GLENN: Why is a horrific tragedy the price we have to pay?
Hurricane Irma slammed into the Florida Keys Sunday morning. Then it made its way west, up the coast of Florida. Weakening for a while to a category two, but by the time it hit Tampa overnight, it felt anything, but a category two. Irma's eye didn't strike Miami directly, but the city along with the most of the southern and west coast of Florida were hit with storm surges and widespread flooding. And it's not over yet.
We still don't know the overall damage, but it's safe to say, it's already one of the worst storms in Florida's history. Followed by one of the worst storms in American history.
Half of the state of Florida is out of power today. The combination, one-two punch of Harvey and Irma, come just as we are reminded today of the 16th anniversary of one of the most tragic days in American history, certainly the most tragic day of my lifetime. The human toll of these hurricanes, thank God, does not believe anywhere close in America to the horror of September 11th, 2001.
But the enormous loss of property and livelihood provides us an opportunity to wrap our arms around American neighbors who need our help.
Do you remember how we all felt? It's September 11th. Do you remember how we all felt that night? I remember that night after working late, we all went to an Outback Steakhouse. And we -- we shook our heads and couldn't believe what our day was like. And we talked about how America was about to change. But we listened to each other.
We helped one another. We were on the same team for a while. You could feel it in the air.
I think we felt that same thing with Hurricane Harvey. We have the opportunity to rally again, to get back on the same page about something other than ourselves.
After Katrina, the city of Houston opened their arms to the people of New Orleans. And now, New Orleans wants to return the favor. The city captured the spirit in a heartfelt message to Houston, I'll share later. It's amazing.
The way of life you love will carry on, they wrote. You taught us that. Your courage and your care continues to inspire our whole city. We couldn't be more proud to call you our neighbors, our friends, and our family. Texas forever. We're with you.
The attitude of service is what made America great. Why do we keep forgetting that?
America is great because America is good. And we have seen it on display.
My question is: Why does it always seem to take a horrific tragedy? Why is that always the price we have to pay to get there?
During World War II, FDR called America the arsenal of democracy. Today, what we're seeing in Houston, what we're going to see in Florida, is America as the arsenal of generosity.
You want to make America great again, let's just continue to be known for that.
