大楼。“飞机飞过来时离地面大约有50英尺。听起来飞行员把油门踩到了底。飞机时而向左时而向右滚动，最终机翼触地。”五角大楼侧面有一个直升机停机坪，机翼碰到停机坪上，旋即侧滚进五角大楼的建筑中。
Two minutes later, a "credible threat" forced the evacuation of the White House, and eventually State and Justice and all the federal office buildings. Secret Service officers had automatic weapons drawn as they patrolled Lafayette Park, across from the White House. Police-car radios crackled with reports that rogue airplanes had been spotted over the White House. The planes turned out to be harmless civilian aircraft that air-traffic controllers at National Airport were scrambling to help land so they could clear the air space over the nation's capital. 两分钟后，“确凿的威胁”迫使白宫人员撤离，并最终迫使国务院、司法部、和所有联邦办公大楼的人员全部撤离。特工人员手持自动武器在白宫对面的拉斐特公园警戒。警车的无线电中劈劈啪啪地传出在白宫上空发现可疑的飞机警告。最终这只是一架带来虚惊的民用飞机。国家机场的空中管制为了实施首度上空的禁飞，正手忙脚乱地指示这架飞机着陆。
