Nic McKinley marks 9/11 anniversary at Montana Capitol

DeliverFund founder and former Air Force Pararescueman Nic McKinley delivered the keynote at a Montana State Capitol ceremony marking 25 years since the Sept. 11 attacks. He tied the anniversary to his counter-human trafficking work, arguing that confronting evil requires action, not silence.

Why it matters: - McKinley used the 9/11 anniversary to connect national memory to present-day threats, framing inaction as a moral failure. - DeliverFund positioned its anti-trafficking work as a direct extension of McKinley’s counterterrorism mindset. - The ceremony underscored how state and local leaders continue to mark 9/11 as both a memorial event and a call to civic duty.

What happened: - Nic McKinley, founder and CEO of DeliverFund and a retired U.S. Air Force Pararescueman and former CIA officer, gave the keynote at a Montana Department of Justice ceremony in the Montana State Capitol Rotunda. - The event marked the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. - The noon ceremony honored nearly 3,000 people killed in the attacks and the first responders who died trying to save them. - The Montana Highway Patrol Honor Guard and the Montana State Firefighter's Association presented the colors. - A wreath was placed in the rotunda. - A member of the Montana State Firefighter's Association rang a ceremonial bell in the rotunda in the tradition used to mourn fallen firefighters.

The details: - McKinley said he was at home packing for what would have been his 14th combat deployment when he heard the first plane strike the World Trade Center. - His team leader called minutes later and ordered him to report to the squadron. - Within 50 days, McKinley was across the Atlantic on a counterterrorism mission. - McKinley said the lesson of Sept. 11 was moral, not just historical. - He said the attacks happened because people tried to make peace with evil. - He said peace requires both parties to want it. - McKinley drew a distinction between keeping peace and making peace. - He said keeping peace means taking no part, forming no opinion and taking no action. - He said making peace means actively confronting what seeks to destroy peace. - He said refusing to answer violence is not peace, but surrender. - He said silence about evil is itself a political act. - McKinley said Americans are still trying to make peace with evil in the present. - He singled out threats to children’s innocence as a priority concern. - He closed by pointing to United Airlines Flight 93 passengers who fought their hijackers and forced the aircraft down in Pennsylvania. - McKinley said that action likely saved hundreds of lives and prevented an attack on the U.S. Capitol. - He ended with, “Let’s roll.” - McKinley said America’s culture has not changed in the past 25 years and will remain committed to freedom and bravery.

Between the lines: - McKinley’s remarks mirrored DeliverFund’s operating philosophy: counter trafficking rather than simply oppose it. - DeliverFund defines “counter” as acting against and fighting back, while describing “anti” as merely being opposed to something. - The organization was founded in 2014 to apply counterterrorism methods and intelligence tradecraft to human trafficking networks inside the United States. - The group focuses on upstream disruption rather than only the aftermath of trafficking crimes. - DeliverFund says it provides law enforcement with proprietary data, technology and training to identify traffickers, build cases and dismantle networks across jurisdictions. - The organization says it works with more than 9,000 officers across 1,200 jurisdictions. - The framing suggests McKinley sees trafficking as a networked threat that requires active disruption, not advocacy alone.

What’s next: - DeliverFund is likely to continue leaning on law enforcement partnerships as its main model for disrupting trafficking networks. - Montana continued its 9/11 observance with statewide flag orders and a moment of silence at 6:46 a.m., signaling ongoing public remembrance. - Governor Greg Gianforte also marked the anniversary at a ceremony in Bozeman with American Legion Post 14 and the Bozeman Safety Center. - Additional Capitol remarks came from Anne Dormady, Lee Johnson and Bowen Greenwood, with Helena Fire Department members and community responders present.

The bottom line: - McKinley used a 9/11 memorial to argue that confronting evil requires action, and he cast DeliverFund’s anti-trafficking mission as that philosophy in practice.