As the country commemorated the 22nd anniversary of Al-Qaeda’s 9/11 strikes, President Joe Biden urged Americans to stand together in the face of their savage political differences.
In solemn rituals held in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania, the three cities where the hijacked planes crashed, bells were rung and the names of close to 3,000 victims were read out.
“Let’s honor September 11 by renewing our faith in one another,” said Biden, speaking at a US military base in Anchorage, Alaska as he traveled back from a trip to India and Vietnam.
“We must never lose our sense of national unity, so let that be the common cause of our time.”
Biden continued, standing in front of a sizable flag, that “terrorism, including political and ideological violence, is the opposite of all we stand for as a nation.”
When Biden, a Democrat, heads into a possible election rematch with Republican former president Donald Trump next year, tensions are sure to rise as a result of the country’s growing polarization.
Trump has been charged four times since April, including for attempting to have the 2020 election results overturned. The public is still aware of the January 6, 2021 Capitol attack by Trump’s followers.
