"The attack took place on American soil, but it was an attack on the heart and soul of the civilized world. And the world has come together to fight a new and different war, the first, and we hope the only one, of the 21st century. A war against all those who seek to export terror, and a war against those governments that support or shelter them." President George W. Bush, October 11, 2001

Select speech cards used by President George W. Bush to announce the invasion of Afghanistan, October 7, 2001. From the White House Treaty Room, the President informed the nation that military action - Operation Enduring Freedom - would remove the Taliban regime and eliminate al Qaeda in Afghanistan.

Digitized Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Requests 

2014-0042-F: Drafts of the 2002 State of the Union Address

This FOIA primarily contains drafts of the 2002 State of the Union Address. This material ranges from draft #1 through draft #33 and includes the copy that President George W. Bush used at the lectern in the Capitol.

2014-0043-F: Drafts of the Beginning of the Iraq War Speeches

FOIA 2014-0043-F contains materials related to speech drafts concerning the beginning of the Iraq War, given on March 17, 2003, and March 19, 2003.

2014-0044-F: Drafts of the May 1, 2003 Speech Delivered Aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln

This FOIA contains  trip books, schedules, briefing papers, background information, and speech drafts relate to the events on May 1, 2003 and May 2, 2003, such as the National Day of Prayer, remarks and tour aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, and remarks and tour at United Defense Industries. Additionally, there are carrier deployment lists and background information on naval commanders.

2014-0074-F: Records on the Communication with Leaders of Afghanistan between September 11, 2001 and December 31, 2001

This FOIA primarily contains cables and emails, including a cable from President George W. Bush to Afghan Interim Authority Chairman Hamid Karzai.

2014-0220-F: Records Sent to, Sent by, or Received by President George W. Bush regarding Drones, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), and Targeted Killing between January 2004 and January 2009

FOIA 2014-0220-F contains materials sent to, sent by, or received by President George W. Bush related to drones, Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), targeted killing, assassination, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) between January 2004 and January 2009. This FOIA primarily contains NSC Profile Sheets and routing sheets.

2014-0224-F: Records Sent to, Sent by, or Received by President George W. Bush on Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, January 2002 – December 2006

This FOIA primarily contains a copy of the appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, a schedule of congressional events regarding Hamdan, an agenda for a meeting with the Chief of Staff regarding Hamdan, a statement before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary by Steven G. Bradbury, routine informational memoranda concerning congressional activity related to Hamdan from White House staff to the President, correspondence between Congress and the White House, a summary of the Supreme Court decision in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, and a transcript of the June 12, 2006 episode of “The O’Reilly Factor” featuring a report on Guantanamo.

2014-0229-F: Records related to Jose Padilla between May 2002 and February 2008

This FOIA primarily contains routing memoranda, a letter to President George W. Bush from the International Bar Association, and a final determination from President George W. Bush regarding Jose Padilla. There is also a declassified memorandum, made public, from the Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel from June 8, 2002, entitled "Determination of Enemy Belligerency and Military Detention."

2014-0260-F: Records on the December 13, 2006 Meeting with the President George W. Bush and the Joint Chiefs of Staff

This FOIA primarily contains scheduling proposals, a site overview, routine scheduling emails, and the Visit of the President to Arlington, Virginia.

2014-0329-F: Notes from Prime Minister Tony Blair to President George W. Bush Concerning the Iraq War

This FOIA primarily contains routing sheets and a letter transmitting a letter from Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Spending Thanksgiving with some of the troops serving in Iraq, President George W. Bush greets his fellow diners in the Bob Hope Dining Facility in Baghdad on November 27, 2003. "Every day you see firsthand the commitment to sacrifice that the Iraqi people are making to secure their own freedom. I have a message for the Iraqi people: you have an opportunity to seize the moment and rebuild your great country, based on human dignity and freedom," said the President in his remarks to the troops.

2014-0411-F: Pakistan’s Role in the War on Terror between January 2005 and December 2006

This FOIA primarily contains routine printed emails and planning documents for a Principals Committee meeting regarding President George W. Bush's trip to India and Pakistan in 2006.

2014-0412-F: Records Mentioning Pakistan’s Response to the September 11, 2001 World Trade Center Attacks

FOIA 2014-0412-F contains materials related to memoranda of conversations and memoranda sent to President George W. Bush regarding Pakistan’s response to the September 11, 2001 World Trade Center attacks, from September 2001 to December 2001.

2014-0457-F: Records on Iraq within the Condoleezza Rice Files between January 2001 and March 2003

This FOIA primarily contains a copy of Presidential Decision Directive 68, a map of Iraq, and drafts of the joint resolution of the Authorization for Use of Military Force. There is also a letter from Congress members regarding the global campaign against terrorism, as well as research on congressional authorization of the use of force in war. In addition, one will find a meeting summary from Secretary of State Colin L. Powell from September 26, 2002.

FOIA 2014-0487-F contains materials related to the minutes of the National Security Council meetings from January 2001 to December 2001.

Given during trip to Baghdad, Iraq on Thanksgiving Day, November 27, 2003; President George W. Bush was widely photographed wearing this jacket. It is a zipfront, gray nylon jacket embroidered "Old Ironsides" on one side, and "Army" on the other, with a U.S. flag patch on one sleeve. (DO.341890)

2014-0515-F: November 2006 memorandum written by Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, Steven J. Hadley, and his staff on conditions Mr. Hadley found in Iraq during his visit in October 2006

FOIA 2014-0515-F contains materials related to a November 2006 memorandum written by Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, Steven J. Hadley, and his staff on conditions Mr. Hadley found in Iraq during his visit in October 2006. This FOIA primarily contains cover sheets, a menu card from an October 30, 2006 dinner hosted by Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, and a map of Provincial Reconstruction Team locations in October 2006.

2014-0555-F: Drafts of President George W. Bush’s Remarks at the United States Military Academy at West Point on June 1, 2002

FOIA 2014-0555-F contains drafts of President George W. Bush’s remarks at the United States Military Academy at West Point on June 1, 2002. 

2016-0139-F: Speech Drafts of President George W. Bush’s Address to the Nation Announcing Strikes Against al-Qaeda Training Camps and Taliban Military Installations in Afghanistan, 10/07/2001

FOIA 2016-0139-F contains materials related to speech drafts of President George W. Bush’s Address to the Nation announcing strikes against al-Qaeda training camps and Taliban military installations in Afghanistan on October 7, 2001. There are copies of publications and reports from the Curator’s Office regarding various rooms in the White House complex, including the Treaty Room, the Blue Room, the Yellow Oval Room, the Diplomatic Reception Room, and the East Room. Speech drafts present are the June 6, 2002, Address to the Nation, which was misfiled in a folder related to the October 7, 2001, address.

2018-0287-F: Records on the Release of Danish Prisoner Slimane Hadj Abderrahmane from Guantanamo and Negotiations Leading up to his Release

FOIA 2018-0287-F requested materials related to the release of Danish prisoner Slimane Hadj Abderrahmane from Guantanamo and negotiations between the Danish Embassy, the Pentagon, State Department and National Security Council (NSC) leading up to his release.

Archival Research Guide 

For a more complete guide of the archival records that are open for research, please download the Archival Research Guide:

Material at the George W. Bush Presidential Library Pertaining to The Global War On Terror

In Focus 

The Global War on Terrorism: The First 100 Days 

National Strategy for Combating Terrorism

9/11 Five Years Later: Successes and Challenges

Renewal in Iraq

President George W. Bush is greeted by military personnel following his address on the global war on terror at the Military Officers Association of America meeting at the Capital Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C., on September 5, 2006.

Press Releases 

2001

11/08/2001 President Discusses War on Terrorism

12/20/2001 President Blocks More Assets in Financial War on Terrorism

2002

11/16/2002 Fact Sheet: News About The War Against Terror

2003

03/08/2003 Radio Address: War on Terror

03/31/2003 President Updates American on Operations Liberty Shield and Iraqi Freedom

2004

01/22/2004 President Discusses America's Leadership in the Global War on Terror

01/22/2004 Fact Sheet: Progress in the War on Terror

07/12/2004 President Discusses Progress in the War on Terror

07/21/2004 Fact Sheet: Progress in the War on Terror

09/11/2004 Three Years of Progress in the War on Terror

2005

03/08/2005 President Discusses War on Terror

10/06/2005 Fact Sheet: President Bush Remarks on the War on Terror

10/28/2005 President Discusses War on Terror

12/12/2005 President Discusses War on Terror and Upcoming Iraqi Elections

2006

01/04/2006 President Discusses War on Terror Following Pentagon Briefing

02/16/2006 Fact Sheet: President Requests $72.4 Billion for the Global War on Terror

03/20/2006 President Discusses War on Terror and Operation Iraqi Freedom

04/10/2006 President Bush Discusses Global War on Terror

05/22/2006 President Bush Discusses Global War on Terror

09/05/2006 President Discusses Global War on Terror

09/05/2006 Fact Sheet: The President's National Strategy for Combating Terrorism

09/07/2006 President Bush Discusses Progress in the Global War on Terror

09/29/2006 President Bush Discusses Global War on Terror

09/29/2006 Fact Sheet: Afghanistan and Pakistan: Strong Allies in the War on Terror

President George W. Bush speaks at the Heritage Foundation in Washington, D. C. on November 1, 2007. Speaking on the Global War on Terror, the President said, "We're standing with those who yearn for liberty in the Middle East because we know that when free societies take root in that part of the world they will yield the peace we all desire."

2007

02/15/2007 President Bush Discusses Progress in Afghanistan, Global War on Terror

08/06/2007 Fact Sheet: Combating Terrorism Worldwide

11/01/2007 President Bush Discusses Global War on Terror

2008 

03/19/2008 President Bush Discusses Global War on Terror

03/19/2008 Fact Sheet: Five Years Later: New Strategy Improving Security in Iraq

Additional press releases, Presidential Messages and Statements, War on Terror photo essays, and more from 2001 - 2008 are available through the archived White House Website.