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Chronology: All time shown below are approximate Eastern Daylight Times.

Thursday, September 20, 2001

Also Today: A delegation of 40 U.S. senators traveled to New York City today to view damage resulting from the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

• U.S. stock markets suffered a fourth straight day of losses since reopening on Monday.

9:05 pm - Declaring America "a country awakened to danger and called to defend freedom," President Bush delivered an address to Congress and the American people in which he identified the nation's enemies in the war against terrorism and spelled out actions to be taken against them. "Every nation in every region now has a decision to make," stated the president, "you are either with us, or you are with the terrorists." President Bush also announced the creation of a new Cabinet level agency, the Department of Homeland Defense to coordinate anti-terrorism efforts. The president stated he would name Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge as the first head of the Department of Homeland Defense. [See: Complete Transcript (CNN)] 

7:00 pm - White House press secretary Ari Fleischer stated that President Bush would call on the U.S. military to "be ready," the American people to be "calm and resolute," and governments around the world to choose: "either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists," in his address to the nation and Congress tonight. According to Fleischer, Bush plans to make it clear that, "The enemy of American is not our many Muslim friends; it is not our many Arab friends. Our enemy is a radical network of terrorists and every government that supports them." The president's televised address is scheduled for 9:00 pm EDT. [See: President to Declare "Freedom at War with Fear" (The White House)]

6:00 pm - New York Mayor Giuliani stated that the number of persons missing and feared dead at the site of the World Trade Center attack had risen to 6,333. More than 200 have been confirmed dead.

3:00 pm - The Defense Department announced that the code name "Operation Infinite Justice" for the U.S. military response to terrorist attacks was not official and would probably changed. Defense officials stated that the name could offend Muslims who believe that only God, or Allah can deliver infinite justice. [See: 'Infinite Justice' May Not Stand, Pentagon Says (Reuters)]

3:00 pm - Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld warned Americans that the war on terrorism will be "a marathon, not a sprint." Rumsfeld also confirmed that he has signed orders moving U.S. forces to the Persian Gulf near Afghanistan. [See: Rumsfeld: U.S. War on Terror Will Be 'Marathon' (Reuters)]

2:45 pm - Loaded with Marines, tanks and military hardware, the USS Shreveport (LPD-12), USS Whidby Island (LSD-41) and the USS Bataan (LHD-5) sailed for the Persian Gulf. The deployment included about 2,200 Marines and sailors of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit based at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina. [See: Marines Head for Mediterranean (Reuters)]

11:00 am - Secretary of the Army Thomas White announced that U.S. Army units had been ordered to deploy in preparation for possible future action in response the the terrorist attacks on the United States. Specifications of the which Army units had been deployed, or to where they had been ordered were not disclosed. [See: Army Units Ordered to Deploy (Reuters)]

11:00 am - CNN reported that the White House had rejected the Taliban's  Islamic clerics' recommendation that Osama bin Laden leave Afghanistan. In a statement, White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said of the clerics decision, "It does not meet America's requirements ... It's time for action, not words."

6:15 am - Afghanistan's Islamic clerics urged Osama bin Laden to leave their country in "a suitable period of time." A Taliban official stated that the Saudi-born bin Laden, prime suspect in the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States was ready to stand trial if evidence against him was produced. [See: Clerics Urge Bin Laden to Leave Afghanistan (Reuters)]

5:00 am - Afghanistan's Islamic clerics issued a warning that they would declare a jihad, or holy war, should the U.S. invade their country. [See: Afghan Clerics Say Holy War if U.S. Attacks (Reuters)]