In April 2001 , President Bush asked Schieffer to become the Ambassador of the United States to Australia . He accepted and presented his credentials in Canberra on August 23 , 2001 , as the 22nd representative of the U.S. president . His two immediate predecessors had been Directors-General of the U.S. Foreign Service , although it has been noted that Australian governments sometimes value a U.S. Ambassador 's personal links to the President currently in office . Returning to America to attend the first summit between Prime Minister John Howard and President Bush on September 10 , 2001 , Schieffer was in Washington on September 11 , 2001 , when the September 11 attacks occurred . Returning to Australia on September 12 with the Prime Minister on board Air Force Two , Schieffer and the White House worked with the Prime Minister and the Australian government to invoke the ANZUS treaty for the first time in its 50-year history so that Australia could come to the aid of the United States as a result of the terrorists ' attack . Subsequently , Schieffer attended five more war time summits with the President and Australian Prime Minister in the next three and a half years as Australia helped America in Afghanistan and Iraq . During his tenure in Canberra , he coordinated closely with the Government of Australia on efforts to fight global terrorism and helped to deepen cooperation on rebuilding efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
Tom Schieffer