Posted September 6, 2008 12:33 PM
Sen. John McCain and Sen. Barack Obama on Capitol Hill in Washington in January 2007. Today they announced a joint appearance at Ground Zero to mark the seventh anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. (AP Photo/ by Dennis Cook)
by James Oliphant
The following statement was released Saturday by the competing presidential campaigns:
On September 11, 2008, we will join together to mark the seventh anniversary of the 9/11 attacks at Ground Zero.
"All of us came together on 9/11 -- not as Democrats or Republicans -- but as Americans. In smoke-filled corridors and on the steps of the Capitol; at blood banks and at vigils -- we were united as one American family. On Thursday, we will put aside politics and come together to renew that unity, to honor the memory of each and every American who died, and to grieve with the families and friends who lost loved ones. We will also give thanks for the firefighters, police, and emergency responders who set a heroic example of selfless service, and for the men and women who serve today in defense of the freedom and security that came under attack in New York City, at the Pentagon, and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania."
John McCain and Barack Obama will appear together next Thursday at Columbia University in New York at a forum to discuss sacrifice and community service. Neither candidate will campaign that day.
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Comments
I think your journalistic impartiality would remain in effect even if you were to point out the sick, twisted degree to which the Bush administration has politicized 9/11 ever since, well, 9/12 (including but not limited to Karl Rove advising Republican candidates to run on 9/11), and how admirable it is that both McCain and Obama seem to want to avoid that perception and reality.
Posted by: Tom | September 6, 2008 7:47 PM
Dear U.S. presidential candidates Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain,
O Champions of Change,
The time has come not only bring change to America but also to the world. The time has come not only build a permanent foundation for unity in America but also in the world. World Unity is a journey for gradual elimination of terrorisms and extremisms toward an enduring World Peace. The time has come that you together, during your joint appearance, take the first step toward an era of unity and proclaim September 11 not only as U.S. Unity Day but also as World Unity Day to honor all innocent people around the world who have died for the cause of freedom and peace.
Sincerely,
Hooshmand Kalayeh
Posted by: Hooshmand Kalayeh | September 8, 2008 5:06 PM