Ari Fleischer was the right-hand aide of former President George W. Bush; Fleischer also recalls the vivid memory he had hours after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
Former press secretary recalled what happened hours after the attack
Ari Fleischer, former press secretary of the White House, recounted his unique perspective of what happened hours after the attack. Every year, Fleischer would share captivating accounts on a Twitter thread.
He posted pictures of the commotions on Air Force One and snippets of former President Bush’s conversation with his staffers and aides. He also shared surreal behind-the-scenes of the day that shook Americans in grief and shock.
According to Fleischer, he is still surprised at how much his tweets have impacted his followers.
9.11.01
Every year Ari Fleischer tweets the events of 9/11 from a unique, insider perspective. He was President Bush’s Press Secretary.I particularly find the photos fascinating as well as the conversations about and brief stop at Offutt Air Force Base in Bellevue, NE. https://t.co/TYeM4Rox1H
— Jennifer Griswold (@Jen_Griswold) September 11, 2020
When the former press secretary was asked to paint a picture of what Twitter thread he would have a day after the attack, Fleischer was prompted to recall eerie conversations and scenes.
Fleischer said the events started with a meeting for senior staff members, where the chief of staff Andy Card, warned everyone on how dangerously serious the situation is. Recalling that Card said the CIA concluded it was not a question of if the second wave of attack would take place, but instead, it was a question of when.
He added that the atmosphere at the White House drastically changed physically, noting that it was almost a different place.
The former press secretary noted that instead of having one Secret Service agent at places of an entrance, there were now two. Agents were also placed at different portals. Secret Service agents who would usually have their handguns at their belt were now carrying long guns.
Walter Reed physician gave them the heartbreaking news
Fleischer then recounted that later on that day, he accompanied former President Bush to the Walter Reed Medical Center where he visited the people wounded from the Pentagon terrorist attack. He recalled that there were 184 people who died from the highjacked Flight 77 that flew into the defense headquarters.
He noted that when they walked in Walter Reed, the head physician of the hospital told the president how they hoped there were more patients for them to show; however, because most people in the Pentagon died, very few were wounded in the attack.
I retweet him every year, but here is a reminder that you should follow Ari Fleischer on 9/11. He tweets in real time the events of that day as he traveled with the President. https://t.co/2LVzaLAKuv
— David Powell (@davidpowellbham) September 11, 2020
Fleischer added that the trip of Bush to the Pentagon on that day was a moving event. One scene that stuck in his head is how as the president moved, a huge American flag was unfolded at the Pentagon.
Then, they were seeing workers from the mortuary wearing white suits, covered in white dust, trying to find bodies. The former press secretary noted how all of this is still very vivid and fresh in his memory.
