In never-before-released photographs taken on Sept. 11, 2001, the shock, horror and gravity of the terrorist attacks can be read on the faces of President George Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, their wives Laura and Lynne, National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, CIA Director George Tenet and other senior Bush and Cheney staffers.
The photos were released in response to a Freedom of Information Act request filed by Colette Neirouz Hanna, coordinating producer for the Kirk Documentary Group, which covered the Bush administration in many films for FRONTLINE, including Bush's War, Cheney's Law and The Dark Side.
The photographs, which were taken by the vice president's staff photographer, show Cheney watching footage of the World Trade Center attack in his office. Other photos show Cheney and other senior staffers meeting in the President's Emergency Operations Center, or the secure bunker deep underneath the White House.
They also show the vice president and his wife, accompanied by I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Cheney's chief of staff, as they flew that night to Camp David, the first in a series of "undisclosed locations" where the vice president camped out in the weeks after the attacks.
It is the second set of photos released in response to a FOIA from Neirouz Hanna. The first batch, released last month, contained hundreds of behind-the-scenes photos, including a number of intimate photos of Cheney and President George W. Bush and rare moments from inside the vice president's office. A second set of photos, also released today, feature David Addington, a top legal adviser who worked with the vice president on national security issues
Here are a selection of photographs from the collection. The full set can be seen here.
Vice President Cheney watches television
Vice President Cheney and Lynne Cheney in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
Vice President Cheney with Laura Bush and Lynne Cheney in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
Vice President Cheney with Laura Bush and Lynne Cheney in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
CIA Director George Tenet listens to President Bush's address in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
Senior staff listen to President Bush's Address in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
Vice President Cheney with National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice and Chief of Staff I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
Vice President Cheney with National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
President Bush with Vice President Cheney and senior staff in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
President Bush with Vice President Cheney and senior staff in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
Vice President Cheney with senior staff in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
Vice President Cheney with senior staff in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
President Bush with Vice President Cheney and senior staff in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
Vice President Cheney in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
Vice President Cheney with Senior Staff in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
President Bush with Vice President Cheney in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
Vice President Cheney with National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice in the President's Emergency Operations Center (PEOC)
Vice President Cheney and Lynne Cheney depart the White House on Marine Two
Vice President Cheney and Lynne Cheney depart the White House on Marine Two
Vice President Cheney aboard Marine Two
Vice President Cheney and Lynne Cheney aboard Marine Two
Vice President Cheney and Lynne Cheney arrive at Camp David
Vice President Cheney at Camp David