September 11, 2001 and the first response
Grade 11 Social Studies Worksheet

Circle the best answer.
Read this first
Use this
Cards A to F. Card A, exact: "That the President is authorized to use all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organizations, or persons he determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored such organizations or persons, in order to prevent any future acts of international terrorism against the United States by such nations, organizations or persons." (Public Law 107-40, section 2(a), signed September 18, 2001). Card B, a summary in our words: Congress passed the Authorization for Use of Military Force as Senate Joint Resolution 23 on Friday, September 14, 2001. The Senate voted 98 to 0 and the House voted 420 to 1. Card C, from the Constitution, exact fragments: Article I, section 8 lists among the powers of Congress "To declare War". Article II, section 2 says "The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States". Also from a joint resolution of Congress of December 8, 1941, exact: "the state of war between the United States and the Imperial Government of Japan which has thus been thrust upon the United States is hereby formally declared". Card D, exact, from the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-296, section 101, signed November 25, 2002), with cuts marked: "There is established a Department of Homeland Security, as an executive department of the United States within the meaning of title 5. … The primary mission of the Department is to— (A) prevent terrorist attacks within the United States; (B) reduce the vulnerability of the United States to terrorism; (C) minimize the damage, and assist in the recovery, from terrorist attacks that do occur within the United States; …" Card E, a summary in our words: the Aviation and Transportation Security Act became law on November 19, 2001. It created the Transportation Security Administration inside the Department of Transportation and made it responsible for the day-to-day federal screening of airline passengers at airports. Card F, a table in our words from the Department of Homeland Security, Who Joined DHS. Five agencies that joined the Department of Homeland Security, and the department each came from: U.S. Customs Service (Treasury); Immigration and Naturalization Service (Justice); Transportation Security Administration (Transportation); Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (Treasury); Plum Island Animal Disease Center (Agriculture). All or part of 22 agencies joined the new department, which opened its doors on March 1, 2003. Card G, exact, from The 9/11 Commission Report (2004), page 13: "Five calls described the intent of passengers and surviving crew members to revolt against the hijackers. According to one call, they voted on whether to rush the terrorists in an attempt to retake the plane. They decided, and acted. At 9:57, the passenger assault began. Several passengers had terminated phone calls with loved ones in order to join the revolt."
Ari compares card A with the 1941 words on card C. Which difference does the text show?
- Both leave the target to the President, but just the 1941 text mentions the Constitution
- The 1941 text limits force to Japan's armed forces, while card A sets no limit on targets
- Both authorize the President to wage war, and the sole difference is that the 1941 text uses the word "declared"
- The 1941 words declare war on a named government; card A authorizes force against groups linked to the attacks
Card C gives Congress the power to declare war and makes the President commander in chief. Under card A, who picks targets, Bo asks?
- The President alone, since he is commander in chief and the text adds no limit to his choice
- The courts, which review each determination against the words of the text
- Congress, since Congress alone can declare war and so Congress alone can name each target
- The President decides who fits the description that Congress wrote into the text
Jun looks for a limit on the force that card A allows. Where does the text itself set one?
- In "to prevent any future acts," which ends the authority when the 2001 attacks are over
- In the votes of card B, which show Congress meant to give a narrow grant
- In the words linking targets to those who planned, aided or harbored the attackers
- In "necessary and appropriate," which lets Congress review each use of force as needed
A textbook prints section 101 of the Homeland Security Act in 2020. How should Kira classify the printed section?
- A secondary source throughout, because a textbook is a later book
- Neither, since the signed original in the National Archives alone can be primary
- A primary source for the law's wording; the textbook's comments are a later account
- A primary source throughout, because the textbook quotes the law exactly
Cards E and F both mention the Transportation Security Administration. What do they show Luz about airport screening?
- Federal screening began inside Transportation in 2001, then moved into the new department
- Screening moved from Transportation into the new department in 2001, a year before the Act
- Screening was shared by Transportation and Treasury after 2002, since both lost agencies
- Airlines kept screening until the 2002 Act moved it to the new department
Card F lists five agencies and their old departments. What does the table show Milo about how the department was built?
- It was built by moving existing agencies, but just from the Treasury and Justice departments
- It was built mainly by moving existing agencies out of at least four departments
- It was built mostly from new agencies, and the table lists just the old ones that joined
- It was built from five departments, one for each agency in the table
Card G says "According to one call, they voted." How strong is that as evidence that each passenger voted, Noah asks?
- Moderate: the Commission is careful, so one call is enough to show each passenger took part
- Strong: five calls described the plan to revolt, so the vote was widely reported
- Weak: calls from a hijacked plane are not reliable evidence of anything
- Weak: it reports one call's account of a vote and does not say who voted or how
Across cards A, E and D, how did the federal response change from September 2001 to November 2002, Pia asks?
- From building a lasting department toward a quick grant of authority to the President
- From federal leadership toward leadership by states and localities, who gained the department's powers
- From a quick grant of authority and a new agency toward a lasting department built from existing ones
- From a temporary emergency measure toward a standing force for the defense of the homeland
Card D calls the new department "an executive department" and card C makes the President commander in chief. What does that tell Tala about control?
- It answers to Congress, because Congress created it and set its mission
- The department sits in the executive branch under the President, like Treasury or Justice
- It is independent like a commission, since its mission is written in a law
- It shares control with the states, since its mission is to protect the whole country
A note says "Federal airport screening began only with the 2002 Homeland Security Act." Which reading of the cards best answers it, Zee asks?
- Card E dates federal screening to 2001; card F fits 2002 only for the agency's move
- Card B, which shows Congress acting on security in 2001, so screening began then
- Card D, which gives the department a mission to prevent attacks, so screening began there
- Card F, which shows the screening agency joining the department in 2003, after the Act

