it an honor to be in your presenc and i want to thank you for all that you done and for what you do todai __PUNCT__
honor and duti __PUNCT__ put your countri first __PUNCT__ ar hallmark for you __PUNCT__
ultim it all about freedom __PUNCT__
it the univers principl on which thi countri wa found __PUNCT__
becaus of the sacrific of so mani __PUNCT__ we ar a great nation that serv as a beacon of hope and freedom for all those who do not have it __PUNCT__
for a long time now __PUNCT__ the unit state ha been a power forc for stabil __PUNCT__ democraci and prosper in the world __PUNCT__
our brave men and women have given more blood for the freedom of other peopl than all the other nation in the world combin __PUNCT__ and i get a littl tire of peopl feel the necess to apolog for the unit state of america __PUNCT__
you and the men and women of our arm forc ar remind that our strength doe not come from the high tech tool of combat __PUNCT__ the smart bomb __PUNCT__ satellit and stealth bomber __PUNCT__
our strength come from those will to take up these weapon when necessari __PUNCT__
for that __PUNCT__ our nation is profoundli indebt __PUNCT__
you and thei ar the tool by which we have carri out our nation first oblig __PUNCT__ secur the freedom and secur of thi countri __PUNCT__
we ar all caught up in the issu of the dai __PUNCT__ and there ar plenti of them __PUNCT__ but without freedom and secur there ar no solut to ani other problem thi countri mai have __PUNCT__
i come to you todai as on who is concern that __PUNCT__ on our present cours __PUNCT__ our countri is go to becom less secur and more divid __PUNCT__
i fear that even at thi late date __PUNCT__ we as a nation have not come to term with the natur and extent of the threat our countri face __PUNCT__
or how much time __PUNCT__ resourc and commit we ar go to have to make __PUNCT__
mani peopl appar think that if we just pull out of iraq __PUNCT__ radic islam will leav us alon __PUNCT__
you and i know better __PUNCT__
we know that iraq is current the major front in a global war and that if we appear to be weak and divid __PUNCT__ or if we fail __PUNCT__ it will embolden our enemi and further endang our countri __PUNCT__
we must have a frank and continu convers about thi with the american peopl becaus __PUNCT__ abov all __PUNCT__ we must have the support and uniti of the american peopl if we ar to succe __PUNCT__
we face and enemi who look upon the current situat as a continu of a struggl that ha been go on for hundr of year __PUNCT__
their intent is to bring western civil __PUNCT__ and primarili the unit state to it knee __PUNCT__
thei ar barbar to an extent that is hard to comprehend by the ordinari person __PUNCT__
thei believ that their effort is on cours __PUNCT__ that the soviet union wa a tougher enemi than we ar and thei defeat them in afghanistan __PUNCT__
thei believ that saddam wa right when he call the unit state a __PUNCT__ weak hors __PUNCT__
osama bin laden ha call us a __PUNCT__ paper tiger __PUNCT__
these ar not comment about our militari strength __PUNCT__ these ar comment about their percept of american will __PUNCT__
the world wait to see if thei were right __PUNCT__
success in iraq will not solv our problem __PUNCT__ but defeat will make it much wors __PUNCT__
we ar clearli make progress there in the import anbar provinc and elsewher __PUNCT__
yet even befor gener petreau __PUNCT__ who is univers respect __PUNCT__ ha an opportun to give hi report __PUNCT__ congress furious debat the term of our surrend instead of how we might achiev success __PUNCT__
thei remind me of the scene from iwo jima where a group of men were struggl to plant the flag __PUNCT__
howev __PUNCT__ thi time it not the american flag __PUNCT__ it the white flag __PUNCT__
the specter of ethnic cleans __PUNCT__ the nuclear of the entir middl east __PUNCT__ the disrupt of oil suppli and the loss of confid and respect of our alli in the middl east and around the world is insuffici to deter them __PUNCT__
no on want peac more than the father or mother of children and grandchildren __PUNCT__
but if world histori teach us anyth __PUNCT__ it is that the appear of weak and lack of determin invit more conflict and death __PUNCT__ not less __PUNCT__
our countri wa not prepar for our current situat __PUNCT__
we took a holidai from histori in the __NUM__ __PUNCT__
we cut our militari __PUNCT__ our procur and our research and develop __PUNCT__
now our militari is stretch too thin __PUNCT__
we ar wear out our equip __PUNCT__
our intellig capabl ar inadequ __PUNCT__
to revers thi situat we must reassess our nation prioriti and face the truth about what it will take to defend thi countri __PUNCT__
demograph and increas medic cost ar go to caus the growth of our entitl program to squeez out discretionari spend __PUNCT__ includ our defens budget __PUNCT__
america is go to have to come togeth for an honest bipartisan discuss about thi __PUNCT__
becaus anyon who honestli look at the situat know that the current trend cannot be sustain __PUNCT__
so rememb when we talk about fiscal polici we also talk about the militari and nation defens __PUNCT__
we must continu to rebuild our capabl to match the determin and patriot of the young men and women who serv thi countri __PUNCT__
if you go to brook armi medic center in san antonio __PUNCT__ texa __PUNCT__ where thei treat ampute and burn victim __PUNCT__ you will meet more than on young soldier whose primari concern is whether or not thei ar go to be abl to rejoin their comrad __PUNCT__
if you go to walter reed you mai see a young marin who i talk to recent __PUNCT__
when i walk into the rehab center __PUNCT__ he wa laugh and joke with hi therapist __PUNCT__
he wa a doubl ampute and wa try out hi new leg __PUNCT__
after i talk to him for a while __PUNCT__ i ask him what he plan to do __PUNCT__
he said he had hi ey on thi non profit organ that wa do a lot of good __PUNCT__
he want to join them __PUNCT__
then he said __PUNCT__ i just want to give someth back __PUNCT__
what kind of nation we must be to produc such peopl __PUNCT__
our main goal should be to never give our servic men or women or their famili ani reason to believ such sacrific wa made in vain __PUNCT__
it obviou that not enough recognit and appreci is shown to the peopl fight our battl __PUNCT__
a few month ago i start do a segment on abc radio that highlight some of our current hero and their stori __PUNCT__
stori about men like armi sergeant first class paul r __PUNCT__ smith and marin corpor jason dunham __PUNCT__ both of who were recipi of the medal of honor for act of valor in iraq __PUNCT__
all of you know __PUNCT__ i am sure __PUNCT__ the protocol for salut a medal of honor recipi __PUNCT__
whether you ar a presid or a four star gener __PUNCT__ it is you who salut a medal of honor recipi first __PUNCT__
thi should indic just how high an honor the medal is __PUNCT__
fewer than __NUM__ have been award sinc __NUM__ and onli a hand in the last coupl of decad __PUNCT__
yet when sergeant smith wa award the medal of honor __PUNCT__ the new york time which devot countless column inch of neg about our effort in iraq on it front page __PUNCT__ ran sergeant smith stori on page __NUM__ __PUNCT__
our oblig to our veteran doe not end when thei leav the battlefield __PUNCT__
sometim it just begin __PUNCT__
our fight men and women ar brave and courag but thei ar not indestruct __PUNCT__
thei have need __PUNCT__ emot __PUNCT__ medic and financi and have serv their countri with honor we must make sure those need ar met __PUNCT__
care for our veteran is not onli the right thing to do __PUNCT__ it is a wise thing to do __PUNCT__
we need for the young peopl of thi countri and their parent to know that we take care of our arm forc both yesterdai and todai __PUNCT__
thi will help ensur that thei will continu to be eager to serv their countri __PUNCT__
care and commit go a long wai toward recruit and retent __PUNCT__
i wa think of our oblig to our veteran when i wa invit by sean hanniti to join him in san diego for on of hi __PUNCT__ freedom __PUNCT__ concert __PUNCT__
now if you in the navi or the marin corp __PUNCT__ you know that san diego is a __PUNCT__ compani __PUNCT__ town __PUNCT__
it wa an honor to be there with so mani member of our arm forc and their famili but there were a lot of civilian in the audienc too __PUNCT__
so i took the opportun to recit a poem by charl provinc that speak to us all __PUNCT__ it is the soldier __PUNCT__ not the minist who ha given us freedom of religion __PUNCT__
it is the soldier __PUNCT__ not the report who ha given us freedom of the press __PUNCT__
it is the soldier __PUNCT__ not the poet who ha given us freedom of speech __PUNCT__
it is the soldier __PUNCT__ not the campu organ who ha given us freedom to protest __PUNCT__
it is the soldier __PUNCT__ not the lawyer who ha given us the right to a fair trial __PUNCT__
it is the soldier __PUNCT__ not the politician who ha given us the right to vote __PUNCT__
it is the soldier who salut the flag __PUNCT__ who serv beneath the flag __PUNCT__ and whose coffin is drape by the flag __PUNCT__ who allow the protest to burn the flag __PUNCT__
a lot of tough issu seem to be confront our nation all at onc these dai __PUNCT__
but thi is not the first time our nation ha been confront with major problem __PUNCT__
we alwai react the same wai __PUNCT__
we came togeth as a peopl __PUNCT__
we rememb that there is much more that unit us than divid us __PUNCT__ confront our problem head on and gotten to the other side of the mountain wiser and stronger __PUNCT__
todai __PUNCT__ we must rememb that our defens of freedom is right __PUNCT__
the charact of our troop is strong __PUNCT__
that if we stand togeth __PUNCT__ unit as a peopl __PUNCT__ as we have in past time __PUNCT__ the caus of freedom will prevail __PUNCT__
we can also be certain that in the year ahead __PUNCT__ new strateg challeng will aris __PUNCT__
in meet these threat the world will onc again look to america for leadership __PUNCT__
i know that just as each of you answer the call __PUNCT__ the unit state will stand readi __PUNCT__
thank you for your servic __PUNCT__ your sacrific and your great honor that each of you brought to your uniform __PUNCT__ our flag and our countri __PUNCT__
