For presidents, the legacy of Sept 11 has no end

WASHINGTON (AP) — The country has moved on. To the presidents who lead it, Sept. 11 never ends.

The ramifications of the worst terrorist attack in American history live on, bridging the decade from George W. Bush to Barack Obama.

Two wars. Huge debt. The Guantanamo Bay quandary. The evolving threat of terrorism. The end of Osama bin Laden. The hardening of executive power.

And the remains of fallen soldiers still coming home in flag-covered cases.

Sept. 11, 2001, defined Bush's presidency. It drives Obama's, even if more quietly.

"I remember President Bush used to warn people that it was going to be a long slog," said Michael Chertoff, Bush's second homeland security secretary. "There wasn't going to be a Battleship Missouri moment. The critical issue for us was to persevere without being overwrought. I think that was an accurate prediction."

But persevere for how long?

That is perhaps the biggest legacy at the presidential level: a new mindset....