lot of democrats. you have mccain and others praising the president. i'm not seeing many from the liberal democrats. they don't like the dozen year commitment to maintaining a military presence in afghanistan even if there won't be permanent bases. we're waiting for the president to get ready to leave afghanistan now that daylight is about to come up. it's after 4:00 a.m. the president will fly back to washington. our special coverage continues with "ac 360." >> thanks very much thank you for watching. if you're just watching. this is a special edition of "360." tonight the breaking news of president obama's visit to afghanistan. what he said to the troops there and what he said to the american people about a half an hour ago. he just finished speaking. he's expected to leave just shortly after daybreak at bagram air base. reporters with the president were sworn to secrecy until in

the zone. from there he quickly went by chopper to kabul, another war zone where him and president hamid karsai signed the strategic partnership agreement. it promises american support for afghanistan through 2024. ten years after the last american combat forces are scheduled to leave the country by the end of 2012. excuse me, 2014. the president made some brief remarks, then headed back to bagram for a rally with the troops. more than 130,000 men and women serve in afghanistan. the vast majority, about 90,000 are american right now. a short time later, about half an hour ago the president spoke to the united states laying out his vision for ending america's longest war. saying afghanistan is where the war began and where it will end. here's a portion of his address. >> today i signed a historic agreement between the united states and afghanistan that defines a new kind of relationship between our

countries. a future in which afghans are responsible for the security of their nation. and we build an equal partnership between two sovereign states. a future in which war ends and new chapter begins. ten years ago, the united states and our allies went to war to make sure al qaeda could never again use this country to launch attacks against us. despite initial success for a number of reasons, this war has taken longer than most anticipated. but over the last three years, the tide has turned. we broke the taliban's momentum. we've built strong afghan security forces. we devastated al qaeda's leadership taking out over 20 of their top 30 leaders. one year ago from base here in afghanistan, our troops launched the operation that killed osama bin laden. the goal that i set to defeat al qaeda and deny it a chance to rebuild is now within our reach.

we've begun to transition to afghan responsibility for security. already nearly half of the afghan people live in places where afghan security forces are moving into the lead. this month at a nato summit in chicago, our coalition will set a goal for afghan forces to be in the lead for combat operations across the country next year. international troops will continue to train, advise, and assist the afghans and fight alongside them when needed. but we will shift into a support role as afghans step forward. as we do, our troops will be coming home. last year we removed 10,000 u.s. troops from afghanistan. another 23,000 will leave by the end of the summer. after that, reductions will continue at a steady pace with more and more of our troops coming home. and as our coalition agreed, by the end of 2014, the afghans will be fully responsible for the security of their country.

as we move forward, some people will ask why we need a firm timeline. the answer is clear. our goal is not to build a country in america's image or to eradicate every vestige of the taliban. this will require many more years, many more dollars, and many more american lives. our goal is to destroy al qaeda and we are on a path to do exactly that. afghans want to assert their sovereignty and build a lasting peace. that requires a clear timeline to wind down the war. others will ask why don't we leave immediately. that answer is also clear. we must give afghanistan the opportunity to stabilize. otherwise our gains could be se. as commander in chief, i refuse to let that happen. we emerge from a decade of

conflict abroad and economic crisis at home. it's time to renew america. an america where our children live free from fear and have the skills to claim their dreams. a united america. of grit and resilience. where sunlight glistens off soaring new towers in manhattan and we build our future as one people, one nation. this time of war began in afghanistan and this is where it will end. with faith in each other and our eyes fixed on the future, let us finish the work at hand and forge a just and lasting peace. may god bless our troops and may god bless the united states of america. >> that was president obama about 25 minutes ago at bagram air base. we've just gotten words air force one is wheels up. the president is heading home. obviously we're not going to report that as it's happening for security reasons. but we're told it now has

happened. let's get quick reaction on the speech, the bin laden anniversary and what's happening in afghanistan. with us tonight ari fleischer. he's had an inside view to surprise trips like this one. so has paul begala. he's advising the leading obama super pac. also with us gloria borger. david gergen. want to get a quick headline from everybody about what they thought of this speech. ari fleischer? >> i think you've witnessed the power of incumbency. this is what presidents do. this is what commanders in chief can do. both parties are deeply split about foreign policy. there's an ambivalence in fighting and winning but we want our troops to come home. this is a difficult time in foreign policy. it's hard to see this being a

significant issue. >> paul begala? >> i think right the power of incumbency but the responsibility of power. when barack obama took office, there were 32,000 american troops in afghanistan. now there are 90,000. he has put a powerful stamp on america's military conduct in that region. and he is now responsible for every one of those troops who he saw today. >> right now the timetable 22,000 troops to leave by the end of this summer. some 68,000 to remain until 2014. gloria borger, headline from you. >> i think what the president did in going over there and signing this document was essentially a strategic embrace of afghanistan saying we're not going to desert you. we are going to be committed to you at least until 2024. and he came with a plan, anderson, and said this is how we're going to make the transition to the sovereignty of

afghanistan to having its own troops lead the way. quicker than some of us thought in their own defense. and also talked about interestingly enough, a negotiated peace in which he said we would start talking to the taliban. i think that's going to be quite controversial. >> david gergen? >> excellent speech. interesting how much more forceful and how much more of a leader he is on the foreign affairs front than in domestic policy. here's a man who had a plan going back to the campaign. he said he was going to try to crush al qaeda and take out bin laden. he's done both. and he did it tonight not by taking praise on himself but by god given credit to the troops as he should. even as he extended america's stay in the region. >> peter bergen, you called this an agreement to make an agreement. what do you mean? >> well, according to senior administration officials i spoke to this afternoon, there's going to be about a year where they

negotiate the actual details which include the money for the afghan security forces and the number of troops on the ground, opposed of 2014. some of that's condition based. but to get to a forces agreement which is the technical term for a longer -- this is what is described as a non-binding executive agreement. i don't think that really means very much in practice. it's not a treaty. >> it's more symbolic. >> but i don't want to discount the fact this is an important milestone on a long process that has been going on for awhile. i think this says something big about president obama. here's a guy that was an anti-war guy. he tripled the number of troops. he tripled the number of drones in pakistan. he intervened in libya quickly. he's been an unexpected president, i think for a lot of people who saw him as a negotiator rather than somebody

who was comfortable with the use of force in certain circumstances. >> so much, though, of what he talked about tonight depends on the afghan security forces being able to stand up to go on patrol. i think you and i were on a patrol where we were with afghan troops who stole corn from local villagers and the u.s. military who was with them made them give it back. >> i've been on patrol with afghan policemen smoking pot. i mean, complete -- i'm scratching my head to think of a really significant operation that the afghan military has conducted independently. now, in iraq you could point to that where for instance they went to basrah and did an oermgs in 2007. that is yet to happen with the afghan forces. are they getting better? yes. but it's going to be awhile. >> peter, i want to play something that president obama said about al qaeda.

let's listen to this. >> one year ago from base here in afghanistan, our troops launched the operation that killed osama bin laden. the goal that i set to defeat al qaeda and deny it a chance to rebuild is now within our reach. >> you have written the book about the hunt for bin laden, "man hunt." the taliban, though, most people acknowledge not much of an al qaeda presence in afghanistan anymore. the taliban though, we saw attacks launched in the capital itself. >> yeah. i think these are spectacular attacks that don't necessarily mean that -- i can't think of a big town that the taliban have held. they can't do offensive on kabul. the point is the relative weakness -- you're the forces who are relatively weak. and you've got the taliban who are a little stronger than

they've been in the past. if we sort of left tomorrow, the taliban might take over a large chunk sof the country. not because they're strong, but because the afghan security forces are weak. building those forces up and having the plan going forward after 2014 is critical. >> david gergen, you wrote a column for cnn.com asking whether the white house was overselling the impact of bin laden's death hyping it for political gain. what do you think of this trip now? >> well, anderson, whether or not you like president obama, any veteran of the white house has to admire the sort of professionalism that went into this these last days. they had this major public relations offensive that built up to this climactic moment tonight on national television with this long trip. all of that, i think, has been done partly for political

reasons looking forward november. i have felt as ari felt that they went overboard in their ad going after romney. i thought they were excessive on a lot of this. it does go with the territory. what i think has been left out of the discussion and peter would be very good on this. and that is we have -- we are leaving one era where bin laden threatened us but into a new era where people say it will be more dangerous than it looks. pakistan is developing nuclear weapons every year. al qaeda is -- islamic militants are taking more political control in places like egypt. so that has all been left out of this. i do think there's been a quality about what the white house has done. saying basically we're now safe when we are not. and there is a lot out there in this new world that we really ought to be -- that's where i think the republicans ought to

go. what are we going into the new world in which we're emerging. >> gloria, was this good politics? >> was what good politics? the trip? >> yes. >> well, everything is going to be seen as a political move. and given the fact that they released the web video on bin laden, the killing of osama bin laden, and would mitt romney have gone down the same path and they got in a fight, they set themselves up for this trip. but, so people are going to see it through a political lens. from their point of view, however, let me say that what the president was able to do this evening was tell the american public that he is winding down two unpopular awa. iraq, afghanistan. seven out of ten americans want to get out of afghanistan. most of them want to get out tomorrow. and not wait until 2014. so from the president's point of

view, this works. >> we got to take a quick break. more with our panelists. you mentioned mitt romney. we are anticipating a statement from him. we'll bring that to you. a lot more to talk about in our special coverage. let us know what you think. do you think the u.s. should get out sooner? we're on facebook, google plus. tweet me right no now @andersoncooper. up next a more fiery message to the troops that the president gave and new details about how risky conditions on the ground -- just how risky they still are.

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so pick your favorite spot on the gulf... and come on down. brought to you by bp and all of us who call the gulf home. this war came to us on 9/11. and there are a whole bunch of folks here who signed up after 9/11. we don't go looking for a fight. but when we see our homeland violated, when we see our fellow citizens killed, then we understand what we have to do. >> president obama tonight at bagram air base ten and a half years after al qaeda attacked and american forces drove them out a year to the day after navy

s.e.a.l.s shot and killed osama bin laden. he thanked them for their service. >> when the final chapter of this war is written, historians will look back and say not only was this the greatest fighting force in the history of the world, but all of you also represented the values of america in an exemplary way. i could not be prouder of you. and i want you to understand i know it's still tough. i know the battle's not yet over. some of your buddies are going to get injured. some of your buddies may get killed. and there's going to be heart break and pain and difficulty ahead.

but there's a light on the horizon. because of the sacrifices you've made. not only were we able to blunt the taliban momentum, not only were we able to drive al qaeda out of afghanistan, but slowly and sismatically we've been able to decimate the ranks of al qaeda. and a year ago we were finally able to bring osama bin laden to justice. >> it's also been erased to get him out of afghanistan as soon as possible. bagram has been a major target. so is the area surrounding the palace in kabul. which explains why president obama did not linger there

today. for more on the tight security around the presidential trip and other trips, we're joined by peyton walsh and john king. nick, it does not get much riskier. particularly considering the attacks we saw in kabul just weeks ago. >> initially i would say the afghan media broke this about 6:00 local time. officials trying to fire fight that. we heard from one official that everybody in the presidential palace was sent home around noon but still there were attempts to keep this under wraps. the path he took, pretty much as safe as you can imagine. flying into bagram. then the helicopter ride into the capital. and the motorcade into the presidential palace. we saw a city in lock down. little air traffic. we normally hear many

helicopters buzzing low over the city during the evening. but nothing really until about an hour before we heard news of the arrival. suggesting that the news of an important person rising could be true. >> you see dawn breaking there. significant because the president wanted to get in and out under the cover of darkness. and the president has left afghanistan wheels up around the top of the hour. john, you know what it's like to travel with the president like this. you went to baghdad with president bush. from being on air force one, what is that like? >> it's a dicey ride in. perhaps they're overstaying the risk, but they want to be extra cautious with the president. you showed the pictures of this president's visit. it's a 747. has the united states stamped on the side. they advised president bush when i took that trip to baghdad, they advised the same thing to

president obama. they rather have them take a plane that doesn't look any different. he wanted to take this to send a signal. i was recruited and just left the white house beat six years ago. they white house said would you do this on a secret basis. tell as few people as possible within the news organization. they tell you turn off all electronic devices, shut off the televisions, shut off the clocks. they don't want anyone to see that plane coming in because of the risk of a mortar fire or grenade or something like that. the way out is dicier. everyone knows the president is on the ground. everyone's seen the pictures of air force one. when i left baghdad six years ago, shut everything down. they don't want an electronic signal off that airplane that somebody could track to fire a missile at. air force one is like revving the car and gun the gas and a 747 going up at 45 or more of an

angle. you feel the gs. >> nick, you're on the ground in kabul. are afghan forces in control? do you see u.s. forces, international forces or mostly just afghan forces on the streets? >> to be honest in kabul it's very much an afghan controlled city. you occasionally u.s. vehicles going around. but they maintain a low position. the question is how good a job are they doing. i think you heard much of president obama's speech extolling the virtues of the security force to be honest as you heard peter say is patchy. i've seen american soldiers regularly express deep frustration of lack of professionalism of the afghan force. of course with this expediting timeline, we're told on a regular basis how good the

security forces are and how they can keep the insurgency in check. >> we've also seen by afghan security forces against u.s. personnel and forces. much more now with peter bergen. joining also is fran townsend and james pieder, marks. how significant is it? >> it is sort of a rhetorical commitment to the afghans. and it is significant he went there to sign it. >> he could have done this via electronically. >> that's right. but it makes sense that he wanted to go there as evidence of his commitment to afghanistan. i will tell you the most important part is will it get funded by congress and what will troop levels be. he talked about once you get to the 68,000 in september, there will be a steady drawdown through 2014 until we're out of

afghanistan. but that timetable has to be recommended and the numbers will have to be recommended by u.s. generals on the ground and what will that look like and what is the afghan force ability to fill that. >> there's also the question about what other international forces will still be there and willing to stay. there's a nato meeting coming up. there's going to be talking about nato funding for this force. we've seen a number over the years the role international forces have been to play. >> some countries have pulled out. the australians who aren't part of nato pulled out. i think of the nato summit in chicago. if nato is going to survive as an idea, it's got to make the afghan thing plausibly work. and i think $4 billion is what's required to fund the afghan security forces. in the grand scheme, that's not a great deal of money.

i'm sure at chicago there will be some agreement for some level of the money from the french or the british that the president will be able to say yes we have people who are willing to spend this. we've been spending $100 billion a year in afghanistan right now. $4 billion is a small amount. >> a lot of americans hearing that is going to think that's a huge amount of money. to those who say look at corruption in afghanistan and where does this money go and this is a poor country. how come it cost billions and billions of dollars to fund a military? >> well, as a factual matter it costs about a -- for an american soldier and an afghan soldier, the cost is about a 50th less. we lost $5 billion in the course of three hours in terms of the impact it had on the american economy. from a pure cost benefit

analysis, probably worth spending a fair amount of money in afghanistan to prevent that. >> general marks, do you think there was reason to have increasing confidence in the afghan force? >> we have to choice. we have to have confidence in what they can achieve. you look at where they started and where they are and there's a long road ahead of reaching of professionalism that's required in each policemen, and in the military as well. >> would you trust them if you're on patrol with them? >> i'd trust but verify. i have to verify he is capable of doing what he needs to be. i'd sleep with one eye open. it's where you start from and what the expectations are and can we get there from today. and clearly we have until 2014

to improve that status and then beyond -- i think the numbers are significant because that sells locally. that sells in the united states. that's where the audience needs to understand it. but within those numbers, it's very important that we get into some level of details. and that's intelligence and that's special ops guys and training forces to ensure they can continue to grow. >> this may be a dumb question. i've been on patrols with afghan forces and with our forces on the ground who i have huge respect for. but how come -- i mean, the afghans did a pretty good job against the soviets fighting the soviets. how come they need all this military training? are we trying to get them to a level -- clearly we're trying to get them to a level they've never had before, but haven't they been able to defend themselves and fight wars? the taliban seems capable of conducting strikes without having a huge foreign force spending billions of dollars training them. >> true. first of all, the soviets presented themselves in

different forms than the united states is training them to present themselves. the soviets had -- doing a good job of going after those. and the soviets decided time to go. they didn't. the soviets did not transition into a counterinsurgency. in terms of recruiting the taliban. it's an incredible differentiator of what we're asking a u.s. soldier to do and a taliban soldier to do. if you could get the potential taliban recruit to sign up, the only task you're asking him to do is sacrifice his life and carry something into some crowded village. >> it's easier to do than try to provide security for a village or trying to be a police officer in a town. fran, do you have confidence in the afghan forces? >> i think the key they're not raising questions in is

corruption. not only have dealt with the corruption but the weakness of the karsai government there. >> that gets to a soldier's willingness to fight for a government. and if they're building a mcmansion in kabul, the foot soldier isn't going to want to fight for that person. >> that's exactly right. so we haven't very effectively dealt with the corruption problem up until now. that was true in the bush administration. partly because we don't want to talk about it. until we address this directly with the karsai government, we're not going to solve it. the timeline now is getting shorter and shorter. >> there are allegations about members of karsai's family involved in corruption as well. more with the panel coming up. coming up senator john mccain weighing in on the trip to afghanistan. whether he sees it as the president hiking the football in the end zone. to your eyes, from the eye-care experts at bausch + lomb. as you age, eyes can lose vital nutrients. ocuvite helps replenish key eye nutrients.

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president obama heading home tonight from afghanistan. we touched on this at the top coming when it does and where it does, it is inevitable there is a political opponent to the trip. at this point in the election cycle, mr. obama left washington with republicans including mitt romney criticizing his decision to run a campaign ad on the web about the killing of osama bin laden. not much, though, in the way of partisan thoughts about the trip. here's what senator mccain said to dana bash. >> what do you think about the president's surprise secretive trip to afghanistan? >> i think it's a good thing. i think it's always good when

the president goes to where young men and women are in harm's way. and i think that many of us who have been involved in afghanistan are very supportive of the strategic partnership agreement which i'm sure he'll be talking about. and we think the agreement is good. we obviously would like to know the details. >> now, senator, you have been very outspoken, very critical of what the president did recently politically with an ad boasting about getting osama bin laden and hitting mitt romney for it. do you think this trip is also part of his political campaign? >> no, i can't accuse the president of that. a lot of people both here in congress including senator lindsay graham and lieberman worked on the strategic partnership agreement. it's important we send the message to friends and enemies alike that the united states has a long-term commitment to afghanistan. >> so this is not spiking the football in the end zone as he

said? >> no. i don't view it as that. i wish the president would explain more often to the american people why afghanistan and it's important that afghanistan not return to a base for attacks on the united states of america. >> dana joins me now. much different tone than we heard. a lot of that having to do with the fact the president is overseas. a lot do not want to criticize a sitting president when they're overseas. >> it's thought of an old school transition. people like john mccain certainly keep it. but in this particular case, i've gotten no statements from republicans at all since the president has spoken. i think it's primarily the fact he is in a war zone speaking in front of troops. but also because what you've heard from republicans, the criticism that you've heard from them on afghanistan is that the president doesn't talk enough about this war. in fact the last time he gave a major speech about it was in june 2011.

almost a year ago. so it's hard for these republicans to say you shouldn't go talk about it. you shouldn't go over there when they've been saying talk about it more. the other thing particularly senators like mccain, graham, they've been pushing the president to go forward with this strategic partnership agreement because they are very concerned about pulling combat troops out at the end of 2014. at least this makes clear to everybody in the region that there will be a u.s. presence on the ground. >> thank you, dana. let's bring in peter bergen and gloria borger. does it surprise you that the views on the war are different that senator mccain did not criticize president obama today? >> he's kind of old school on that. also he really supports this strategic agreement because he is a part of the republican party that wants to see a long-term commitment in afghanistan. i think one of the reasons you haven't heard from other

republicans is actually -- and you know this, anderson. there's division within the republican party. i mean, more than a majority of republicans oppose the war in afghanistan. so republicans want to get out of afghanistan. and so the president went over there to announce that he's winding down in afghanistan. and if you're a republican, you know, that's kind of not a bad thing. because republicans are very fiscally conscious and at a time when the economy is not good at home, there are more and more questions about whether the money that we're spending over there is cost effective. >> it is interesting we've reached a point where this war is unpopular amongst democrats and republicans as well. >> it is interesting that we have that. and people do want the war to end. but, anderson, i would caution that i think president obama and whether it's president romney or not, can move forward with keeping troops on the ground as long as the casualty numbers are

low. and it's not terribly expensive. we after all have kept troops in korea now for almost 60 years as you well know and other parts of the world. they've been in the sinai for a long time. and the public has gone along with that. the presence in afghanistan in a volatile area of the world with pakistan next door can be really helpful for american foreign policy. this is something on which there will be bipartisan agreements. yes, some people will complain, but as long as the casualties are down, it's not too expensive. >> some democrats may complain about it even if it's only in a training role. but as you know, this strategic agreement doesn't require that the united states do anything. it allows us to do that. >> training role and a counterterrorism role. that's undefined. there's a lot of different activities that can take place under a counterterrorism role. >> on purpose.

>> yeah. it's really important that a democratic president has made a commitment to afghanistan for another 12 years. if this had been a republican, it might -- you know, and a democrat were elected, you might see that unravel. but if mitt romney were to become president, he's going to keep that agreement and so will barack obama for the next several years. i think the united states is -- even though there's going to be quibbling on the sides, i think b the united states is very, very likely now to have a presence there for the foreseeable future. >> i'm sorry. we've got to leave it there. david gergen, gloria borger. president obama's speech from bagram air base is fuelling talk tonight. more with ari fleischer, paul begala, peter bergen. that's next. customers didn't like it. so why do banks do it ? hello ? hello ?! if your bank doesn't let you talk to a real person 24/7,

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i come to afghanistan to mark a historic moment for our two nations. and to do so on afghan soil. i'm here to affirm the bonds between our countries, to thank american and afghans who have sacrificed so much over these last ten years and to look forward to a future of peace and security and greater prosperity for our nations. >> that's president obama speaking just a short time ago during his surprise trip to afghanistan. joining us again, ari fleischer, paul begala, peter bergen, and major general james "spider" marks. ari, in terms of politics and i hate to talk about politics on a day like this, but do you anticipate tomorrow hearing a lot more about this trip from both the left and the right? because the left has been pretty silent as well. >> that's right. it's a sign of how split both

parties are about these long military entanglements. no. i think it's going to quickly fade. we're in such a domestic news cycle. election, economy. just with the anniversary of killing bin laden riveting the nation. i think the bigger substantive issue, though, in afghanistan is the place is still a mess. you know, the president said tonight that in the last three years the tide has turned. since he became president, he said it turned. i don't think anything has turned. afghanistan was a mess, it is a mess. whether we're there or not, they're going to go on fighting. the war doesn't end. it's just a question of whether we're going to be involved in it or not. i'm fine no longer being involved in it. we didn't set out on september 11th to stay there forever. so i'm glad they're coming home soon. but nobody should think that what the president is doing here means afghanistan is going to be a land of peace. it won't. >> peter bergen, has the tide turned both against the taliban

and al qaeda? >> as a factual matter, you're more likely to be murdered in washington, d.c. than killed in afghan. it is relatively low right now. a civil war that destroyed kabul killed hundreds of thousands. think about the rule of the taliban. afghan, let's leave aside our personal views. afghans have a view their lives are getting better. this is a country without phone service. now one in three afghans have a cell phone. this is one that didn't have a girl in school. now there are 2 million girls in school. this is a country where they had no economic indicators because there were none. now they had 22% gdp growth rate. i could give you a list of -- there's an optimistic view of afghanistan. we know what's wrong with the place. and it's shared by a lot of afghans themselves. the one thing they were concerned about was we were going to head for the exits.

i think today will reassure we will have a presence there. they don't want permanent bases. they don't want to be occupied. no one does. but they want to feel the united states isn't heading for the exits. >> general marks, in terms of what our military has been doing on the ground, no one's really used the termination building or no one likes to use that. but it has been a lot of nation building. >> absolutely. that's not what the united states went into afghanistan to accomplish. but it ended up being what we accomplished. and we will continue to accomplish with our partners. and clearly that's -- this is really an example of mission in its finest. we went in to accomplish a specific mission. we did that quite rapidly. the taliban departed. then we departed.

in essence we departed of having a party that could do something. we missed that and diverted our attention to iraq. clearly we have been able together to accomplish quite a bit in afghanistan. we also have a commitment to continue that effort through 2014 and now beyond. >> paul begala, in terms of the president's base committing to stay in afghanistan for another 12 years essentially, that's not a message some in the president's base want to hear. >> well, not just the president's base. both parties, ari is exactly right, are war weary. this country is war weary. if you look at polls voters don't only want to get out in 2014, they want out tomorrow. i admire mccain is old school and they're not criticizing the president on foreign soil. they're not going to because a, they don't have a better alternative. b, they want this to be barack obama's war. and it is. he is responsible for this now.

and i think they're happy with that. what the president is trying to do is say i want to rebalance, not invade, conquer and occupy but project in a more nimble way and rebuild america back home. that's what he said when he formulated this. he said the country i want to build is the united states. >> peter bergen, it's impossible to talk about what's happening in afghanistan without talking about what's happening in pakistan. the relationship with pakistan is frayed right now to say the least. >> yeah. 2011 was the worst year in the relationship. there are some kind of positive trends in pakistan that tend to get overlooked in these discussions too. we're going to see the first civilian government term either the first or second depending how you score it. there's going to be another election. you can then foresee a period for the first time in pakistani history where you have the civilian government for a decade. the military have no plan for a

coup. a lot of anti-taliban, pro-democracy. there was an arab spring where they got rid of a military dictator. there's an independent judiciary doing cases against both the military and civilian government. these are institutions that are important to pakistan's future. what pakistan hasn't had yet is particularly good leadership. hopefully in the next few years a leader will come up. >> peter, we appreciate you being with us. his new book is called "man hunt." i recommend it. ari fleischer, thank you. paul begala and general marks. we'll be right back.

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we're following a number of other stories. isha's here with a news and business bulletin. >> more breaking news tonight. secretary of state hillary clinton has landed in beijing for talks with the chinese government. it's a sensitive time in u.s.-chinese relations due to the whereabouts of an activist who escaped house arrest and may be at the u.s. embassy in beijing. the united nations violated in syria. the regime continues to deploy heavy weapons. this video shows attacks in idlib today. 40 people were killed across the country. 12 syrian soldiers reportedly died in clashes with military

defectors. an fbi sting led to the arrest of five men. at least three of the suspects are self-proclaimed anarchists. and may day demonstrations from l.a. to new york today. may day is traditionally a day of workers' protest around the world. people were staged in countries like greece, turkey, and spain. a lot of drama in the streets today. >> appreciate that. we'll be right back. ♪ [ piano chords ] [ man announcing ] what we created here. what we achieved here. what we learned here. and what we pioneered here. all goes here.

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