O’Neill and The Five Reflect on Emotions of 9/11
“It Never Gets Easier.”
Even 14 years later, it feels like yesterday. The anniversary of 9/11. For former Navy SEAL Robert J. O’Neill — the man who shot and killed criminal mastermind Osama bin Laden — the day was a mix of speaking engagements and a time for quiet reflection.
During O’Neill’s roundtable appearance on FOX News’ The Five with Dana Perino, Kimberly Guilfoyle, Greg Gutfield, Eric Bolling and special guest Geraldo Rivera, it’s clear 9/11 had a profound effect on all of us.
Perino: “Today you went down to the World Trade site and Memorial. May I ask for your reflections on the day?”
O’Neill: “I’ve been down there…that was probably the fifth time and I recommend to everybody to go see it. It never gets easier. It’s not a happy place to be. It’s chronological…brings you back to exactly where you were from the time you found out the planes were hijacked…the North Tower was hit…South Tower…the Pentagon and Flight 93…the rebuilding process. It’s common to run into first responder families who lost loved ones. It’s just a very emotional place.”
Guilfoyle: “Yes, powerful. It really just comes back. Fourteen years like it happened yesterday… You just think about the people who’ve lost loved ones. The pain, the suffering, heartache will never go away. Days like today you hope and pray that this nation never forgets.”
Perino: “Geraldo, have you (and Rob) ever talked about that moment (breaking the news live on the air that Osama bin Laden was dead)?”
Rivera: “We did briefly on FOX & Friends when Rob first appeared. I tell you, brother, I feel linked to you and your colleagues. What you did…every freedom-loving person in the world owes you a tremendous debt of gratitude. Did you feel a sense, at the time, that you were avenging the 3,000 who died?”
O’Neill: “We knew we were going because of the people who died on 9/11. We knew that they went to work on a Tuesday morning. The skies were blue. They were supporting their families. They weren’t supposed to be casualties in a war on terror they didn’t know were fighting. The jumpers. We’re not allowed to talk about them now because it’s too realistic. It happened. A lot of them jumped because it was better than burning alive. We talked about them. If we’re going to die, we’re going to die avenging these people.”
Bolling: “Are we right now more prepared, less prepared or equally as prepared for the next bin Laden whomever he or she may be?”
O’Neill: “I’m seeing the same kind of patterns. We are aware there can be a catastrophic hit here but they’re kind of pushing it aside. What’s happening right now in Syria and Iraq. You’re staging a spot where they can plan for it. Even the migrants, the refugees. We’re not allowed to say that there could be terrorists there.”
Bolling: “How are we militarily?”
O’Neill: “We’ve always been strong. Some people are a little tired because they’ve been deploying quite a bit. When asked to go to action, this military is ready.”
Gutfield: “We keep saying over and over again every year, never forget. But there’s one thing we always forget…we were surprised…9/11 was the failure of our own imagination. We never thought a box cutter could turn a plane into a missile.”