Government Faces Peril Squarely
- President Travels To Nebraska Bunker
- Vice President Remains In Washington
- Congressional Leaders Taken To Safety
WASHINGTON, Sept. 11, 2001
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| AP |
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President Bush: A day of travel
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(CBS) As the White House and other U.S. leaders try to put the pieces back together in Washington, they are doing everything possible to show that even an horrific attack like this could not destroy the government.
President Bush arrived back at the White House just after 7 p.m., capping a long day of journeys that took him from Florida, where he was taking part in an education program, to Air Force bases in Louisiana and Nebraska. He is expected to address the nation at 9 p.m., the third address since the attacks began at 9 a.m. ET.
Vice President Dick Cheney remained in the capital but his whereabouts were kept under wraps. Officials would only say that he wa sin a secure place with his chief of staff and wife, Lynne, with him.The congressional leadership was taken in separate helicopters to a location outside Washington.
U.S. government agencies will be open for business in the Washington area Wednesday but federal workers will be allowed to take unscheduled leave, the Office of Personnel Management said Tuesday.
“Federal agencies in the Washington, D.C., area are open for business as usual Wednesday, Sept. 12, under an unscheduled leave policy,'' the personnel office said in a statement. ''Employees may take leave without prior approval.''
That means government employees are expected in, and will be charged for any leave taken, but can stay home without getting approval first if they feel “unsafe or uncomfortable,'' the personnel office's Warren Asher said.
Both the reopening of the Capitol and the return of the president are designed to show terrorists that the U.S. is not giving in, said CBS News Chief Washington Correspondent Bob Schieffer.
Condoleezza Rice, head of the National Security Council, emphasized earlier Tusday that the president was in charge
“He is the commander-in-chief and whatever anybody thinks of him or doesn’t think of him at the moment, he’s the commander-in-chief, the leader of the nation,” she said. “He is in Air Force One; he is in instantaneous communication, when he wants to be, with any place in the world and there should not be any misunderstanding of that.”
Mr. Bush started his day in Florida , but canceled his activities after the attack ,making a brief address to the nation. He then boarded Air Force One, landing at Barksdale Air Force base in Louisiana, where he made his second statement at the day.
Later Tuesday, he flew to a Strategic Air Command bunker in Nebraska. Planes headquartered at this base are specially equipped to be used in the event of a nuclear attack.
In both his statements, Mr. Bush assured Americans that the government was continuing to function and that those responsible for this would be found and held accountable. He also asked for the prayers for families of the victims.
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