mr. president, we all heard a very moving, inspirational and motivational speech from our friend tom coburn. in 1994 there were a bunch of folks that got elected to the u.s. house of representatives and republicans took majority for the first time in 42 years and ran on the contract with

america and were led by a group of leaders. tom coburn was in that group that got elected, i was was in that group, senator graham was in that group. there were a few members of that class who became known as bomb throwers. tom coburn was a bomb thrower and he would object for the sake of objecting to anything going on. it didn't matter which side of the aisle that was coming from but they told you he matured into a class act which he always was but a second, he matured into a legislator second to none he doesn't hesitate to object to

any spending bill that came from either party if tom coburn believed that it wasn't provided for in the constitution and is something that taxpayers shouldn't be paying for. there is nobody that has guarded the pocketbook of the taxpayers of the united states like tom coburn. it is remarkable that those of us had the opportunity to see him over the last 20 years to take on major subjects that most veterans said in the end we are going to prevail but they never did. even though he may have lost a vote from time to time, in the end he prevailed.

he is a tough guy. he's been through a lot physically and what a survivor. we think we have issues to deal with none of us can imagine what tom has gone through. when someone comes up to me in me in that they see tom coburn on tv and i'm looking for an airport and they say what about tom coburn there are two things that come to my mind family and faith. he and caroline carolyn have had such a solid marriage. he tried to date her as an eighth-grader and she wouldn't go out with him so he kept pestering her long enough that she finally did and what a great marriage they have had. they have three beautiful daughters and a household of children he absolutely loves to

death and spending time with as opposed to being here. second, faith. there's nobody that i've has a stronger faith than tom coburn. he exhibits on the floor, he exhibited one on one come at the prayer breakfast every wednesday morning. he is one person who has probably counseled this ability on both sides of the aisle more than anybody other than the chaplain. and on top of that he is just a class act. he has been made to your friend when we have spent many hours on the road together, on the golf course together into socializing together there's no kind of individual that ever served in the senate like tom coburn. he is one of the things i'm going to miss about leaving here as we've already talked we will

probably spend more time together with both of us:. thank you for that read friendship and for what you've done for my children and grandchildren. you've served this country well. god bless you. >> along with many of my other colleagues, i would like to pay tribute to one of the most decent and principled man i've ever met, senator tom coburn. washington is going to miss him but the irony is that he really

can't stand washington. when he first got here, the feeling appeared to be mutual some just didn't know what to make of this doctor from oklahoma. so on the losing end they are never giving up. that's apparent from his days in the house and when we hear that they invited the only quote filibuster, this was in the house, anybody can ever remember. he may have placed more holes than any senator in history. he apparently held his own bill ones. so i fast forward to today. they've declared tom coburn a card-carrying member of the

establishment. the rubble that once described himself as a comic of the pilot has now been branded with a scarlet e. )-right-paren his forehead. he always fought sparta battles the kind you might lose today but when later and he fought a bond with the american people he represents. that means spending as much time away from washington is possible and making himself available when he was home. oklahomans were never shy about coming over to share their opinions. if he was ever shy about how he was feeling either. he leaves his constituents deserved the truth and he gave

it to them absolutely unvarnished but he did it in a respectful way. it reminds me of the two posters that he has framed on either side of his desk. one says no. the other says no, k. n. o. w.. that's him in a nutshell. that's why he's made so many friends on either side of the isle and why you can't flip on msnbc most weekends without seeing him. i think that he actually prefers these settings. it is a challenge that he relishes. not only is he confident enough, but he usually wins and he rarely makes lasting enemies. it's a trait that served him

well particularly at the beginning of his career. he first came to washington as a democrat. he won a close race that year and also gained a friend. his grandson actually ended up joining the staff which obviously is a great honor. but it's no picnic. he works his staff hard. it's difficult even to take a sick day over there. he's always got the stethoscope near by. if the doctor is in, so are you. the people on his team seemed to love him. once a member of his family, always a member. that is their motto. it doesn't mean that they love everything about him, like his handwriting. [laughter]

it's just what you would expect from a guy named doctor coburn. it is a mix of chicken scraps, hieroglyphics and the vocab from the extra credits section of the test. back in the '90s committee staffer made a mistake of letting tom and take a yellow highlighter back to oklahoma. tom spent the weekend, the entire weekend marking up a massive bill. there were handwritten notes and questions in every margin. it took literally days to decipher like something out of the model. needless to say the band was quickly implemented. as for the former profession gets profession gets immeasurable sometimes and it remains the job he enjoys the most most consulting to deliver new lives into the world. it brings a unique perspective

to his work here in the senate. it can still be lasting appreciation for life, too. even though he stopped delivering these days he still travels back to oklahoma on a lot. there is almost nothing he would rather be doing them mowing his lawn or eating a sandwich at the favorite barbecue joint or sipping on a cold coors with all its. he prefers them almost anything else except spending time with his grandkids and of course his wife, carolyn. he's known carolyn since grade school. she's always been the one to keep them balanced and grounded. she doesn't care that he is a senator. she frequently remind him of that, too. she's also the reason he is such good friends with president obama. both men came to the senate in the same year.

at the freshman orientation they spotted her across the room. she looks like fun, carolyn said. let's sit next to her. when he announced his retirement, they poured in from across the political spectrum it was a day when barack obama and jim demint found something to agree on. it must have brought some joy in such a difficult time. he will leave one battle behind to confront another. we are sending him every best wishes in a fight. we are keeping him in our prayers. we know he will prevail but he is going to be next. he's just the type of citizen legislature that our founders

envisioned. tom has pored over many documents than anyone cares to imagine. it's becoming annual phenomenon and helps drive the conversation on spending. he has led on issues like hiv and malaria and the senate will lose the leader on the intelligence oversight when he leaves. he played an invaluable role on the incidents committee where he brought a unique blend of integrity, analytical rigor and determination. they were in a secure hearing room learning many sensitive matters he couldn't discuss with others he worked closely with another extraordinary colleague to ensure that the nation's

intelligence community retained the tools necessary to defend the country. and if anyone thinks the nations classified programs are not overstayed rigorously, they haven't missed tom coburn. he brought the skeptics and the professional determination to the task. his lines of questioning are under the respect of his colleagues and help the community craft stronger programs while also reminding us of the value of many other intelligence activities. tom has obviously done a lot of to earn his reputation. his interest is never about the office but it's about solutions. that's why tom actually volunteered for some symbols. he wanted me to take him off the finance committee. and you always know where tom

stands. i'm told he was overseas with a couple other senators when the government minister launched into a finger wagging about the country. he couldn't take it. i would be listening for a couple minutes. he would tell the minister what he thought of him and catch them on the way home. so he is literally one of a kind. we are not likely to see another one like this guy. here's what the former senator had to say about him. he said tom's lack of conscience can try to ignore him, try but you know he is right even when you wish he wasn't. so some people may think that he's he is the member of an establishment now but the truth is he never changed.

washington changed and america changed. people recognized the wisdom of his ideas about leaving a better country to the next generation and giving americans the freedom and opportunity to achieve real meaning and lasting happiness in their lives we are going to miss the senator that actually likes to get his hands dirty, who actually likes to legislate. we are going to miss the senator that is so devoted to the procedure that he sleeps next to the buck and we are going to miss a friend that understands honest compromises necessary to achieve anything in a pluralistic society. we are all going to miss him a lot. but he can retire with pride and know that we are sending him the best wishes for a speedy recovery and a joyful

retirement. >> mr. president, i was not at all surprised as i listened to the words of our colleagues, senator tom coburn that he quoted extensively from the declaration of independence reverted to the constitution and being documents of the great country. they had leaders like senator tom coburn in mind. he had remained a compassionate

physician, devoted husband and father, of the rights enshrined in our our constitution and an unwavering opponent of extensive spending. he may be best known as the most diligent fiscal watchdog relentlessly pounding wasteful spending. the report is a call for transparency and accountability in the federal government and its guided the oversight investigation policy debate. the senate deserves just as much a claim if the work on the senate homeland security committee and the select committee on intelligence. serving with the senator on both of those committees for many

years i've seen firsthand his determination to strengthen the nation and the safety of our people. he has the keen understanding of the ever evolving threats the nation faces. as a citizen legislator, senator coburn leads by example and with compassion. with his expertise he has been the leader in promoting wellness, disease prevention, combating hiv aids and advancing biomedical research. when it comes to this responsibility, he walks the walk.

having returned more than a million dollars from the budget to the american taxpayers. but we have heard many descriptions of tom coburn today. but the word that i most associate with immense integrity. he is a man of the utmost integrity who always stands tall for his principles and for what he believes in. he set an example for all of us who seek to serve the public. on a personal note, i want to thank senator coburn for hounding me into joining a women's prayer breakfast that meets each week and has introduced me to a number of wonderful women from the house of representatives who had

become my close friends as well as colleagues and i use the word appropriately. we mentioned it so many times that eventually i gave up and went to one of those protests and indeed it has been a spiritually enriching experience that i never would have had about for continuing to press me to attend. in january the senator announced his intention to lead the senate due in part to his deepening health problems that he has faced with extraordinary courage. this news was counterbalanced by his overarching concerns not for

himself but his family and the people of his state and the nation. as he now returns to the life of a private citizen i wish him every success in combating his illness and i thank him for his extraordinary service to the country. to quote from the scripture i think everyone would agree with these words when it comes to tom coburn well done, good and faithful servant. thank you mr. president. >> dot senator from delaware. >> i want to speak right from my heart.

i want to start by thanking tom for the right kind of comments he made about serving with me. we met ten years ago and it was the idea of an orientation. the first day that we convened we had a beautiful office here in the capital, and i for the three days that they began to bond and became friends i didn't know how close friends they were until four or five years ago.

there was a time we went back and forth and try to mix things up. he came along and shook hands with people and i've seen that the president said to him are you still praying for me and he said every night. they didn't agree on everything, but they were friends. they are friends. and i hope tom and i will be as well. the new senator from new jersey

we were talking about how he worked so well with teddy kennedy one of the most liberal democrats in the senate and mike one of the most conservative they got an extraordinary amount of stuff done and i just want to say all of the legislation that has come out of the committee it's pretty amazing to make it better and make it real, to better protect the nations into the information from attacks all over the world and make the postal service not just hang on but actually vibrant and real. but he talked about the dd-20 rule to read we agree on about 80% of the stuff and maybe 20%

and he and i decided to focus on the 80% and set to set aside 20% we don't agree on for another day. and i called out the m-mike and mike in siebel and that has helped me here in the senate and it's helped guide me in the work that i've been the list to do with doctor coburn. someone asked me when i became the chairman of the committee a few of two years ago and doctor coburn is going to be the ranking member what he was going to be like to work with this guy and i said it's going to be like the marriage. you have to work at it every day and meet in the middle. i like to ask people what is the secret? i get hilarious answers. really hilarious answers but also some really terrific insightful answers. the best ones i've ever got in his 40, 50, 60 years the best answer that i heard was that

tuesday's -- communicate and compromise. that isn't a secret only for a vibrant long life marriage but it's also for the democracy. and i believe the reason tom has had this partnership and has been productive is and the second thing is we believe in communicating and in compromising. we believe in collaborating. and the american people are the beneficiary of that. we have a reception later today that we have the opportunity to see more things as well. [inaudible] there is a rule like that, but i

want to close with this. his words on the commission for the ages, and i hope that we will never take away the lessons she showed us. encouragement of the state. the description of 1925 when we talked about the least of these in our society when i was thirsty, and trends and committees were the questions. he believes we have a moral obligation for reaching peace in our society. he also believes we have a fiscal obligation and fiscal imperative to need that obligation in a fiscally responsible way. and i think those two ideas guide him in the work and it is an inspiration to me.

last word leaders should be humble. they should lead by example. not do as i say but do as i do. leaders should have the courage to stand up when everyone else is marching to the wrong tune. leaders ought to be committed in doing what is right and not what is easy. leaders should treat other people the way they want to be treated. tom has attended almost everybody in this body but he comes back and apologizes. leaders focus on excellence in everything we do. ..

and i know that for my two friends this was not easy, and it is not easy to stand here and know that in

january they are not going to be here anymore. they are truly friends, and that is tough. to think that tom coburn can be intimidating, i think, is an understatement. and i think that comes because his breadth of knowledge based upon his experiences in life enable him to be an expert on a lot of issues, but with that in mind i remember the day tom sat down and we were leaving that week and i said what are you going to do this weekend? he said, well, sarah's future fiancé is coming to sit down with me to find out whether he can marry my daughter. i looked at him and thought, thought, i would hate to be that young man.

well, the well, the truth is that tom is a very intimidating guy. he plays hard. he plays to win. and there is not an individual i know that is more fair and more compassionate than tom coburn. i remember the day that the bush administration wanted to extend the aids in africa program. and when tom found out that they were going to relax the requirement for how many people were treated and more money would go to education than to actually saving lives he grabbed me and said, we can't let this stand. stand. we have got to fight it, change it. and it was tom coburn that brought reauthorization for six months. a republican president and republican senator. why? on principle. tom coburn, if you did not no it before, has never done

anything in this institution or in life that was not based upon principle. no member of congress should ever question whether he thinks he is right because if he did not think he was right he would not fight so hard. this is particularly difficult for me to say. we truly are legislative partners. we fought a lot of battles for a long time, and inherently we have a level of trust in each other that i would actually sign on to legislation that i had no idea what it did. i just knew that in that foxhole he needed somebody he could count on, and i knew when he signed on to something that i needed that there was always somebody their to cover my back. the institution, something

significant when we no longer have that legislative expertise with tom coburn. he really does represent. mr. pres., their are a lot of descriptions that people would use today and that people we will use in the future, but i would boil it down to two words that i think best describe them. he is a good man. he is a good man. this institution will lose a great a great leader when tom coburn require -- retires.

>> people are waiting to speak, and there are others. i guess it would surprise the world in general to no that we are true friends, but we are. he is a man of integrity above all. you don't have to agree with someone. we probably disagree on 90 percent of the issues to trust someone's integrity, handshake. if you make a good argument understanding his values he we will come along. that is that is just what tom coburn has done time and time again with the sen. from senator from new york and countless others on the other side of the aisle. on so many issues when tom was opposed i said, let's just sit down and let me give you the logic. i knew that would be good enough. sometimes it did not work. sometimes sometimes he disagreed, but he always sat and listened. he always asked perceptive questions, not questions got your, but he is trying to figure it out.

of course the most well-known was when we negotiated. thousands of new yorkers had rushed to the towers, gun poison in their lives and gastrointestinal issues. knew it was a big expense, sat with us, listened to mom suggestions to make it leaner and trimmer and then supported the bill. and and right now their are people alive throughout the new york area who are heroes because of the integrity of that man from oklahoma. i will miss you. this body body will miss you regardless of our ideological views and perceptions. you perceptions. you are a great american. i yield the floor. >> from west virginia. >> not a lot needs to be said that has not been said.

one thing i want to say to my dear friend, he made washington have been for me. he made it more tolerable. tom reached out. he saw that. tom made this place more palatable. you you have expanded my area of friendships with more people and the right type of people, and people, and i appreciate it i think more than you even no. i will i will end with this. i have been asked about tom coburn. he has soul. he has soul. and i mean that from the bottom of my heart. you have soul. thank you for the soul you brought to this place. god bless you. >> the sen. from arizona. >> fourteen years ago i entered the house of representatives. elected elected before i took office, travel to washington.

the congressman i was replacing said, anybody you want to meet? i said, tom coburn. i have watched from afar what you have done on the appropriations committee, the stands you have taken, and i admire it. i will never forget that. i have to say today i admire him even more than i did then having watched them go back into the private sector and then into the senate. the most dangerous creature that could come into the senate because he is simply uninterested in being popular. i think that that is certainly true, true, but if he did not care about it, it happened anyway. he has become popular, but one thing he never managed to achieve if he sought it was becoming partisan. when you here those across the aisle landis preys on this man, realize that that was never one of his goals

and never happened, much to his credit. i want to thank tom and his staff for the generosity over the years to me and my staff and for what you have done for this institution, for your colleagues, and for me personally. thank you. i yield back. >> the senator from maine. >> mr. pres., i probably know tom for the least length of time of anybody in this room. and i wanted to offer some comments from the perspective of only two years, really more like a year and a half since we became friends and colleagues. i have seen him into contacts, one is intelligence and the others faith. he and i serve on the intelligence committee. we sit directly across from each other, and that committee is generally a nonpartisan one but it is also one where all of the

meetings generally are closed. there is no press, and you can really take the measure of someone when they ask questions and participate in the debate in that form. his questions always strike me as the questions i wish i had asked, and they strike me as the questions that i am i am sure the people of america would want asked. they are penetrating, they cut through obfuscation them and they are always meaningful and help us move toward the important work that that committee has to accomplish. i have also become acquainted with him through faith and participation in the wednesday prayer breakfast and more recently for reasons that i am i am not entirely sure, he has invited me to join him on tuesday evenings for dinner on the other side of the. it has been very meaningful.

and for the nine years before i came here i taught a course called leaders and, and i taught it at a couple of colleges in maine, but really as much for myself as for my students because i wanted to try to understand. and i thought if i signed on to teach it i would have to learn something about. every year what we did was go through and discuss the stories of great leaders throughout history, some well-known and some not so well known. we always started with otis shackleton, shackleton, eleanor roosevelt, margaret thatcher, martin luther king and lincoln and churchill, but we always try to define the qualities that make a leader. there their are lots of them. perseverance, communication, vision, teamwork, trust. the last one on the list and

the one that brings me back to tom is always character. it is an indefinable quality. quality. you cannot really put a specific definition to it, but people like lincoln had it. artists shackleton had it, joshua lawrence chamberlain from maine had it, eleanor roosevelt had it, and it involves a combination of qualities that i think tom embodies. integrity, intelligence, honesty, faith, belief in principle then daring to stand for principle. it is the hardest thing to teach, but the easiest thing to see. the reason i felt so privileged to get to know this man for such a short time is that he has shown me

what character is all about. tom is one of the great joys of my life to have had these two years to get to no you, if only slightly. it is one of the great sadness is of my life that it has only been two years. godspeed. you have made a difference for this country that we all love and honor and respect. thank you thank you for your service and for sharing your great character with all of us. i yield the floor. >> from georgia. >> i i would like to discuss the election 15 years ago. number 435 in the house of representatives. i did what my father taught me. pay attention and do what smart people do.

after two weeks of listening to you i said no human being can is know as much about everything as this guy. i have come to believe that their is one person. you have been a great role model, taught me many great lessons. the greatest advantage, those who witnessed their faith. you are a true witness for your faith and change the lives of many people, and i have enjoyed as much as anything i walked through faith together. lastly, every christmas i try try and give my grandchildren who can read something to read so when they grow up they can refer to great things. i doubt if there has ever been a better statement made on the floor of the united states senate about our heritage, country, and our future and hopes them what you did today.

you are the required reading for my grandchildren, and i can assure you i am i am a better man for having served with tom coburn. god bless you. >> the senator from oklahoma the other senator from oklahoma. that's right. let me take a couple of minutes to make some comments unscripted, sincere and from the heart. i don't want to, and i hope that i think in some respect i discovered tom coburn because i remember i suspect that you and i are the only two that have ever been to oklahoma. i remember calling up a conservative doctor p read at that time i wanted him to run for the house of

representatives, which he did,'s commitment, did everything that he was supposed to do. i remember that day has senator coburn knows. my wife and i have a place on a lake in oklahoma. back in 1962, a long time ago. when i drive up their i go by that little sheltered area. it is half torn down now. they tore down the biggest bank in town. i have to say that i recall meeting there for the first time with a young dr. named tom coburn. you know, i regret to to say that their are times in our service together when we have not been an agreement on specific issues, and i think that we have a a characteristic in common.

i think we are both kind of bullheaded. there is one thing that overshadows that. jesus as a family. his family has a lot of people in it. tom coburn and i are brothers. as i said to senator coburn after his -- i don't believe i have heard a speech in the 20 20 years i have been here in the united states senate that was as touching and sincere as the speech that i heard from my junior senator just a few minutes ago. and i walked by, i really believe that in spite of all of the things that have happened, some differences that he ceased to be my brother. brother. and i want to ask the senator right now, forgive me for the times that i have been perhaps saying something unintentionally that was not always from the heart, but i want you cannot

want my junior senator to no that i sincerely love them and i'm going to be hurting with him in the troubles that he has right now and might have in the future and will miss him in this body. i asked that to get in the record that i sincerely love my brother, senator chuck -- senator coburn. i yield the floor. >> mr. president. >> the senator from indiana. >> mr. president, i have been sitting here listening to the respect and the emotion of people recognizing the service of tom coburn, and i don't have

a prepared speech. i second everything that has been said about tom. and i -- my emotions well up in me when i think about tom tom exhibits the conviction that i wish i had more of. tom exhibits the commitment that i wish i had more of and exhibits the courage that i wish i had more of. and i remember my dear friend chuck colson made a statement and said, lord, show me the kind of person you would like me to be and give me the strength to be that person. and i feel like god has given a gift to the senate,

certainly a gift to me by simply saying, take a look at tom coburn. look at those qualities that he exhibits, his commitment to face. he he is a pretty good model. thank you. >> sen. coburn is a practicing physician specializing in family medicine and obstetrics. his see will be filled in the 114th congress by representative james langford who won a special election. >> coming up next on teewun, former afghanistan war commander retired gen. john allen talks about the us strategy to combat isis. then a panel on panel on the military's role in combating terrorism. later the farewell address and tributes to retiring senator tom coburn of oklahoma.

>> on the next washington journal karen friedman with the pension rights center talks about 2015 federal spending and how it could affect workers and retirees. former attorney general on the cia's response to the report on its interrogation techniques, his approach on immigration reform and government spending .", facebook comments and tweets all on washington journal live at 7:00 a.m. eastern on to 12. >> on friday the cato institute hosts an all-day conference on surveillance examining issues of national security, law enforcement, and civil liberties. live liberties. live coverage at 10:40 a.m. eastern on c-span. >> your are some of the programs you will find this weekend. sunday evening at

8:00 o'clock on c-span q and a political reporters share stories about being on the campaign trail. on c-span2 saturday night at 10:00 o'clock on book tv afterwords political fundraiser lyndsay mark lewis on money and politics and how it has grown and changed and sunday at ten pm eastern senior correspondent for the daily beast shane harris on the military's use of cyberspace to wage war. on american history tv a panel including washington times opinion editor david keen on how ronald reagan's career reagan's career as an actor and spokesman for general electric helped on his communication skills. sunday at 8:00 o'clock frank gannon former aide to pres. nixon shows clips of his 1983 interview with the former president about vietnam, watergate, and his resignation. find a complete television schedule and let us know what you think about the programs you are watching.

e-mail us or send us a tweet. join the c-span conversation, conversation, like us on facebook, follow us on twitter. former afghanistan war commander john allen is now a special convoy. he spoke thursday at the wilson center about the threat posed by the islamic state and the strategy for defeating it. this is just over an hour.

general alan says i have not recovered. it is not a 12 step program, but we are delighted to host him here today. i first met general john allen while i was leading a congressional delegation to guantánamo prison. we stopped first at centcom to see my good friend dave petronius. we sat next to each other at dinner. boy, was i impressed, impressed, and he has continued to impress. he spearheaded tough missions in uniform but has

lead two of his toughest out of them, them, organizing an international effort as special presidential envoy for the global coalition against iso and keeping israeli-palestinian peace successions warm on the security side. when the history of the last few years is written i hope that their will be something positive to say about what is going to change in the middle east. if there is major credit we will be due to general john allen command we are thrilled to have him at the wilson center today. the plan is to ask gen. alan to make some opening remarks. i will then ask him a few questions, questions, and then we we will take audience questions. make sure we keep this event to an hour. someone will figure that out welcome. >> thank you very much for that introduction.

i will seek to live up to the standards and the comments that you have made. let me first start by addressing your comment about being a recovering politician. regardless of regardless of how you would describe yourself all of us who no you and you have seen you in action in this town regardless of whether you depict yourself as a politician or anything else, a leader, a forever leader, someone who will influence the discussion in this town for many years to come. and also someone who has touched many of our lives and, frankly, made us better for your participation and presence in our lives. i speak for thousands of people who have had an opportunity to interact with you and are better people for it. we walked down the steps coming in here.

you were telling me about woodrow wilson and the magnificence of his best. this particular institution is an engine for thought that creates an opportunity for all of us to do better. so thank you for that. it is difficult to find a particular starting.to represent the role that i play in this particular crisis. i have a great opportunity to have served and barak had a difficult time, a little bit bit in 06, all in 07 and part of the weight where i had the chance to see a crisis in a very personal

way into work closely not just with the emerging iraqi and provincial governments but also to work very closely with the tribes, the shakes, and to understand some of the dynamics and the true complexities that are the inherent reality of working in a rack or more broadly in the middle east. and so when i i received a call out long ago as to whether i would take this position, i called my wife and we had a conversation. i i was well entrenched in retirement, making a little bit of money, and we both agreed that the 4500 of our young americans that never made it out of a rock alive was a reason for me to take this position and the thousands who were wounded in the families that will ultimately bear the price and the consequence of that. so. so i do what i do and try to

do what i do not just to be of help to the president and administration, but also to make there sacrifice meaningful. the role that i play in this particular crisis is to work with the coalition and to work within the strategy for the implementation of the strategy. the first is to help consolidate the coalition of the many states that are involved in my 62 separate countries, number of international organizations who have come together because they all in common believe that the crisis of iso is a crisis for our time , a crisis within the region, and is not just an issue and associated solely with syria or what the potential fragmentation of a

rack. it is a crisis that can come home to all of us in the context of foreign fighters command we talked a bit about that and the reality of foreign fighters last night. as we have gone through the process of consolidating the of the coalition command i believe we are generally they are at this.,, although their will be members who we will still seek to become members but their will be those at some.you will probably depart the coalition. we are generally there. the second thing that i do is to seek to integrate the contributions of the members of the coalition into the strategy, and in that context, as we said in a previous conversation the strategy with regard to the coalition generally falls along five lines of operation. the first of those is the military line, the one that is receiving the greatest attention today, the one that is most conspicuous and in broad terms has two components. one is the current campaign

which is intended to blunt and reverse the momentum of --dash and set the conditions ultimately for the other very large portion of the mission which is the building of partner capacity to give the iraqis ultimately the moderate syrian opposition capability to deal with --dash in the battle space. very broad and precise explanations that we can get into greater detail about. the other four lines of effort in which coalition partners are playing heavily , they receive less attention, and it is important to understand that these are prominent investments of national prestige and treasure and blood,, the effort by the coalition to deal with foreign fighters. foreign fighters are something we will live with for a long time. they originate for a

particular reason and source countries, and as they generally are recruited mostly to social media they can be recruited, and doctrine aided, and targeted and sometimes not even have to leave the home country. we are working together to deal with the recruitment of foreign fighters, their transit from source countries across borders using international transportation,, the mechanisms by which they are able to find themselves into syria and iraq and other places and ultimately what we do as a community of nations but specifically by virtue of our internal efforts we do to react to them when they come back. there has been, i think, some very good work that has been done by individual states and and --

international organizations to highlight the problem and take executive and legislative action domestically to deal with the problem. problem. we will be dealing with foreign fighters for a long time. a third area is the area of understanding and beginning to squeeze and disrupt the revenue streams that give --dash the ability to conduct its operations. they generally fall into several areas. the one that is most conspicuous is the area of the oil enterprises from where it comes out of the ground to its refinement, the refining process, the development of products, the products, the transportation of products, the black-market sale and the illicit enterprise that is associated with the distribution,, the generation of cash, the use of certain bank branches and the connection of those banks into the international financial system. understanding the understanding the supply

chain and understanding the nervous system if you we will has been something of great importance to us. we have dedicated significant intelligence assets to it to begin to understand where we can start to take it apart. other areas where - is able to generate revenues is an the coercive criminal activities that it inflicts on the population over which it has sway in the populations, the area of occupation. plundering the occupation that it rules at this particular moment. as well, --dash is involved in kidnap for ransom. a great deal of revenue is generated at a much lower level. sons sons and daughters of prominent individuals throughout the region sold back to tribes or organizations, not end

insignificant amount. of course - is now engaged in the year 2014 active slave trade. sometimes we have been so exposed to this organization that in some respects people become desensitized to how karen does this organization truly is and what it has done to the people that it has conquered and what it is prepared to do to the other people that it is prepared to conquer. for an organization not just to be engaged in slave trade but to celebrate the fact that it is doing, just has to continue to be one of the important factors. tragically all of those things together are tragic enough. selling the antiquities and in other areas.

foreign contributions that have been helpful, although we think that that amount is reduced largely because the oil enterprises permitted to be self financing. the fourth area is the area of humanitarian assistance. this assistance. this is one that must be part of our attention, one that the coalition has been hugely helpful, helping us to reduce the misery and the human suffering for the large population that has been affected in the middle east but very specifically in syria. the refugee populations on the frontline states of turkey.

they deserve great credit. the humanitarian nature of what they have done. but also, of course, beyond answering the un appeals for syria and iraq, helping countries in the region be able to have large substantial refugee populations will have to be keenly attuned to the immediate humanitarian needs of the population which we will be liberated in the course of the counteroffensive which we were anticipating 2015. and in many cases beyond the generosity of the united states in contributing to the humanitarian piece of this the elements of the coalition have been equally within their means generous post to the un and other international organizations

to help end the suffering. the fifth area and was the coalition is deeply involved, and it is one that is really a sensual. and it is really a two-sided coin. go about the business of delegitimizing the organization, exposing it for what it is, pointing out the massive flaws with the idea of compromising its attractiveness for the purpose of recruiting to diminish within its own ranks the sense that it has inevitable outcome with our fate that we will endure in the region. the other side of the same coin, as i said, is an opportunity to celebrate those societal values and the values of the faith of islam that deserve ultimately to be highlighted

in the context that they exist in direct contravention to that which - stands for, so it is not just important that we delegitimize the movement. it is equally important that we celebrate the values of this marvelous faith. and in the inherent nature of the relationship, the complementary effort than do away with our diminish the idea. so the coalition has come together. members of the coalition are actively contributing across these five lines of effort. we are working hard with our coalition partners in the context of the strategy to bring to bear the full

capabilities of the coalition ultimately to accomplish the strategy, and now we move to the third principal area which i am engaged, which is the coalition, coordination and coalition management. as the coalition comes together one of the most important events that we have seen it is important to recognize the coalition really only starting to come together about three months ago. in the course of about ten weeks or so we have gone from a group of states that have a common vision for what needs to be done to an organic organization which met just last wednesday in brussels at the ministerial level led by sec. kerry and a number of international organizations with the ministers of 47 of the countries of the 62 joined all of those members, all of the states in commenting on the strategy and commenting on the lines of effort in committing their national

purpose and their national resources and assets to this common endeavor that we have all undertaken which is ultimately the degradation and defeat. that is an important moment when you consider from my own experiences, i have been involved in a number of coalitions. i think this is my fifth. when you think about how we operated in the context of the international security assistance force in afghanistan there was a clear legal international basis for that that flowed from the united nations security council resolution but there was also an international framework in the context of nato which gave us that framework to meet periodically for the very important process of political consultation. neither of those are present in this coalition. to see it come together this way, to see as me at the ministerial level in this

manner,, to here the really profound words of the ministers and leaders last wednesday in their commitment to this cause and the importance of an ongoing political consultation where we have come in about three months is important. six months ago yesterday is when multiple fell. six months ago yesterday was when we all wondered whether this was the beginning of the end. and so from that moment in to this much has happened, many things have occurred. we believe we believe that the strategic and operational momentum has been altered. we believe that the tactical level, while their will still be the training of some ground back and forth, the initial efforts supported by advisers from within the coalition but ultimately the iraqi security forces, which we will be trained in our training program which we

will kick off relatively shortly, we believe that will begin the process of reversing the momentum ultimately in a rack and to restore the territorial integrity, sovereignty as we continue the process of working with the moderate syrian opposition not just to the political level but importantly in the field. those offers some overarching perspectives on the role that i play and, again, it is an honor to be associated with this. i cannot overstate how grateful we are for our coalition partners in joining us in this undertaking. again, thank you for your and letting us to come together today. >> thank you, gen. i think the entire audience wants to thank you for your service and your continued service and the service of your wife and family. listening to you talk about what you have gotten done in ten weeks prompt me to ask

when this assignment successfully concludes should pres. obama president obama asked you to take over obama care? >> why don't we schedule that for another session. >> all right. turning turning to some questions obviously based upon your comments you talked about first in the first of five lines, military, the military campaign. you hope to build partner capacity. we have all read about the training, the mission and the effort to fund the training mission for a limited number of people. what is the potential for partner capacity, and could that capacity really be the so-called military boots on the ground that everybody keeps talking about? >> the answer needs to be segmented about. when you talk in terms of the campaign of this nature you often here the operational term.

the main effort, the supporting effort, the shaking effort. sometimes when you view the campaign depicted are portrayed you will here it has a rack first and serious second. that is to stock a the depiction. what is happening because we are dealing with this across boundaries, because we view it as a threat to two countries in particular that a region more broadly in the international community by virtue of its reach, it was important to say the main effort of the campaign is in iraq. not only dedicated or directed at an attack on the formations in the nervous system, but it also is complemented importantly by this building a partner capacity. that is an inherent part of

the strategy. it has been the reason that the numbers of our troops and coalition troops are increasing as to provide the basis. recognizable government in terms of the context of having a political partner. there is a new and hopeful presence in the form of the prime minister. it is also important as we judge the progress that is occurring, it is important to understand that that government has only been complete for 60 days and two months, the first time there has been a full government since 2010, the first time we have seen a minister of defense and the minister of interior, and in the context of the prime minister's having been appointed as

only since the eighth of september, i think that we can all be pleased with the direction. we have a blog partner. the relationship is evolving. his government is evolving. evolving. he is ultimately having -- we will have to take full -- we will have to take full appreciation of the many challenges he has to face in the aftermath of them regime but also the challenges that one third of the country is in the hands, much of the security mechanism collapsed this is a gentleman who we no well, i government that is taking shape, faces economic difficulties as well as political challenges and security challenges, the full platter, this individual, supporting him at the political level is work that we have to do on the security front to go about the business of restoring territorial integrity and providing back

to the central government and to the regional governments, the provincial government the capacity for full sovereignty, and sovereignty, and that is where the building partner capacity occurs. there are some iraqi security force elements that remained intact in the aftermath back in june. those units are being assisted now in limited tactical operations in key areas. areas. they are setting the conditions for additional activity later. for for example -- and i won't go through the whole list, but kurdish forces were supported by direct air support in pushing them off. i think we all no that that would have been a potential catastrophe downstream had they been able to hold on. it is now firmly in the hands of the kurds, and they have done a magnificent job and taking it. similarly we reduce the pressure. intent on taking the dam.

maintaining our control of those strategic infrastructures was imperative. they were able to hold on with american support and the pressure has been relieved. they attacked up route one and ultimately relieved the refining center which have been encircled and cut off and besieged in the spring and summer offenses which has just been relieved by an iraqi security force column that has worked its way up to take possession of this enormously important hydrocarbons under. and there are many others. dropping supplies out of c-130s on the population. these are limited activities at this.as we established the training camps in the four particular areas which

is in al anbar province, curtis dan, south of baghdad that begins the process of the retraining and the -- reinvigoration -- reinvigoration of their forces that will enter into the fight. similarly similarly we are getting to establish training camps elsewhere in the region where moderate syrian opposition elements will be trained as well. that is the significant support that we are seeing. >> the harder problem. >> it is because the partnership that we enjoy at a political level, at a security security level, had a governmental level is not as apparent,, nor is it as far advanced for developed. determining our partners, ensuring that the process of

recruiting, the vetting occurs in a proper manner, the training and the supporting is a challenge, and we are only now getting the to come to fruition. >> and you mentioned syria, which is obviously a hard problem because we don't have a relationship with the syrian government, but the aspirations are way beyond. you have seen incursions, but is it not also possible that they would want the headquarters of their so-called islamic state to be in mecca? some kind of a huge regional reach. >> it is something that we are thinking about every single day. and it -- you would actually have to ask what his ultimate objectives are. we are attentive to while we conduct this operation we are contented to obtaining the spread beyond the area of operation in which we are continuing the campaign at

this particular moment. it is important important to recognize that not only may they have additional contiguous aspirations, contiguous aspirations, contiguous in the context of countries that are on the borders, and i think we no that they do, it do, it is important as well that we are keeping close tabs on other groups that may swear fealty ultimately to baghdad he and i bundle up and the organization which then gives them in essence a franchise region to other areas of the globe as far away as east asia. we have seen and thankfully the national police in australia were able to thwart the intention to kidnap random taurus and behead them. so we have to be very attentive through social media and other means of communication,, lawn reach

beyond the simple terrestrial reach within the context of contiguous. attentive to saudi arabia, attentive to the equilibrium in jordan, certainly in turkey and lebanon and we watch it closely. >> and yemen. if there really were an affiliation and the tools that the bomb maker in yemen is able to produce got into their hands that could obviously enhance -- that is a terrible word. >> accelerate. >> accelerator is a better word. >> for the moment we no that there is a substantial tension. and that we would ever believe that either of those two guys could become the good guy in this relationship.

al qaeda has broken from in important ways. and so long as they are unable ultimately to see a common future and the common road that they can walk together, together, that works to our advantage. >> let me just returned to congress for a a moment. congress on a bipartisan measure funded the training mission. congress is about to pass a budget for this coming year. the so-called crown the bus, a marvelous name. thank you, congress, but also congress has to find a humanitarian system that you are talking about. and so my question is how is that going? congress should be doing but isn't? do you think that the

bipartisan cooperation that occurred on the funding bill and training mission could continue? it certainly occurs to me that the terrorists are not going to check our party registration. you talked about the fact that the way the social media campaign works does reach people and their homes and basements and computer cafés and does radicalize people. so we have to think about this not just as a foreign mission to protect an entire region but as a mission to protect the united states. >> it would be difficult for me to overstate how pleased i have been to see how the congress is reacted to this. i don't comment on political dimension.

it is not for me to do that. i will tell you that i have i have had the opportunity to speak to a number of members of congress. i come away from every one of those experiences whether at the community level or an entire house convinced that we all share a common a common sense of the challenge, common sense of the threat, and a common desire to act decisively and appropriately to deal with it. so we are very grateful for the support of the congress and the support to the train and equip mission. very mission. very grateful for continuing to support the humanitarian nature, and i think we all have an obligation to continue to talk to congress, to inform the members, to help them to understand what it is that

we are doing, to help them to understand the nature of the crisis to inform the congress and through the congress to inform the american people. to people. to this.we are grateful for the congress is done. >> i would just add that my own view, i think that their are good people and leaders in congress in both parties, and it is just imperative that the administration and obviously you call on their talents because everyone is needed in this. >> no reluctance to offer their support. i think this is an opportunity for us to create opportunities for communication that can help us to remedy this emergency. >> just a final question, and then we we will go to the audience. please identify yourself and ask a question, no speeches. i mentioned you had a second mission, keeping the security dimensions of the israel palestine negotiations warm.

what power of what day do you have to spend on this mission and how is that going? >> well, the week i retired i got a call from john kerry who asked if i would help in that regard. i consented because of my strong desire to bring about a two state outcome that provides both for israel's security but also provides a future for the palestinian people. i still do strongly deeply believe that that is the outcome that is the only way ahead in the middle east because i have a background in that area, area, because i knew the players on both sides that began a process were over 15 or 16 months i travel to the region 13 or 14 times, met with israeli

counterparts, palestinian counterparts, and we begin we began the process of looking in a systematic way to do, as i said, preserve the security of israel and at the same time provide for the security of the palestinian people and the sovereign state and to do so in a a manner which seeks to create not a divorce but a partnership, and i think that process was well advanced and obviously in the last several months we have seen that the political dimension of the process has really ceased. but our intent and our hope is to continue to talk about the potential security outcomes. we don't have to start this afresh. we have had the

conversation about the region, had a conversation about the west bank, had the conversation about how a long-term security relationship might look and we just don't have to start all over again. this political process has sought to address these difficult final status issues. the first part of the conversation of the political level is tell us how we solve the security piece because we can't go forward with the more in-depth conversation on the final status issues we have not sold in security piece. we got got well down the road and the trilateral way of addressing some of the more difficult security aspects. we did not come to file closure but we certainly came a long way down the road toward progress, progress, and we don't want that to start all over again. that is what we want. >> well, changes in or there may be because their are new elections in israel, but i

sure hope the leaders in the region are listening. >> we do as well. >> absolutely. the ambassadors. thank you for coming. invite the audience asked questions. >> areas. quite thank you for coming today. my question to you, there has been recent reporting that you have been in conversations with the turkish government about some kind of exclusion or no-fly zone. the the white house evidently is not sold on this idea yet. is there anything you can tell us about those conversations more generally what are you saying to moderate syrian forces you may be asking will american and coalition jets in the region come to our aid after

we are sent into battle and we may be suffering extreme damage from syrian regime forces? >> that is to questions. the conversation with the turks has been quite constructive. i think that it has evolved. i won't go into the details. i have been pleased with the trajectory of that conversation, and it is about not just the military dimension of how the turks might participate in the coalition, but i think we all have to understand that turkey is a frontline state. currently hosting numbers varied. done really good work on there behalf. very compassionate.

the situation on the ground in syria is very difficult, complex, multilayered situation. the conversation with which we are currently engaged seeks to understand that the matters that we can take together conceivably to further the objectives of the coalition. the conversation started sometime ago and almost a precondition away. the nature of that conversation has changed, and i will depicted as a constructive conversation. not the moment to talk about

the specifics of the details. that conversation continues. personally seen a change to the benefit of both countries in the last couple of months. with regard to syrians are conversation continues to evolve on how the campaign we will take shape in syria, the many ways in which we can both support the free syrians or the moderate syrian opposition in the field today but also how we can support them over time. that conversation has a variety of facets to it. it is not just about humanitarian support, direct assistance, military assistance, military assistance command training assistance but how the coalition might be helpful. >> let me invite you all to ask one question.

>> i am not criticizing. sometimes it is one question in six parts. both very important questions. >> the director of the middle east program. groundbreaking writing on the treatment of women in the region. just two days ago we hosted a meeting with a member of parliament. talking about the dire conditions. [speaking in native tongue] the woman mp who is here mentioned that their are 1,200 families still, roughly between six and 7,000 people,, and they have not received much help. the government has given them helicopters for evacuating. each helicopter takes 25 people. it is it is winter.

it is cold. surrounded by isis. can the coalition do something to help? >> there has actually been much more that has been done than just the activities of four helicopters. i don't have the exact number, but the iraqi air force, flying iraqi c-130s have dropped several tens of times. i don't have the exact number, tens of tons of supplies to those families. we are working very closely with the kurds and kurdish forces to continue to provide support and security as as we are able to find them we are attacking positions in and around the prominence was not insignificant effect with

respect to attacking command-and-control site and troop concentrations. so the coalition is helping. i i suspect that we will always say that more could be done, but in terms of what iraqi has done and what we are continuing to encourage that iraqi continue to do not just to provide helicopters but providing airdrops, providing medical support where able and encouraging the activities of the kurds who are also committed to helping, i think that their is, perhaps, more more being done there necessarily is depicted. it depicted. it is obviously an area where we are heavily invested. the numbers of people that chose to remain. for particular points that attract our attention in terms of concentration of

families and we we will continue to provide support as we can. >> the slave trade, one of the funding sources and a lot of those are women who are used as reward for the conquering soldiers, anywhere in the back. the man right here. >> filtrate for, retired international healthcare worker, also a marine. active duty. my question question is based on information i got at the school of advanced international studies the salaries play a somewhat complex rule. the government and individuals. i understand that individuals are contributing money. >> we have worked very closely. the government has been

aggressive in working to reduce and even and the support for those groups. you are exactly correct. it is a complex relationship here just yesterday as we continue to work on the strengthening and deepening of our partnership with saudi arabia. saudi aircraft flew alongside american aircraft in syria. i won't go into what they may be willing to say publicly, but they have been helpful to us not just in helping within the region to strike a blow against the legitimacy both in terms of clerics and the public pronouncements, but the

saudi's gave an early contribution of $500 million into humanitarian support and have also been active in assisting. i will let them speak to it publicly. train the moderate syrian opposition. whether it is humanitarian assistance to the region in particular, specific provision of arms and equipment to elements that we are beginning to train whether it is joining us in the air over syria to attack directly, or taking domestic measures to staunch the flow of individual contributions to these extremists organizations, i would simply say that saudi arabia has been active in the context of the coalition and is looking to do more. it is a very positive

contribution. >> okay. right in the middle. >> jim reston, scholar here at the wilson center. center. could you elaborate a bit on your fifth.about the interface with worldwide islam? and stopping mobilizing the horror of worldwide islam and also attempting to undermine the notion that this crowd is a legitimate beginning for an islamic caliphate, deep-seated longing for centuries. how do we undermine that notion? >> thank you, jim. >> one of the most important aspects of this undertaking is that we seek and it really more importantly the region seeks to be the

leading voice in this regard the value in the region of an american condemnation often will ring hollow with much of the region for a variety of reasons. we we don't live there. we are not part of the social fabric. and when you talk to the partners within the coalition who are of the region, what you hear early in the conversation is that this is our fight. fight. this is our crisis. islam is our faith. they have hijacked our faith, and it is up to us to be the leading elements seeking to create the momentum that delegitimize the claim both to be an islamic entity but also an islamic state which is encouraging from my perspective. as time goes on and this

line of effort, for example as we have had in one country that sponsored a conference where all of the states were present as were many other members of the coalition and we spoke in great detail about the new ones of the message and who should be saying what and how they should be saying it in the region to have the greatest effect. and so while we we will have common themes, how those common themes are depicted in the region versus how we americans may articulate both in terms of our population and two other elements within our own population that could be susceptible conceivably the radicalization and recruitment, that we will be a unique national challenge and will be a unique national contribution. importantly i think that members of the coalition operating along this delegitimization line of effort in developing the

common themes on which we all agree and i think we can all agree on many of the common themes. it is out there ultimately expressed, by home, where, and when and when that requires the art associated with the science of this kind of an approach. the most encouraging piece of this to me is not necessarily the words being spoken but this intense desire to take ownership in the region of this to strike the blows regionally, locally, nationally against the falsehood that this is both an islamic entity and a state. i think that there is no better way to judge this than if you listen to the condemnation by al qaeda of abu bucker when he declared a caliphate. the combination was loud's that they were not ready by

virtue of the things that they had done to muslims, by virtue of their ideology, and just within this broad movement of extremism and radicalization of large scale populations, they could not agree either. i'm so there is a real susceptibility. and while we we will seek to shrink the service area, attack it across its entire nervous system and in a a kinetic way and physical way begin to shrink and degrade as we seek to diminish its assets -- access to resources and ability to generate its own as we seek to reduce foreign fighters to the battle space, assist them operationally,, in the end they are defeated when we kill the idea.

the members of the coalition are interested in combining a prospective assets to kill the idea. >> another way to say that is we need when the argument. >> we do. >> king abdullah of jordan was here. there here. there seems to be an emerging conversation in the middle east that their are muslims and extremists. the.being, these extremists are not carrying out activity consistent with the quran and the muslim faith. >> and that is the key. those powerful voices in the region are our greatest weapon in this regard. >> we have very little time. i will ask for three people to ask questions and then give general alan a chance to wrap up. there are two on the side. you will ask one question. there are -- let me just

see. i can't decide here. i am going to call on the two in the front row. the other gentleman will identify himself. >> you talked about the training efforts that are going on. if i understood, how likely is it the major battles will be forced before much of the training has taken place? and thinking about the battle, likely to be imposed on you. closing in. and the second is the battle for muzzle. >> thank you. okay. two questions.

>> thank you very much. the question i wanted to ask , i would add to the problems that cannot wait. we have been here for an hour. hour. the elephant in the room has not been mentioned. do you see iran as a helpful or unhelpful force in terms of what we have to do? i know it is more complicated and syria. >> yes. thank thank you. we had a week ago from general david, the us has identified what it thinks is an isis training camp in libya. could you give an assessment of what you see in the prospects for its potential entrenchment and expansion?

>> let me get the last one first. we are very attentive to this. it is -- and i will leave to the intelligence professionals the specifics. we are attentive to those elements that choose to depict themselves, but in the context of it as it exists, a distant capitol within the context, if context, if you draw a line around the area they control , they call themselves the state, we have a pretty good sense of the contents of that area, but we are also now increasingly attentive to those organizations at a distance that seek to affiliate themselves. what i can tell you because

i am not an intelligence specialist and have not been looking specifically into libya is whether this is a camp that is set up by elements from within that proto- state or whether this is a training camp that already existed and has ultimately rebranded itself from a local a local radical extremist organization to simply seek to achieve a level of legitimacy in some cases by calling itself the franchise. we are attentive to this and concerned about elements within the ache uim, al qaeda, and we are attentive to the potential for line crossers there and what they may do. we know that the organization and the sinai has recently sworn fealty. and so watching it as it exists on the ground is only part of the broader attention being paid to the

franchise elements that begin to expand and swear loyalty all the way from the philippines to areas in north africa or even inside africa. we are watching that closely iran obviously has an enormous presence and influence in the region. i would say that it differs for us in the role that it plays. more broadly in the region from the activities of lebanese hezbollah to its support of the tribe which has destabilized in some respects human. we would hope -- we had a a conversation last night at

dinner. it is a complex issue. i would say that the nature of the debate that occurs in the conversation occurs today with respect to the acceptance of the coalition on the ground on behalf of the rack is very different conversation today than it may have been two or three years ago. the reflexive reaction of shia militia elements which i think i think unrestrained would conceivably have been under attack, interestingly enough they have not yet. the role of the grand ayatollah, it is difficult to overstate the importance of his role as it relates to the conduct and behavior but also in providing support to the minister and through his

voice and having called for greater support, given the space to consolidate his political portfolio for each of the elements tend to do so without having constantly either fire violent shia militias breathing down his back or iran seeking to derail the process. a very complex player. a very complex player in lebanon, and through lebanon we watch the results of what could have occurred in syria as it relates to lebanese hezbollah, and in that context we worry about israel is a partner and ally in the region. then more broadly we look at the activities with respect to allied populations within

the region. yemen is an interesting case study. as i have spoken with leaders in the region they are deeply concerned about their perspective and now that is affecting the stability. they put it this way. it is not just about that but the polarization that is occurring within the fabric of society is forcing elements that would otherwise never be thinking of allying themselves into the arms of al qaeda and the arabian peninsula to ally with them ultimately to deal with the concerns over the arabian influence. it is an interesting perspective. i don't no that i i share it, but it is an interesting perspective. a key player in the region. it is important for us to understand the complexities

because it is different. how it how it exists and how it can conceivably interact if we did something here it could play out here. and then the issue of the specifics associated with the counteroffensive. it will be very important when we see the counteroffensive which in some respects is underway now in a limited manner, important that we won every battle. and so giving battle and not giving battle is for a commander commending a large feel the force. it is sometimes much better to no not to fight. it is sometimes better to ensure that you set the conditions ultimately to win rather than to reduce the

risk associated with the engagement. what i mean by that is for example ramani, both iconic, i think, with respect to iraq. i will tell you that just up the road if you no the area well and i suspect that you do, al-assad, one of the principal strong points. and and while there was mixed success in and around the city which ultimately brought about the defeat of the tribe which heroically defended syria, as they have attempted to pressure their have been significant air strikes that have gone in on

behalf of the iraqi security forces, the tribal confederation. and at this.we believe that we have stabilized the situation and reduced the ability to threaten and will continue to provide that kind of support until the counteroffensive ultimately eliminates the threat. with respect to muzzle but think they we will be probably the calm actiq battle of the flight. once again, i don't want to predict timelines. i don't i don't want to predict the order in which it will occur, but this is a a city where the islamic caliphate was declared. it was also a city six months ago yesterday were the iraqi security forces began to come apart.

i think for one party they cannot lose and for another party they cannot afford not to win. and so i think the moment when the battle is joined has to be one that is seriously considered. the forces arrayed of the right combination of forces with the right kind of support so that when they ultimately feel the weight of the counteroffensive it is something that it simply cannot resist. >> well, gen., let me quote something to you, something that you said. you said, it is important that you set the conditions to win rather than just reduce the risk. we talked about winning has winning the argument ultimately, not just winning a kinetic battle. i battle. i want to say to you on behalf of the wilson center that if we ever get to

the.and hopefully we will only when the argument your personal contributions will have played a major role. i want to thank you for coming. >> it is not to be with you. [applauding]