Description
Book SynopsisOffers a long perspective and draws on recently opened records to provide an in-depth analysis of the approaches taken by the Clinton and Bush administrations toward terrorism in general and Al-Qaeda in particular. It also delivers arresting new details on the four hijackings and the collapse of the twin towers.
Trade ReviewAfter two decades, the dust of 9/11 has settled sufficiently to permit a clear-eyed historical assessment.
The Day That Shook America chillingly lays out the reasons why the government agencies responsible for protecting the nation failed catastrophically, and weighs the lasting consequences." - Donald A. Ritchie, US Senate historian emeritus and author of
Electing FDR: The New Deal Campaign of 1932"The Day That Shook America is a chilling account of missed opportunities and overlooked clues that led to the horrors of 9/11. J. Samuel Walker evokes both the folly and the heroism of that day, while at the same time detailing the petty bureaucratic turf battles that crippled the nation’s response to Al-Qaeda. Walker’s judicious account of this horrific event does not preclude him from indicting those he believes might have prevented this ‘day of agony.’" - Stephen F. Knott, author of The Lost Soul of the American Presidency: The Decline into Demagoguery and the Prospects for Renewal
"To read this powerful account of 9/11 is to feel wrenching sadness combined with deep anger: sadness in recalling the terrible toll of lives taken that day, and anger both at those who perpetrated the attack and at the senior US officials who failed to avert it despite the warning signs that were flashing red." - Andrew Bacevich, author of After the Apocalypse: America’s Role in a World Transformed
"In this evocative and succinct history, J. Samuel Walker incisively analyzes the efforts to hunt down Osama bin Laden before 9/11 and assesses the actions of the Bush administration in its aftermath. Vividly describing the seizures of the planes by Al-Qaeda terrorists, Walker also eloquently narrates the gruesome circumstances of those entrapped in the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. On the twentieth anniversary of that tragic day, we are fortunate to have this well-researched, thoughtful book." - Melvyn P. Leffler, Edward Stettinius Professor of History, emeritus, University of Virginia
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
Introduction
1. “A Complex, Dangerous Threat”: America’s Approach to Terrorism
2. “I Tried and I Failed to Get Bin Laden”: Clinton and the Terrorist Threat
3. “bin Laden Determined to Strike in US”: Bush and Al-Qaeda
4. “Oh My God, the Flight, It’s Going Down”: The Four Hijackings
5. “A Day of Agony”: The Effects of the Attacks
6. “The Pearl Harbor of the 21st Century”: The White House Response
Conclusion: The Shadow of 9/11
Notes
Essay on Sources
Index
