Peace comes through dealing with people. Peace doesn't come at the end of a bayonet or the end of a gun.

Imposing democracy through force is a roll of the dice.

When you're dealing in situations that are uncontrollable and combustible, you try to stabilize the situation as quickly as you can and then work toward and work out toward democratic reform.

I think the American people want to have confidence in this administration's national security plans. And this is the only way to do it.

failed to give the American people a realistic assessment of where we stand today, and where we should be going.

Foreign policy is all about a universe of bad decisions, imperfect decisions; every situation is different. The dynamics, the atmospherics, the people, the pressures, the geopolitical realities shift.