We should certainly be cynical about these words, but they're damn welcome

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______________________

excerpt from remarks by the President at the National Defense University
National Defense University
Fort McNair
Washington, D.C.
May 23, 2013

America is at a crossroads. We must define the nature and scope of this struggle, or else it will define us. We have to be mindful of James Madison’s warning that “No nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare.” Neither I, nor any President, can promise the total defeat of terror. We will never erase the evil that lies in the hearts of some human beings, nor stamp out every danger to our open society. But what we can do -- what we must do -- is dismantle networks that pose a direct danger to us, and make it less likely for new groups to gain a foothold, all the while maintaining the freedoms and ideals that we defend. And to define that strategy, we have to make decisions based not on fear, but on hard-earned wisdom...

The AUMF is now nearly 12 years old. The Afghan war is coming to an end. Core al Qaeda is a shell of its former self. Groups like AQAP must be dealt with, but in the years to come, not every collection of thugs that labels themselves al Qaeda will pose a credible threat to the United States. Unless we discipline our thinking, our definitions, our actions, we may be drawn into more wars we don’t need to fight, or continue to grant Presidents unbound powers more suited for traditional armed conflicts between nation states.

So I look forward to engaging Congress and the American people in efforts to refine, and ultimately repeal, the AUMF’s mandate. And I will not sign laws designed to expand this mandate further. Our systematic effort to dismantle terrorist organizations must continue. But this war, like all wars, must end. That’s what history advises. That’s what our democracy demands...

Our victory against terrorism won’t be measured in a surrender ceremony at a battleship, or a statue being pulled to the ground. Victory will be measured in parents taking their kids to school; immigrants coming to our shores; fans taking in a ballgame; a veteran starting a business; a bustling city street; a citizen shouting her concerns at a President.

The quiet determination; that strength of character and bond of fellowship; that refutation of fear -- that is both our sword and our shield.

read entire address: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/05/23/remarks-president-national-defense-university

watch:

Michael Cohen @speechboy71
Don't think it's an exaggeration to suggest that this speech will be seen by history as the rhetorical end of the War on Terror

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1. Still want to see the “playbook.”

Last edited Fri May 24, 2013, 08:16 AM - Edit history (1)

David Firestone @fstonenyt

Still want to see the "playbook." But that was one of the most detailed and thoughtful speeches on national security ever given by a US prez

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2. For those annoyed that Obama hasn't closed Gitmo

Michael Cohen @speechboy71

For those annoyed that Obama hasn't closed Gitmo . . . check out GOP response to today's speech