In light of 9/11, we must commemorate sacrifice and thank the men and women who respond heroically to every crisis in this country, regardless of what branch they serve in.
The men and women who respond to our national crises are worthy of all our thanks. These people brazenly push forward when others back away. They are what keep our world turning.
To the first responders on the scene of the attacks: Many owe you their lives, we owe you our thanks and undying support for your heroic efforts.
To the families of those who died: We grieve with you as you grieve in memory of the loved ones lost and we pray for you with eternal optimism that God would use this loss in your life for a greater good.
To the soldiers still fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq, those still defending the country from attacks abroad by bringing the fighting to the heart of the enemy, we thank you and ask that you know that your sacrifice is not in vain. We have not had another terror attack since we began the war.
To the rest of the people in the United States, I encourage you to stand together and remain united in our efforts to defeat terrorism and radical Islamists before they strike again. I ask you to look back on the history of this nation and the conflicts we have come through together over the years. Whether we look at the French and Indian War, World War I and II or any other conflict, we find one commonality between them: We have won because we stayed united and supported our troops.
I can understand if you disagree with the reasons we are in the Middle East. For those of you who do, go ahead and protest, send letters to your congressman or congresswoman, but don't protest to a point that is detrimental and demoralizing to the general populace or to the troops.
United we stand, divided we fall.