re: #87 Occasional Reader

He spoke at a service for the 9/11 victims inside (not in front of) National Cathedral, the Friday or Saturday after the attacks. He had some sort of A-list Muslim cleric at his side. IIRC, unfortunately that cleric turned out to have some rather unsavory Islamist connections.

I don’t recall Bush speaking at or in front of a mosque shortly after 9/11, but I may be wrong.

He did speak at the Washington Islamic Center even before the National Prayer Service. He was judged pretty harshly for it at the time. This is where he is quoted as saying, once again, that Islam is a religion of peace. Looking back on it I do believe it was the right thing to do just based on the countrys mood at the time. A mixture of anger, hostility, revenge, uncertainty, etc….. I believe that as President he had to do it.