Tony Bennett Tells Howard Stern the U.S. 'Caused' 9/11
Tony Bennett probably wasn't aiming to grab this type of attention when he went on Sirius radio to promote his pleasant-sounding duets album. But, as ABC News studiously transcribed, the avowed pacifist waded into a conversation with Howard Stern that may not endear himself to listeners. He seems to have expressed a "we hurt them before they hurt us, and both of us were wrong" opinion of 9/11 on the show, and also claims that he shared a moment with George Bush where the ex-decider admitted that invading Iraq wasn't a good idea:
In a soft-spoken voice, the singer disagreed with Stern's premise that 9/11 terrorists' actions led to U.S. military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan. "They flew the plane in, but we caused it," Bennett responded. "Because we were bombing them and they told us to stop."
... Before leaving, Bennett recalled an evening in 2005 when he was honored at the Kennedy Center. Meeting President George W. Bush at the event, the singer said that the commander-in-chief shared his opinion about the Iraq War."He told me personally that night that, he said, 'I think I made a mistake,'" Bennett said.
Bush probably wouldn't phrase what he said that evening the same way.
