Rodney Frelinghuysen: “on this day, 3 years ago, our Nation utterly changed as tragedy struck in the streets of Lower Manhattan, the fields of…”

“on this day, 3 years ago, our Nation utterly changed as tragedy struck in the streets of Lower Manhattan, the fields of Pennsylvania, and here in our Nation's capital. On this day, we also saw good rise in the face of evil and heroes rise in the face of danger. In Lower Manhattan, many of our brave first responders knew the risks they were taking, but were determined to do their job. Police officers and EMS officials calmly escorted workers out of burning buildings as firefighters raced up stairwells of these same buildings to rescue those trapped high above. When the day was over, and as we learned more about the tragic attacks, and loss of nearly 3,000 Americans, including 700 New Jerseyans, we witnessed neighbors and friends consoling one another and watched as Americans from all walks of life stood united--side-by-side, waving the stars and stripes, and lighting candles to honor those missing or lost. As America rebounded and recovered, our Nation--displaying the resiliency of its people--responded to these acts of terrorism with the might of our military. The war we continue to fight today began September 11, 2001. It began without provocation and without warning. It was not a war of our choosing but rather was made our priority. And we are fighting this war in Afaghanistan and Iraq today so that what happened on September 11 does not happen in America again.”