Bloomberg Visits Site of Flight 93 Crash

Mayor Bloomberg visited the Shanksville, Pennsylvania site where Flight 93 crashed on September 11, 2001. The Mayor has headed the National September 11 Memorial & Museum foundation (formerly the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation) ever since last October, and had been traveling across the country to raise money for the memorial.

And his effect on the foundation has been noticeable: The memorial is close to its $350 million goal, with $325 million raised so far, and $190 million of it raised under Bloomberg's watch. Bloomberg brought with him a 4 ton steel beam that will be part of the memorial, as well as artifacts and a multimedia presentations, as part of a national fund-raising tour. He told to the group, "With your help, we will build a memorial that will tell the story to future generations so that our children and grandchildren will know the sacrifice that was made and will realize just how important the freedoms that we have in this country are."

The 25-city tour which started on September 10, seems to some, like a possible tour for Bloomberg's presidential aspirations, though he denies it. However, he did pose with some people who wore "Bloomberg 2008" buttons. And the NY Times reports that the National Park Service, which has been trying to drum up money for the Flight 93 memorial, has struggled, with only $12.5 million of $30 million raised. Here's a link to their memorial donation website.

Photograph of Mayor Bloomberg at Shanksville, PA by Kecia Bal/AP