Former President George W. Bush shared a memorable moment he experienced with New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter before throwing out the first pitch at Yankee Stadium shortly after the events of 9/11. Bush spoke about this event during a gathering at the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, Texas, with Condoleezza Rice, his national security advisor at the time.
During the World Series in October 2001, Bush felt the weight of leading a nation during a fragile time. Jeter humorously advised him, “Don’t bounce it, they’ll boo you,” before he headed to the pitcher’s mound. This lighthearted moment brought laughter to the audience listening to Bush’s story.
“I looked at the catcher, he looked really tiny, and the ball felt really heavy,” Bush said, recounting his feelings as he stepped onto the field.
Bush described how he, while scanning the crowd, sensed the resilience of the American people with thoughts like, “You can knock down our buildings, but you’re not going to touch our soul.”
He successfully threw the ball over the plate and recalled the experience as “memorable.” “I mean, it was an amazing feeling,” he added.
The event is a reminder of the approaching 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. On that day, al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial airplanes in a coordinated attack against the United States. Two flights crashed into New York City’s Twin Towers at the World Trade Center, causing mass destruction and loss of life. A third flight hit the Pentagon, and a fourth crashed in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Nearly 3,000 people lost their lives, including hundreds of emergency responders.
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