Text 1970, 292 rader
Skriven 2006-01-06 23:33:22 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0601069) for Fri, 2006 Jan 6
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Vice President's Remarks at a Rally for the Troops
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Vice President
January 6, 2006

Vice President's Remarks at a Rally for the Troops
Fort Leavenworth
Leavenworth, Kansas



12:10 P.M. CST

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Thank you all very much. I appreciate the warm welcome,
honored to pay a visit to the best hometown in the United States Army, Fort
Leavenworth, Kansas. (Applause.) And it's good to be here, as well today --
we've got some distinguished congressional friends with us: Senator Pat
Roberts; Congressmen Jerry Moran, Jim Ryun and Dennis Moore. (Applause.)

I'm using a cane today, and it's driving the press nuts. (Laughter.) They
keep asking my staff what happened to the Vice President, is it serious?
And so I said, no, Secretary Rumsfeld bit me in the ankle. (Laughter.) Not
to worry. (Laughter.) But don't tell him I said that. (Laughter.)

But I appreciate the kind words from the Commanding General of the Combined
Arms Center here at Fort Leavenworth, of course, General David Petraeus.
And, General, I want to begin today with a special word of thanks to you.
After leading the Screaming Eagles of the 101st Airborne during Operation
Iraqi Freedom, you became the first commander of the Multi-National
Security Transition Command, and also led the NATO Training Mission --
Iraq. The United States, our coalition, and the Iraqi people counted on you
to begin the process of training security forces for that nation. You
carried out that assignment brilliantly, with the kind of foresight,
integrity, and wisdom this nation expects of our finest military officers.
Every day we're seeing the good results of your efforts. And here in the
presence of the men and women of Fort Leavenworth, I want to thank you for
what you did for all of us. (Applause.)

This military post on the banks of the Missouri was an important place in
the life of our country, and in the history of freedom. Here the nation has
prepared generations of officers, who have provided the kind of leadership
that keeps our military strong, and keeps our country free. At Fort
Leavenworth the CAC supports an Army that is transforming itself for a new
century, while at the same time fighting this century's very first war.
This is also the home of a very important Battle Command Training Center
for the Army National Guard, and the 35th ID, which mobilized and moved
swiftly in the recovery effort after Hurricane Katrina.

These are eventful times for the U.S. military, and Fort Leavenworth is at
the center of a great many critical assignments. You know what you're
doing, and you do it very well. I am honored to be in your company. And I
bring good wishes to each and every one of you from our Commander-in-Chief,
President George W. Bush. (Applause.)

Our nation has counted on the Army for more than 230 years. And soldiers of
the United States are repaying that confidence every day that we fight the
war on terror. When we were attacked on that terrible September morning
four years ago, President Bush said that the struggle would be lengthy and
difficult, and would require our best effort and unfailing resolve. And in
that fight some of the hardest duties have come to the men and women of the
United States Army.

A number of people on this platform have been in the thick of battle
against our enemies of freedom. We know your country asked you to carry out
some very demanding missions. You've done so with focus and skill,
regardless of the conditions. Your performance in combat -- not just the
progress you've made, but also the character you have shown -- has left a
lasting impression on people up and down the chain of command. I want to
thank you for a job well done and say welcome home. (Applause.)

As some of you know, just before Christmas I visited Afghanistan and Iraq,
and met with some of the units we've deployed to those countries. I thanked
them for their service, and for all they've done to bring freedom,
stability, and peace to a troubled part of the world. Afghanistan four
years ago was in the grip of a violent, merciless regime that harbored
terrorists and plotted murder for export. There is still tough fighting
going on in that country, some of it in very rough terrain, high in the
mountains and up along the borders. But our people are getting the job
done, together with coalition partners and an increasingly strong and
professional Afghan military.

And Afghanistan is a rising nation - with a democratically-elected
government, a market economy, equality for women, and millions of children
going to school for the very first time. It is impossible to overstate all
that our coalition has achieved in Afghanistan -- and when our forces
return home from that part of the world, they can be proud of their service
for the rest of their lives.

I brought that same message to our people serving in Iraq. Americans
understand what is at stake in that country -- and so do the terrorists.
That is why they commit acts of random horror, calculated to shock and to
intimidate the civilized world. The terrorists know that as freedom takes
hold, the ideologies of hatred and resentment will lose their appeal, and
the advance of democracy will inspire reformers across the broader Middle
East. And as that region experiences new hope and progress, we will see the
power of freedom to lift up whole nations, and the spread of liberty will
produce a much safer world for our children and for our grandchildren.

The war on terror is a battle for the future of civilization; it's a battle
worth fighting -- it's a battle we are going to win. (Applause.)

Our strategy in Iraq is clear, our tactics will remain flexible, and we'll
work at the job until we finish it. Progress has not come easily, but it
has been steady, and we can be confident going forward. By voting in free
elections, by ratifying a constitution, by electing a government last
month, Iraqis have shown they value their own liberty and are determined to
choose their own destiny.

Our Coalition has also put great effort into standing up the Iraqi Security
Forces, and we've come a great distance over the past year. We're helping
to build an Iraqi force that is sharp and well equipped, and this was vital
to the success of last month's elections. Gradually, Iraqi forces are
taking control of more Iraqi territory -- and as they undertake further
missions on their own, confidence is growing within the country and more
and more intelligence tips are being provided by the Iraqi population.

As the ISF gains strength and experience, and as the political process
advances, we'll be able to transfer more and more responsibility to the
Iraqis, and eventually decrease troop levels without losing our capacity to
defeat the terrorists. And I assure you: Any decisions about troop levels
will be driven by conditions on the ground and by the judgment of our
commanders -- not by artificial timelines set by politicians in Washington,
D.C. (Applause.)

Recently there have been some prominent voices advocating a sudden
withdrawal of our forces from Iraq. Some have suggested the war is not
winnable, a few seem almost eager to conclude that the struggle was already
lost. But they are wrong. The only way to lose this fight is to quit -- and
that is not an option. (Applause.)

Every American serving in this war can be absolutely certain that the
people of our country do not support a policy of passivity, resignation, or
defeatism in the face of terror. The United States will never go back to
the false comforts of the world before September 11th, 2001. Terrorist
attacks are not caused by the use of strength. They are invited by the
perception of weakness. And this nation made a decision: We will engage
these enemies -- facing them far from home, so we do not have to face them
on the streets of our own cities. (Applause.)

There is still hard work ahead, because we are dealing with enemies who
have declared an intention to bring great harm to any nation that opposes
their aims. Their prime targets are the United States and the American
people. And so we have a continuing responsibility to lead in this fight.

In the war on terror we face a loose network of committed fanatics, found
in many countries and operating under different commanders. Yet the
branches of this network share the same basic ideology and the same dark
vision for the world. The terrorists want to end American and Western
influence in the Middle East. Their goal in that region is to gain control
of a country, so they have a base from which to launch attacks and to wage
war against governments that do not meet their demands. The terrorists
believe that by controlling an entire country, they will be able to target
and overthrow other governments, and to establish a radical Islamic empire
that encompasses a region from Spain, across North Africa, through the
Middle East and South Asia, all the way to Indonesia.

They have made clear, as well, their ultimate ambitions: to arm themselves
with weapons of mass destruction, to destroy Israel, to intimidate all
Western countries, and to cause mass death here in the United States. In
the face of such a threat, those of us in positions of responsibility have
a duty to wage a broad-scale effort for the sake of this nation's freedom
and security.

That effort includes a home front, which is every bit as important as the
battlefields abroad. In his speech to Congress after 9/11, President Bush
said that the United States would, "direct every resource at our command --
every means of diplomacy, every tool of intelligence, every instrument of
law enforcement, every financial influence, and every necessary weapon of
war -- to the disruption and to the defeat of the global terror network."
(Applause.)

The Congress backed him up in full, authorizing the President to defeat an
enemy that had already slipped into our country and waged a horrific attack
upon 3,000 innocent, unsuspecting men, women, and children.

The President also signed the Patriot Act, which removed the artificial
barrier that used to exist between law enforcement and intelligence, and
gave federal officials the ability to pursue terrorists with the tools that
they already use for drug traffickers and other kinds of criminals. That
law has helped us to disrupt terrorist activity, to break up terror cells
within the United States, and to protect the lives of many Americans. We
look forward to a renewal of the Patriot Act in 2006, because that law has
done exactly what it was intended to do -- and this country cannot afford
to be without its protection.

Another vital step the President took in the days following 9/11 was to
authorize the National Security Agency to intercept a certain category of
terrorist-linked international communications. Now, you've seen a lot of
press commentary recently about "domestic surveillance". Let me remind
everybody, what we're talking about are international communications, one
of end of the communication is outside the United States and one end of the
communication we have reason to believe is al Qaeda or terrorist-related.
There are no more important communications to the safety of the United
States than those related to al Qaeda that have one end in the United
States. If we'd been able to do this before 9/11, we might have been able
to pick up on two hijackers who subsequently flew a jet into the Pentagon.
They were in the United States, communicating with al Qaeda associates
overseas. But we did not know they were here plotting until it was too
late.

If you'll recall, the report of the 9/11 Commission it focused on criticism
of our inability to uncover links between terrorists at home and terrorists
abroad. The authorization the President made after September 11th helped
address that problem in a manner that is fully consistent with the
constitutional responsibilities and legal authority of the President and
with the civil liberties of the American people. The activities conducted
under this authorization have helped to detect and prevent possible
terrorist attacks against the American people. And as such, this program is
critical to the national security of the United States.

A spirited debate is now underway, and one -- and our message to the
American people is clear and straightforward: These actions are within the
President's authority under the Constitution and laws, and these actions
are vital to the security of our nation. This is a wartime measure, limited
in scope to surveillance associated with terrorists, and conducted in a way
that safeguards the civil liberties of the American people.

It is important to note that leaders of Congress have been briefed more
than a dozen times on the President's authorization, and on activities
conducted under it. I have personally presided over most of those
briefings. In addition, the entire program undergoes a thorough review
approximately every 45 days. After each review, the President personally
determines whether or not to reauthorize the program. He has done so more
than 30 times since September 11th -- and he has indicated his intent to do
so as long as our nation faces a continuing threat from al Qaeda and
related organizations.

It seems more than obvious to say that our nation is still at risk of
attack. Yet as we get farther away from September 11th, some in Washington
are yielding to the temptation to downplay the threat, and to back away
from the business at hand. That mindset may be comforting but it is
dangerous. We're all grateful this nation has gone four years and four
months without another 9/11.

Obviously, no one can guarantee that we won't be hit again. But getting
through four years of wartime without an attack on the homeland was more
than just a matter of luck. We've been protected by sensible policy
decisions, by decisive action at home and abroad, and by round-the-clock
efforts on the part of people in the armed services, in law enforcement, in
intelligence, and homeland security.

The enemy that struck on 9/11 is weakened and fractured, yet still lethal
and still determined to hit us again. We have faced, and are facing today,
enemies who hate us, who hate our country, and hate the liberties for which
we stand. They dwell in the shadows, wear no uniform, have no regard for
the laws of warfare, and feel unconstrained by any standard of morality.
It's a serious fight -- and we have a lot more to do before it's finished.
Either we are serious about fighting this war or we are not. And the
enemies of America need to know: We are serious, and we will not let down
our guard. (Applause.)

Ladies and gentlemen, as members of the United States Armed Forces, each
one of you is helping to write a proud chapter in the history of freedom.
At times you may wonder if your fellow citizens truly realize the extent of
your sacrifice and your achievements. I want you to know that Americans do
realize it -- and that we do not take our military for granted. We
appreciate fellow citizens who go out on long deployments and endure the
hardship of separation from home and family. We care about those who have
returned with injuries, and who face a hard road ahead. And our nation
grieves for the brave men and women whose lives have ended in freedom's
cause. No one can take away the sorrow that has come to the families of the
fallen. We can only say, with complete certainty, that these Americans
served in a noble and necessary cause, and their sacrifice has made our
nation and the world more secure. We will honor their memory forever.
(Applause.)

None of us can know every turn that lies ahead for America in the fight
against terror. Yet the direction of events is plain to see, and this
period of struggle and testing is also a time of promise. The United States
of America is a good country, a decent country, and we are making the world
a better place by defending the innocent, confronting the violent, and
bringing freedom to the oppressed. We understand the continuing dangers to
civilization, and we have the resources, the strength, and the moral
courage to overcome those dangers and to lay the foundations for a better
world.

Each time I visit a military installation I come away with renewed
confidence in the men and women who wear the uniform of the United States.
Each one of you has dedicated yourself to serving our nation and its
ideals, and you are meeting that commitment during a time of great need for
this country. The Army defends America. You represent the very best of
America. You make us proud every single day. (Applause.)

END 12:35 P.M. CST
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