Everybody needs to understand that I learned Arabic from the United States Army as a second language. I never spoke it at home.

Everybody needs to understand that I learned Arabic from the United States Army as a second language. I never spoke it at home.

The United States is the most powerful nation on Earth and it just can't walk away from the Middle East and central Asia and the Horn of Africa.

And so I think that if the person has the funds, the network, and the equipment to do this, and also the experience, which is the key factor, then they can be quite deadly.

You don't build a new power plant in the United States overnight. It takes years to build.

And over time, I think, as Iraqi security capacity builds, you'll see American and coalition presence there decline.

Oh, the transition concerns me because as we move towards an important political event, it's clear to me that the terrorists and insurgents will move as hard as they can to disrupt this process.