now, with respect to the one case, there is a tradition of allowing citizens to transmit citizenship. it involved getting aliens to the united states. there is no tradition that dates back to 1350 where citizens have enjoyed rights to bring aliens to the united states. but it does date back to 1350 that you have been able to confer citizenship on your foreign-born children. so it is differently sit, one-and-one as differently situated in the structure of the statute we are talking about. congress eliminateded the ability of courts to change the rules of naturalization of aliens. it used language similar to the court's decision in ginsberg and said you can be naturalized until this provision and no other way. it doesn't say that as to citizens as to birth. they are treated differently. there is a severability clause in the statute. that brings into play all the various remedies the court has granted with respect to extension over the years.

>> i'm sorry, you refer to the tradition of passing. do you agree that there is no surf right? >> i agree that the constitution doesn't guarantee that right. our point is that it is a traditional right and congress has always provideded for it. even in the period between 1802 and 1855 where the statute was strangely drafted and didn't provide for it, this court made clear in montana versus kennedy, that when it recommend did that situation, it made it retroactive. so we have an unbroken tradition dating back to 1350. that is why this should be treated differently than the question of aliens. . the court granted a third party standing to criminal defendants raising in their criminal cases and same analysis should apply here.

we can look at the right from the perspecve of the father and if the court brigs a veling down remedy, that doesn't remedy the situation the petitioner's father would be if because before and after the court's decision, the children of women similarly situated women would be citizens and petitioner's father's son would not. ..

>> a very forgiving standard when third parties' rights are in.

>> next a groundbreaking ceremony for the new george w. bush presidential center. we will hear from laura bush and former vice president dick cheney. it is scheduled to open in 2013 and includes a library of policy and ititute. the ceremony took place in dallas earlier this week. it runs an hour and 15 minutes. the sn used to the -- student body president, jake torres. the archivist of the united states, david ferriero. the president of smu, doctor r.

gerald turner. the chair of the george w. bush foundation board of directors, and former secretary of commerce, don evans. the present of the george w. bush foundation, ambassador mark langdale. the chair of the george w. bush institute advisory board and former secretary of state, condoleezza rice. and the 46th vice president of the united states, dick cheney.

♪ >> it has been the privilege of a lifetime to serve as your president. there have been good days and tough days. but everyday i have been inspired by the greatness of our country, and uplifted by the goodness of our people. i have been blessed to represent this nation we love, and i will always be honored to carry a title that means more to me than any other, citizen of the united states of america.

>> they will put a presidential senator down in southern methodist university in dallas. it will be a policy institute, a place to promote the ideals of freedom, and personal responsibility. >> today, through our commitment, to a world without malaria. and with partners across the world they are helping the people of africa turn the tide against malaria.

♪ >> you see, ours is a country where citizens decide to help somebody in need, one heart and one soul at a time. ♪

>> and now, please welcome the 43rd president of the united states, george w. bush and mrs. laura bush. [applause] ♪

[applause] [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, please remain standing for god bless america, and our national anthem performed by solo was lower smaller and smu's bell tones and southern gentleman under the direction of doctor pamela l. rod. the colors are presented today by the third corps, fort hood sergeant audie murphy club.

♪ god bless america, land that i love ♪ ♪ stand beside her and guide her ♪ ♪ through the night with a light from above ♪ ♪ from the mountains, to the prairies ♪

♪ to the oceans white with foam ♪ ♪ god bless america ♪ my home sweet home ♪ from the mountains, to the prairies ♪ ♪ to the oceans white with foam ♪ ♪ god bless america ♪ my home sweet home ♪ god bless america ♪ god bless america ♪ god bless america

♪ my home sweet home ♪ oh, say, can you see ♪ by the dawn's early light ♪ what so proudly we hailed ♪ at the twilight's last gleaming? ♪ ♪ whose broad stripes and bright stars ♪ ♪ thro' the perilous fight

♪ o'er the ramparts we watched ♪ were so gallantly streaming ♪ and the rockets red glare ♪ the bombs bursting in air ♪ gave proof through the night ♪ that our flag was still there ♪ ♪ oh, say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave ♪ ♪ o'er the land of the free ♪ and the home of the brave?

[applause] [applause]

>> please welcome the senior minist of highland park united methodist church, reverend mark craig. applause] maurtmaurt ray. rejoice, o god, e george w. bush presidential center and smu. we pray, our lord, that it will be a place to answer the call to action. in order to make this world a better place. we pray that it will be a sanctuary to enhance learning, inspire patriotism, and offer insight into the world's future. we pray a very special prayer of thanksgiving for the leadership of president george w. bush, and laura bush. we thank you for their shared commitment to our country, and to the tenets of democracy. we pray that this center will be

an inspiration for those who choose public service as a life's location. moreover, we pray that those who study and learn in the context of this great institution will have a deeper appreciation for the history, for the very future of the united states of america. god bless us now, and bless the very fabric of this presidential center, and your holy name we pray, amen. >> please welcome the chair of the george w. bush foundation board of directors, secretary don evans. [applause] >> mark, thank you for the blessing and inspiration of your words. what a wonderful crowd for an incredibly joyous occasion. good morning to all of you.

welcome to the groundbreaking ceremony of the george w. bush presidential center, and the beautiful campus of southern methodist university of dallas, texas. [applause] >> what a thrill to be here on this historic day, joined by more than 3000 friends, supporters and the bush-cheney alumni. [cheers and applause] >> i would also like to send a word of welcome to several hundred names of the smu community who are watching down the block at must do them all, as well as, as well as supporters from around the world who are participating by live website. today's celebration represents a culmination of a lot of planning and hard work by literally thousands of individuals. it began with a library selection committee, whose efforts led to our partnership

with smu and this incredible piece of property. the design committee, chaired by mrs. laura bush, created a plan for a beautiful and allegan and forward-looking building and grounds that will come from it is campus. the foundation board has overseen the establishment and development of the bush center and its many components. the institute advisory board members provided counsel resulting in the launch of several initiatives and hiring of distinguished fellows. and the national finance committee and donors whose hard work and sacrifice have built a solid financial foundation for the bush center and the activities moving forward. while much has been accomplished in a short period of time, today marks another major milestone. as we turn our sights to the future. we break ground on a center that will serve as a resource for thousands of visitors, each and every year.

and as an epicenter for research, innovation, and action that will result, to borrow the words of a fearless leader of ours, will result in a freer and better world. today as it is indeed a celebration, a celebration of president and mrs. bush and their service to our country. of the enduring principles that motivate their life's work. of the future, the bush center will help make possible. and, finally, and finally a celebration of each and every one of you for the love that you have for president and laura bush, and the love that you have for america. thank you. [applause] thank you for your friendship, for your service, your generosity, and your commitment that has made this wonderful and

glorious day a reality. and now, please join me in welcoming to the podium my good friend, the president of the george w. bush foundation, mark langdale. [applause] >> thank you, don. we are gathered here today on the campus of smu to celebrate the start of the construction of the george w. bush presidential center, an important institution for this nation, and the world. it will include the 13th presidential library in the national archives and records administration system. it will contain the archives of the official records of the 43rd president, a museum that will tell the story of the two terms of president bush, and uniquely presidential library, the bush center will include a policy institute. this project has been many years in the planning that would not have been possible without the

service to country that so many of you gave and the support of so many of you here have provided throughout. we thank you for that. we start with an incredible sight, 23 acres on the campus of a respected university that is on the rise in a world-class city. we are grateful to smu to provide -- for providing this site, and for the deepening partnership that we are developing in so many areas of mutual interest. laura bush has chaired our design committee. her team high and gracious style is reflected in the building and the landscape that will come up on this site. robert stern, one of the greatest living architect in america today has designed the building that is human in scale and appealing and approachable. the design is not a monument making a statement from the outside, bodybuilding reflecting the important message that is within. a classically proportioned

courtyard with an appealing fountain beckons the visitor to come inside. and freedom hall, the centerpiece of the building says it all. this place is about the message inside, the message of enduring universal principles that are important to all of us. this project is design to attain lead platinum designation, the highest statement of sustainable building and design practices. the sustainable design example will be an important message to send you future visitors, but it is also a reflection of what the first couple have always believed. many of these sustainable design elements reflected in this project, judicious use of the footprint of the building to preserve green space, reusing storm water runoff or irrigation, attention to shade and sun, use of native landscaping, are all techniques that laura bush used 11 years ago in the design of their proper ranch house. there is a lot about the bush so that reflects the values,

substance and roots of george in laura bush. there will be touches of piquant, the state official treat of texas and mesquite. the unofficial tree of west texas. [laughter] >> a tree that is as tough as nails and can put up with just about anything. limestone quarry near midland, texas, were george and laura bush grew up with an bearish and the architecture. all of this will be set within 15 acres of texas native plant landscape design by michael and pays homage to the texas landscape that george and laura bush love so much. but it will fit perfectly right here in the distinguished capital of passionate campus of smu. china's limestone, the bill will reflect the essence of the element of america's george. and a forward-looking way, appropriate for the first presidential library at the 21st century. inside the building will permanently house the official records of our 43rd president.

to consequential terms comprised of a long list of key decisions, difficult decisions. these records will be available to scholars and historians to research and reflect upon the challenges this nation faced, now president bush handled them. the records have already been transferred to dallas and are being cataloged by 15 archivist under the direction of our low and laura. this will also contain a permit newseum what those the winner with the challenges of the first decade of the 21st century and students are learning about them for the first time will experience in one space the challenges that president bush faced, from 9/11 to the financial crisis of 2008, the story will be told through the key decisions that president bush made during his presidency to advance the ideals and principles that are so important to all of us. president franklin roosevelt dedicated the first presidential library in hyde park, new york,

in 1939. at the dedication he said the purpose of a presidential library is so that future generations can study and learn about the decisions of our presidents so they can make and learn how to make better decisions in the future. we have kept that vision in mind as we've designed the center, and believe it serves that worthy purpose right here on the campus of smu. but we will do more than that. president bush commission us to develop a policy institute alongside the library as a place for world-class scholars and leaders to gather and work together to improve peoples lives. they will do that here in the offices and conference facilities that will contain the latest technology for connecting and disseminating the good work of the bush institute. and always, the principles that guided president bush and his presidency will guide our work here. in fact, they already are. programming began last year, we had 20 scholars and fellows and

practitioners working on education reform, advancing human freedom, enhancing economic growth and global health. we are all privileged here today to witness a small part of american history, and the continuing history of the american presidency, the groundbreaking of the 13th presidential library and the george w. bush presidential center. on a beautiful spring day in 2013, we will return here to dedicate its opening. another presidential election will have taken place, and by tradition, all current and former presidents, a very exclusive club, will come here to commemorate that occasion. the official records of the 43rd president of this nation we placed here, just like to consequential time, and american history. a history that president bush and laura bush will continue to shape through the work here at the bush center.

it is now my pleasure to introduce to you our partner in this project, the official custodians of the historic records of america, the 10th of archivist of the united states, david ferriero. [applause] >> thank you, mark. president and mrs. bush, vice president cheney, and other distinguished guests on this platform and in the audience, on behalf of all of us at the national archives, sharon foster, this is a archivist of the presidential library, the director of all the presidential library, at all and low, direct of the george w. bush library and his wonderful staff, i want you to know how proud we are to be in dallas today. the presidential library system was created along with a national archives during the administration of the presidential roosevelt and 10 from the beginning was to the presidential libraries throughout the country for scholars and schoolchildren to

learn about their government, the presidency, and perhaps inspire to public service. the george w. bush library is the 13th presidential library to be administered by the national archives. the other 12 libraries have created a foundation upon which this library will build in the years to come, but this library will be the best yet, and will have features the others do not have. and a nod from this library to another librarian, laura bush, for your fine work in making this the best ever. [applause] >> first, in addition to the artifact and digital photos, the bush library has nearly 80 terabytes of electronic information, including more than 200 million e-mails. and as you told in june when we met, mr. president, not one of them is yours.

[laughter] >> this is the first presidential library with a major digital collection, a collection that is larger than the whole passionate holdings of all the other presidential library's combine. having an archive of electronic records of this size and complexity and poses new challenges to us. these challenges will require new solutions and innovations because of this information is of tremendous value, and would be of interest to generations of researchers and the general public. second, the museum at the bush center will be quite unique engaging the audience directly in the experience. the galleries will be arranged by examining key presidential decisions, and exploring the four principles of freedom, responsibility, opportunity, and compassion that president bush has enunciated. within that framework, the exhibit will also show the decision-making process the president followed when the many challenges of his administration

were before him. the museum will employ interactive digital technology to reach our diverse audience, both on site and virtual. and, finally, the library will benefit greatly to its close partnerships with the bush institute and with smu. with the institute we look forward to working with its fellows on research, taking part in its programs and joined the students who come here to work the institute is doing around the nation and the world. at the same time, we are proud to be in and of the smu family, and we're greatly appreciative of the wonderful welcome we have received from the faculty and students here. under the leadership of president gerald turner and with great students like jake torres, smu has reached out to the library in so many ways. we look forward to the many partnership opportunities ahead with students and faculty. throughout the presidential library system, we seek to educate and to inspire. we believe that from civic

understanding comes engagement at the national archivist is proud to be part of that important effort. now i would like to thank president turner for his leadership, and bring him to the podium. [applause] >> on behalf of the board of trustees, the faculty, staff and students, and alumni at the university, i welcome all of you to our beautiful campus, the home of the george w. bush presidential center. and we thank you, president and mrs. bush, for making this day possible at smu. thank you. [applause] >> if this is your first visit to campus, that we hope that you will stay with us long enough to be able to experience the energy and vitality of our campus, as well as the beautiful oaks and

stately collegiate georgian buildings. but having the bush presidential center on our campusrovides a unique opportunity to develop joint programs involving the faculty, staff and students at the university, with the fellows and visiting scholars of the bush presidential center. last year, for conferences of the bush institute on important global issues resulted in a partnership between the institute and the university, and gave us a glimpse of the tremendous potential that is available for the future. in adition, groups of students have already visited the temporary library side that alan lowe has made possible and they enjoyed classroom visits by president bush. some of them barely survived that experience when he walked in. [laughter] but having the historic resources of the library and the, will provide remarkable opportunities for research, not on for our faculty and students,

but for scholars worldwide. and close to home, these resources will provide educational experiences for the almost 200,000 k-12 students who live in the metroplex. but it is the joint programming and interaction with fellows, visiting scholars and leaders at the institute that will constitute most of the intellectual dialogue and debate that will carry the impact of the bush presidential center far into the future. today, is another milestone. along a timeline that began for us in the summer of 2000, when we determined to try to bring the bush presidential center to smu, the alma martyr of the first lady. although the process at times was challenging, we have never wavered in that quest. we knew that smu would benefit from the presence of the presidential center on a campus. and we believe that the

presidential center would benefit from its association with smu. because of the academic resources, vitality of dialogue and research, programs and our location. in the heart of on the most dynamic regions in the united states. this groundbreaking foretells the great celebration of the center's opening in 2013, and the development of a vibrant educational partnership, both now and for generations to come. so it is an honor to have the bush presidential center on the smucampus. and now to bring greetings from our students, it's a privilege to introduce the president of the student body, jake torres, a senior from merson, texas, majoring in english and spanish. jake torres. [applause] >> thank you, doctor turner. it is a wonderful day to be a

member of the mustang family, and a special privilege to be here representing the 11,000 students of southern methodist university. it was a great day when we are chosen as the future home of the george w. bush presidential center. educational opportunities and partnerships have are to be made available to the students of smu come and will continue to benefit the smu community for years to come. over the past two years president bush has made surprise visits to classes as dr. turner mentioned, and students have attended bush institute conferences and even served as interest for president and mrs. bush, and for the bush foundation. many of us chose smu because of its location in dallas. it's a small class sizes and its excellent faculty. but we also selected smu because of its commitment to provide experiences outside of the classroom that benefit and enrich what we're learning inside of the classroom. the fact that i'm here today and am joined by several hundred

fellow mustangs is a perfect example of how the bush center is enhancing our smu education and experience in a way that nonef us will ever forget. thank you for allowing us to share in this special moment and president mrs. bush, on behalf of the smu student body, welcome home. [applause] >> gthank you, jake. it's now my honor to introduce the chair of the george w. bush institute advisory board, former secretary of state and what we really like, an academic, former provost at stanford, dr. condoleezza rice. [cheers and applause] >> thank you. thank you very much. thank you very much. thank you.

thank you very much. thank you. thank you. well, thank you for that warm smu welcome. mr. president, mrs. bush, mr. vice president, and my fellow members here, i could not be more delighted to be with you, and more honor to serve as the chair of the george w. bush institute board. on behalf of my fellow institute of board members, the advisory board looks forward to continuing the great work that has already begun under the excellent leadership of jim glassman. i want you to know that the institute looks forward to continuing to be a place where smu students feel welcome to, where they can participate in the work of the institute, and

where faculty from smu, from around the country, scholars and practitioners from all over the world, can come together to explore powerful ideas, and to find ways to put them into action. the hallmark of the presidency of george w. bush was the fundamental bedrock belief in the inherent works of every individual. and because every individual is worthy, every individual deserves to live in feedom. the president and mrs. bush believed that america had a special responsibility to use its power an its generosity and its compassion, to advance freedom for those at home, and for those abroad. a belief that free people are most creative and most fulfilled in free economies, where their

activities and their creativity can lift millions out of poverty. a belief that every individual has the right to be free from ignorance, and that the transforming power of education is owed to every child, because every child can learn. a belief that human beings also need to be free from disease, and that healthy societies are more likely to be partners in peace and in prosperity. a belief that societies that do not fully bring the potential of their women to bear will be poorer for it. and ultimately, that societies that treat women badly are dangerous societies. and abc's that no man, woman or child deserves to live in tyranny.

that tierney must be spoken of and broken down in every corner of the world. a belief that the voices of the so-called power can be incredibly powerful, that they have brought down walls and that they have brought down dictators. the institute will seek the best ideas to put these principles into action, and then go about the work that is left to us. the institute, and my fellow advisory board members, believe very strongly that we are all doing this in the belief that while we have to deal with the world as it is, we do not have to accept the cynical notions that this is the best that we can do. president bush was sometimes considered an idealist, and at the very least, an optimist. but i would say that president bush, and mrs. laura bush, were

more than that. they were optimists and idealists, but they were realists, too. because they realize that we have seen so many times, even in our lifetime, with the impossible one day seems inevitable the next. and so we will do our part to advanced towards the world, not as it is, but the world as it should be. i am really excited, and look with great anticipation, to the for the work of the institute as a part of the george w. bush presidential center. it's going to be a great future. thank you. [applause] >> i had the honor of inviting to the podium and absolute, ask

you to join in honoring the 46 vice president of the united states, richard c. cheney. [applause] >> thank you. thank you very much. well, i've often been overlooked during my two -- to was a vice president. [laughter] so i'm delighted to be here today. i want to thank condi and president and laura, and all the rest of our friends who are gathered here on this historic occasion. it's great to be back in dallas, the city that my wife, lynne, and i called home for five

years. flying down here yesterday, as i got to thinking about my time as a texan, we loved dallas. we miss it, sometimes. and happily we now have another very good reason to come back often and see america's newest presidential library and the man whose name is on it. [applause] >> of course, the george w. bush presidential center isn't much to look at it just yet. but the workers are ready, construction will move fast after today's groundbreaking. this may be the only shovel-ready project in america. [applause]

>> my congratulations on the start of the center, mr. president, as well as the success of your new memoir. the robust sales it has only had don't surprise me in the least. two years after your tour in the white house ended, judgments are little more measured than they were when times have been tough and the critics have been loud, you always said, you had faith in history judgment. and history is beginning to come around. [applause] >> ten years have passed since governor bush asked me to be his running mate. and the days right before that decision, we spent some time getting to know each other better. i suppose he was taking my nature, i know i was watching

him pretty closely, too. there are some basic attributes to look for. in a fella who may become president. to dust off a phrase from the 2000 campaigns, i saw those traits in this guy, big time. [laughter] >> one of the things that struck me from the beginning and that continue to impress me throughout our time in office was george bush's refusal to put on airs. it's a happy experience, and everyone, to find the most powerful person you know it's among the least pretentious, that at the commanding heights, a man can be so respectful of his office, so serious in his duty, and yet so unimpressed with himself. kipling made a fine virtue for one to walk with kings, yet keep the common touch. and nobody has ever done it quite like our 43rd president. [applause]

>> i've seen him hit with the various august figures who come to the oval office. icing and dealing with folks who look out of the presidential household, and it's always the same. we could all forgive a president for tearing himself with a certain expectation of privilege, but with this president, no such allowances were necessary. there were no aspect nation's about them at all. he meets everyone as an equal. and attitude you don't expect to find in government, much less at the very top. but it's a classy way to operate. very american, and wonderful to see in the oval office. it's also quite to anyone who knows the family. is courteous, fair-minded and

kind, capable of great strength and great gentleness, and of all this, very much his father's son. mr. president, when you and i started our association in office, we knew that big responsibility awaited us. and though of course we couldn't have imagined all that was to come, somehow your life had prepared you for some of the most serious decisions in a president ever had to face. when the worst game, you did your job with courage and clarity, and with the strength of our. when i think of september 11, the days that followed, one of the images that always comes to mind is the president standing on a flat firetruck throwing his arm around every country worker saying through a bullhorn that the people who knocked these buildings down would soon hear from all of us.

[applause] >> far into the future, visitors here will still see that bullhorn. when they do, i hope to picture the world as it was that day and realized how it was transformed in the months and years ahead. america went from being on the defense against terrorists going on offense against uzbek history is always an account of what happened, but sometimes the greatest story of all is what did not happen. and because you are determined to throw back the enemy, we did not suffer another 9/11, or something even worse. [applause] >> i had a few more thoughts on the man and his presidency, but i will save them for what we're all back in dallas again for the

grand opening of the library. enough for now to say that it was a privilege to serve beside him for those eight years, and a daily pleasure to share in the journey. i know that all the lumps here he'll just the same. i know the american people will always think highly of him because they can tell a decent, goodhearted, stand stand up guy when they see one. and i know that all the texans in this audience are ready now to lead the cheers for our friend, the 43rd president of the united states, george w. bush. [applause] >> thank you all. thank you all.

okay, thanks very much. thank you for those of you who are not privileged to live in texas, welcome to the great state. [applause] >> and welcome to one of the finest universities in the hold united states, southern methodist. [applause] >> i can't thank big enough for coming. i've been doing these interviews, trying to peddle my book -- [laughter] >> i am asked about dick cheney. is what i say. dick cheney was the right pick in the year 2000, and as i stand here, there is no doubt in my mind he was the right pick them.

he was a great vice president of the united states, and i'm proud to call him friend. [applause] >> want to thank all the people who made this event possible. i want to thank my pal, mark langdale. and secretary don evans for the leadership. i do want to call out an smu columbus, ray, for being such an efficient and effective leader in this effort. [applause] >> i appreciate ambassador jim glassman's leadership at the institute. i want to thank my pal, the former secretary of state, condoleezza rice, for joining us. [applause]

>> one reason that smu is such a superb university is because its leadership is superb, starting at the top with gerald turner. [applause] >> i thank david for joining us and alan lowe, the archivists. i am grateful that our preacher, mark craig has joined us. and i want to thank the student body president, jake torres. [applause] >> now, mr. president, a word of advice. [laughter] >> it is not too early to start thinking about your memoirs. [laughter] >> i am proud to be associated with you and the student body. it is a great group of future leaders or our country. [applause] >> with us today is a man i have

befriended during my presidency, one of the really courageous leaders in the world, someone who understands the importance of democracy and freedom, someone who understands you cannot negotiate with terrorists. and that is the former president of colombia, have ever read a. me amigo. [applause] >> we are proud that a lot of soldiers from fort have joined us today. i -- [applause]

[applause] [applause] >> i really don't miss much about washington. [laughter] >> but i do miss being your commander in chief. [applause] >> i want to thank all the people from our administration who have joined us today, and i thank you for your noble service to our country. [applause] >> and i appreciate the 160,000 donors whose generosity has insured that this building was fully paid for before we broke ground.

[applause] >> and i thank all the people joining us via webcast. it is hard to believe that there's this much excitement about shoveling dirt. [laughter] >> today's groundbreaking marks the beginning of the journey. we take the first step towards construction of this presidential center, which will be a dynamic hub of ideas and actions based upon timeless principles. truth of the matter is, this moment is a continuation of a journey that began many years ago. just over a decade ago the american people went to the polls to choose their president in the 2000 election. just under a decade ago, they figured out the results. [laughter] >> and a lot of us believe i the only present to have won the same election five times.

[laughter] >> back then, none of us could have predicted what would lie ahead for our country. we witnessed our nation attacked, and our country united and results. we felt the grief of war and the jury of liberation. we remember vividly young girls going to school in afghanistan, and voters waiting purple fingers in the air. we saw that, with clear purpose, and accountable action, we could help aids patients to live, struggling societies to develop, and storm victims to rebuild. through the trials and the saunas, the good days and the bad, the decisions we made

together for guided by certain principles. we believe that freedom is a universal and the hope of every soul and the ultimate path to peace. we believe in free markets are the best way to empower individuals at home and to lift people abroad out of poverty. we believe you can spend your money better than the united states government can spend your money. [applause] >> we believe that america's interest and consciously meant engagement in the world, because what happens elsewhere in negatively affects us here. we believe the call to serve and the admonition to whom much is given, much is required. and i believe that the ultimate responsibility of a leader is to not do what is easy or popular, but to do what is necessary and

right. [applause] >> the decisions of governing are on another president's desk and he deserves to make them without criticism from me. [applause] >> staying out of current affairs and politics does not mean staying out of policy. i solemnly believe the principles that guided our service in public office are the right principles to lead our country into the future. these principles don't belong to any president, or any political party. their fundamental american ideals that arise for a founding and have expired -- inspired millions aroun around the world. all three outlets of the presidential center will play a

role in advancing those principles. .. economic growth and human freedom. for example, we lost

launched an innovative new effort called the alliance to for education leadership which focuses on improving the quality of school principals and administrators. we've begun a study of new ways to integrate maternal health services on the continent of africa. we've started compiling a repository of documents and interviews from freedom advocates around the world which will spotlight the triumph of dissy dents and inspire others to join their cause. one of the most exciting parts of the presidential center is the institute's women's initiative. laura and i believe women are often society's most effective agents of change and one of the institute's core missions will be to support the efforts of women to lead the freedom movement in the middle east and in other parts of the world. we are fortunate to have

laura overseeing this initiative and i have been a lucky man to have her by my side for 33 years. [applause] it is now my privilege to bring to the podium a fabulous woman and great first lady. lara bush. [applause] >> thank you so much. and thank you, george. thanks everybody. thank you all. thank you so much. thank you all and thanks to everyone here for joining us today. george and i are thrilled to share this moment with so many good friends, so many cabinet members and

white house staff. vice president cheney, thank you so much for joining us. dr. rice, thank you very much for being here. i also want to recognize president uribe from colombia. thank you so much for joining us as well. ambassador langdale and dale turner. ambassador jim glassman will be executive director of the george w. bush institute, thank you all very much. you just heard about some of the bush institute's goals from fostering economic opportunity to improving access to health care and education and to expanding freedom around the world. the reason we've included women's initiatives at the institute is clear. the success of each of these important goals will depend upon the contributions of women. vibrant economies rely on the creativity of women entrepreneurs. free political systems,

require the insights of women in government, journalism, and the law. healthy nations depend upon wives and mothers to make informed decisions that will keep themselves and their families safe, and every successful society depends upon women who can read. mothers are our first teachers. which means that educating women yields rewards for generations to come. as the great egyptian poet ibriham said, when you educate a woman, you create a nation. over the past decade i've been inspired by the examples of strong women that i have met across the world. in africa i met hiv-postive women who educate other women so that their babies will be born hiv-free. in saudi arabia where cancer carries a stigma, dr. almode

works with the komen global initiative to raise awareness about breast cancer. in the remote jungles of thailand dr. cynthia mong runs a klain i can -- clinic to care for fellow refugees who are fleeing oppression of burma's dictatorship. as ambassador the u.n. literacy decade i met women around the world who met other women who lead healthier and prosperous and fulfilling lives by giving them access to basic quality education. this past march george and i hosted a conference on the u.s.-afghan women's council here at smu. the council's work is a powerful example of the strides that have been made by women in afghanistan. under the rule of the taliban women were routinely

subjected to unspeakable degradation and tomorrow meant and shut out completely from their society. today afghan women now lead as provincial governors and as elected members of the national assembly. they work as entrepreneurs, as lawyers, and community health workers. many also serve in a profession that is close to my heart, teaching. these inspiring leaders remind us that investments in women are always worthwhile and they remind us that laws and customs that deny women their basic rights and that deny society's of women's contributions are never acceptable. this is a message we need to spread. this past summer americans were horrified by the "time" magazine cover featuring ayisha, the afghan teenager

mutilated by her taliban husband. last year the murderer of an iranian music student and peaceful protestor nada sultan, who was gunned down on the streets of tehran during protests, showed that other women often pay the ultimate price in pursuit of freedom worldwide. and for most of the past two decades the leader of burma's democracy movement, a nobel lawyer rat, was a prisoner in her own own home. the free world rejoid this week at her release but came only after she was banned in participating in burma's recent elections. and she has been released before only to be placed back under house arrest by the military regime. this time we hope that she is freed without conditions and she is allowed to continue her peaceful work

until the day when all of burma's citizens live in free freedom. [applause] around the world all of us who live in freedom have the obligation to condemn barbaric acts against women because an electorate that shuts out women is not a democracy. in a population that belies, denies the rights of women is not a free society. the goal of our women's initiative is to stand with the women who despite these challenges, are determined to carry on their courageous work, to promote democracy and freedom in the middle east, we'll join with political and civic leaders, faith-based organizations, corporationing and foundations to help women become more engaged and

better educated and be participants in government, business and civil society. through a partnership among african nations, western nations and ngos, the institute will lead an effort to deliver integrated health services to expectant mothers, hoping to protect their own health at a critical time and to keep their babies safe from hiv and malaria. today nearly 800 million adults are illiterate 2/3 of them are women. if we want women to be the bedrock of stable, democratic society, they mu be able to read. here at the bush institute the women's initiative will champion literacy and will keep working to improve the education that girls and boys receive in school both here at home and around the world. at the u.s.-afghan women's council meeting held here at the bush institute, one of

the participants was an afghan woman. during the taliban years, dr. ukube operated upped ground literacy centers at great risk to her own life. today she runs more than 40 women's centers across afghanistan teaching hundreds of thousands of women to read. at the conference dr. sakubi asked participants to invest in the future of afghanistan and to support the ongoing progress of women. yes, it's difficult she said but be patient with us. don't be sorry for us. be with us. through the women's initiative the bush institute will stand with dr. sakubi and all who are working to guaranty equal rights for women. thank you all very much for your support of the bush institute and thank you for joining us here today. [applause]

>> and now, ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming. the speeches are over. it is time to shovel dirt. >> joining president and mrs. bush at this time, to break ground, we welcome the coordinating co-chair of the george w. bush foundation, national finance committee, ray hunt. building architect, robert a. sternl. landscape architect, michael van vuklenberg. chair of the smu board of trustees, sharon prothro, director of the george w. bush presidential library, alan lowe. ♪ . >> there you are, dick, right there.

you got it. thank you, sir. okay. everybody ready? time to shovel dirt. hold it up, look at the camera, turn it. ♪ . ♪ .

>> thank you for attending today's groundbreaking ceremony. for the george w. bush presidential center. please exit at the rear of the tent, and please travel safely. ♪ .

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>> sunday, on washington journal, michael scheerer on the lame-duck congressional section and what the 112th congress can expect from leadership then, the former navy supreme court allied commander in europe talks about progress being made in afghanistan and other u.s. national security issues. after that, former house speaker newt gingrich discusses the incoming republican-led congress and the similarities between

them and the 1994 in gop takeover of congress. plus, your e-mail and phone calls. that is at 7:00 a.m. eastern on c-span. >> earmarks count for less than one half of one percent of the federal budget and are part of the agenda for the upcoming 112th congress. find out what your marks are on line with the c-span video library. search and watch programs regarding earmarks and the arguments for and against them. it is washington your way. >> still to come on c-span, a staff sergeant becomes the first living american soldiers since the vietnam war to receive the medal of honor. after that, a closing news conference at this week's nato summit with the nato secretary, afghan president and others. that is followed by president obama on renewing the treaty and a timetable for u.s. troops in

afghanistan. later, the national governors' association hosts the seminar for the incoming governors to advise them and their transition teams. >> along with our coverage of the miami book fair this weekend on booktv, watch "afterwards" tonight. cultures of war is a national book award finalist this year predicted the entire weekend schedule at booktv.org. >> next, stuff sgt salvatore giunta received the medal of honor. he met with the president at the white house. this is one half hour.

♪ >> ladies and gentleman, the president of the united states, and ms. michele obama, accompanied by medal of honor recipient, staff sgt salvatore guinta. ["hail to the chief" playing] >> let us pray. almighty and merciful god in whom we play our trust, we honor the extraordinary actions above and beyond the call of duty apprenticed.

by the staff sergeant, an american soldier, patriot, and he wrote. -- he wrote -- hero. our hearts forever resonate with liberating stride, more themselves and their country love and mercy more than light. -- more than life. make our remembrances of his all americans with great pride selfless lawyers like him living among us today as we hear the account of his actions, may we also remember that all of our armed forces, and those this are in harm's way across the world today.

for his courageous actions against the enemy and to rescue a fallen comrade, may we recommit ourselves to selfless service for our families and our fellow citizens. call upon a reflection of the whole union forged among soldiers to respire -- to inspire new unity in our own land especially during times of conflict. as we celebrate this special day with his family may we remember in prayer all the families who await the safe return home of their loved ones. as we pause to remember the many freedoms we enjoy as a nation, may we never give more things than we do right now to those who paid the glorious liberty to which we enjoyed for their blood, sweat, and tears. this we pray in your holy name, amen. >> good afternoon, everybody. please be seated. on behalf of michelle and myself, welcome to the white house. thank you, chaplain carver, for that beautiful invocation. of all the privileges that come with serving as president of the united states, i have none

greater than serving as commander in chief of the find as military -- the finest military that the world is ever known. and of all the military decorations that a president and a nation can bestow, there is none higher than the medal of honor. today is particularly special. since the end of the vietnam war, the medal of honor has been awarded nine times for conspicuous gallantry in an ongoing or recent conflict. sadly our nation has been unable to present this decoration to the recipients themselves, because each gave his life -- his last full measure of devotion -- for our country. indeed as president, i have presented the medal of honor three times, and each time to the families of a fallen hero. today, therefore, marks the

first time in nearly 40 years that the recipient of the medal of honor for an ongoing conflict has been able to come to the white house and accept this recognition in person. it is my privilege to present our nation's highest military decoration, the medal of honor, to a soldier as humble as he is heroic -- staff sergeant salvatore guinta. i'm going to go off script here for a second and just say i really like this guy. [laughter] [applause] i think anybody -- we all just get a sense of people and who

they are, and when you meet sal and you meet his family, you are absolutely convinced that this is what america is all about. and it just makes you proud. and so this is a joyous occasion, something that i have been looking forward to. the medal of honor reflects the gratitude of an entire nation. so we're also joined here today by several members of congress, including both senators and several representatives from sap project staff sergeant -- staff sergeant guinta's on said of viola. -- home state of iowa. we're joined by the secretary of chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, admiral mike mullen. where is mike? there he is, right there. army secretary john mchugh, and chief of staff of the army,

general george casey. we are especially honored to be joined by staff sergeant guinta's phyllis soldiers, his teammates and brothers from battle company, seconds of the 503rd of the 173rd airborne brigade, and members of that rarest of fraternities that now welcomes him into its ranks -- the medal of honor society. please give them a big round of applause. [applause] we also welcome the friends and family who made staff sergeant guinta into the man that he is, including his lovely wife, jenny, and his parents, steven and rosemary, as well as his

siblings who are here. it was his mother, after all, who apparently taught him as a young boy in small-town iowa how to remove the screen from his bedroom window in case of fire. [laughter] what she did not know was that by teaching sal how to jump from his bedroom and sneaking off in the dead of night, she was unleashing a future paratrooper who would one day fight in the rugged mountains of afghanistan 7,000 miles away. during the first of his two tours of duty in afghanistan, staff sergeant giunta was forced early on to come to terms with the loss of comrades and friends.

cover but the dust kicked up by the storm of bullets still biting into the ground. there, he saw a chilling sight: the silhouettes of two insurgents carrying the other wounded american away -- who happened to be one of sal's best friends. sal never broke stride. he leapt forward. he took aim. he killed one of the insurgents and wounded the other, who ran off. sal found his friend alive, but badly wounded. sal had saved him from the enemy -- now he had to try to save his life.

even as bullets impacted all around him, sal grabbed his friend by the vest and dragged him to cover. for nearly half an hour, sal worked to stop the bleeding and help his friend breathe until the medevac arrived to lift the wounded from the ridge. american gunships worked to clear the enemy from the hills. and with the battle over, first platoon picked up their gear and resumed their march through the valley. they continued their mission. it had been as intense and violent a firefight as any soldier will experience. by the time it was finished, every member of first platoon had shrapnel or a bullet hole in their gear. five were wounded. and two gave their lives: sal's friend, sergeant joshua c. brennan, and the platoon medic, specialist hugo v. mendoza. now, the parents of joshua and

hugo are here today. and i know that there are no words that, even three years later, can ease the ache in your hearts or repay the debt that america owes to you. but on behalf of a grateful nation, let me express profound thanks to your sons' service and their sacrifice. and could the parents of joshua and hugo please stand briefly? [applause] now, i already mentioned i like this guy, sal.

and as i found out myself when i first spoke with him on the phone and when we met in the oval office today, he is a low- key guy, a humble guy, and he doesn't seek the limelight. and he'll tell you that he didn't do anything special; that he was just doing his job; that any of his brothers in the unit would do the same thing. in fact, he just lived up to what his team leader instructed him to do years before: "you do everything you can." staff sergeant giunta, repeatedly and without hesitation, you charged forward through extreme enemy fire, embodying the warrior ethos that says, "i will never leave a fallen comrade." your actions disrupted a devastating ambush before it could claim more lives. your courage prevented the

capture of an american soldier and brought that soldier back to his family. you may believe that you don't deserve this honor, but it was your fellow soldiers who recommended you for it. in fact, your commaer specifically said in his recommendation that you lived up to the standards of the most decorated american soldier of world war ii, audie murphy, who famously repelled an overwhelming enemy attack by himself for one simple reason: "they were killing my friends." that's why salvatore giunta risked his life for his fellow soldiers -- because they would risk their lives for him. that's what fueled his bravery -- not just the urgent impulse to have their backs, but the absolute confidence that they had his. one of them, sal has said -- of these young men that he was with, he said, "they are just as much of me as i am." they

are just as much of me as i am. so i would ask sal's team, all of battle company who were with him that day, to please stand and be recognized as well. [applause] gentlemen, thank you for your service.

we're all in your debt. and i'm proud to be your commander-in-chief. these are the soldiers of our armed forces. highly trained, battle hardened, each with specialized roles and responsibilities, but all with one thing in common -- they volunteered. in an era where it has never been more tempting to chase personal ambition or narrow self-interest, they chose the opposite. they felt a tug. they answered a call. they said, i will go. and for the better part of a decade, they have endured tour after tour in distant and difficult places. they have protected us from danger. they have given others the opportunity to earn a better and more secure life. they are the courageous men and women serving in afghanistan even as we speak. they keep clear focus on their mission -- to deny safe haven

for terrorists who would attack our country, to break the back of the taliban insurgency, to build the afghans capacity to defend themselves. they possess the steely resolve to see their mission through. they are made of the same strong stuff as the troops in this room, and i am absolutely confident that they will continue to succeed in the missions that we give them, in afghanistan and beyond. after all, our brave servicemen and women and their families have done everything they had been asked to do. they have been everything that we have asked them to be. if i am a hero, sal has said, then every man who stands around me, every woman in the military, every person who defends this coury is. and he is right. this medal today is a testament to his uncommon valor, but also

to the parents and the community that raised him, the military that trained him, and all the men and women who served by his side. all of them deserve our enduring thanks and gratitude. they represent a small fraction of the american population, but they and the families who await their safe return carry far more than their fair share of our burden. they fight halfway around the globe, but they do it in hopes that our children and our grandchildren will not have to. they are the very best part of us. they are our friends, our family, our neighbors, our classmates, our coworkers. they are why our banner still waves, our founding principles still shine, and our country -- the united states of america -- still stands as a force for good all over the world. so please join me in welcoming

staff sergeant salvatore guinta for the reading of the citation. >> the president of the united states of america, authorized by act of congress, march 3, 1863, has awarded, in the name of congress, the medal of honor to then specialist salvatore a. giunta, united states army. specialist salvatore a. giunta distinguished himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity, at the risk of his life, abovand beyond the call of duty, in action, with an armed enemy in the korengal valley, afghanistan, on october 25, 2007. while conducting a patrol as team leader, with company b, second battalion airborne, 503rd

infantry regiment, specialist giunta and his team were navigating through harsh terrain when they were ambushed by a well-armed and well- coordinated insurgent force. while under heavy enemy fire, specialist giunta immediately sprinted towards cover and engaged the enemy. seeing that his squad leader had fallen, and believing that he had been injured, specialist giunta exposed himself to withering enemy fire and raced towards his squad leader, helped him to cover and administered medical aid. while administering first aid, enemy fire struck special giunta's body armor and his secondary weapon. without regard to the ongoing fire, specialist giunta engaged the enemy before prepping and throwing grenades, using the explosions for cover in order to conceal his position. attempting to reach additional wounded fellow soldiers who were separated from the squad, specialist giunta and his team encountered a barrage of enemy fire that forced them to the ground. the team continued forward, and upon reaching the wounded

soldiers, specialist giunta realized that another soldier was still separated from the element. specialist giunta then advanced forward on his own initiative. as he crested the top of a hill, he observed two insurgents carrying away an american soldier. he immediately engaged the enemy, killing one and wounding the other. upon reaching the wounded soldier, he began to provide medical aid, as his squad caught up and provided security. specialist giunta's unwavering courage, selflessness and decisive leadership while under extreme enemy fire were integral to his platoon's ability to defeat an enemy ambush and recover a fellow american soldier from the enemy. specialist salvatore a. giunta's extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, company b, second battalion airborne, 503rd infantry regiment and the united states army.

[applause] [applause]

>> let us pray. great and loving god, as we conclude this ceremony, keep us mindful of the call to the voter sell to the others. may sergeant guinta's courageous actions challenge us to do the same for our fellow citizens for generations to come. please give south and jenny great wisdom and strengthen their roles that lie before them, may meet the mall with -- maybe need them all with -- may need them all with dignity, courage, and humility.

we pray in your holy name, amen. >> thank you so much, everybody. let's give sal one last big round of applause. [applause] ♪ ["america the beautiful"

playing] ♪ ♪ [captioning performed by national captioning institute]

[captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] ♪

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>> after being awarded the medal of honor, the staff sergeant met with reporters to make a brief statement. >> thank you for coming out today. this is truly an incredible and parents. -- incredible experience.

although i am the one standing in all branches in afghanistan since 2000 to, and i appreciate them because without their service, i have nothing. it means the world to me to have the great men and women of the united states military behind me, supporting me, leading me forward. i like to thank my mom, my dad, my brother, my sister, and my beautiful wife jenny. this is an incredible time, but is also a bittersweet time. times like this, because of the state, i lost two dear friends of mine. and although this is so positive, i would give this back in a second to have my friends with me right now.

and there're so many others they will never come back or give a hug or see their family again, and that is the quality of american soldiers that we have, fighting in doing what is done. thank you for coming again and take care. >> republicans have regained control of the u.s. house and as of now, they have picked up over 60 seats with five races still undecided. democrats currently have 190 members and republicans two hundred 40 members. the five races still in the recount face are to california

districts, two new york districts and one texas district with an incumbent democrat running. one new member of the u.s. house defeated the incumbent republican. that is mostly the city of new orleans. he served in the louisiana house since 2000. he is currently one of only nine new democratic members that the u.s. house will will come when they open the 112th congress in january. >> like all men of great gifts, when they give up power, even though they may give it up for principled reasons, they tend to hanker for the moment they give it up. >> in the final volume of his award winning trilogy on theodore roosevelt, edmund morris examines the final years of cheap -- of theodore

roosevelt's life. sunday night on c-span. >> next, a closing news conference at this weekend's nato summit in new lisbon, portugal. there were questions on the 2014 timetable for withdrawing troops and the mission of afghan soldiers and police. this is half an hour.

[applause]

opening statements and then we will take questions. >> let me begin by welcoming president karzai and secretary general ban ki-moon to this summit meeting on afghanistan. over the past few years, there have been many international meetings on afghanistan. all of them have been important and valuable, but this one is different. because here in lisbon, we have launched the process by which the afghan people will once again become masters in their own house. starting early next year, afghan forces will begin taking the lead for security

operations. this will begin in certain districts and provinces, and based on conditions, will gradually expand throughout the country. the aim is for afghan forces to be in the lead country-wide by the end of 2014. to achieve that goal, we must train and educate afghan soldiers and afghan police. therefore our training mission is crucial. in that respect it is encouraging that we have heard announcements that several allies and partners will provide more trainers. it is indeed a strong commitment to our mission and it is a strong commitment to the transition process, because trainers are the ticket to transition. this is truly a new phase in afghanistan's modern development.

ten years ago, afghanistan was to apart by civil war, under a brutal regime, and hosting the most dangerous international terrorists in the world. today, despite all the difficulties, al qaeda has no safe haven anywhere in afghanistan. the taliban is under pressure everywhere. and the afghan people are steadily getting freer, healthier, better educated, and better governed. that is what will make afghanistan resistant to terrorism tomorrow along with the afghan security forces we are training to take over security from us. but one thing must be very clear. nato is in this for the long- term. we will not transition until our afghan partners are ready.

will stay, after transition in a supporting role. and as you just saw, president karzai and i have signed an agreement on a long-term partnership between nato and afghanistan that will endure beyond our combat mission. to put it simply, if the taliban or anyone else aims to wait us out, they can forget it. we will stay as long as it takes to finish our job. but of course, we cannot succeed alone. the military is necessary, but we need a true comprehensive approach. that is a clear lesson of our experience in afghanistan. that is why i am very pleased that secretary general ban is here. under his leadership, the un has

been a true partner for nato. indeed, afghanistan has brought the un and nato closer together than ever in our histories. and we will have much more to do together, to help afghanistan find the peace, security and development its people deserve. mr. president, may i give you the floor? >> thank you for your posting, secretary general, and to you president ban ki-moon. ladies and gentlemen, we had a very important summit this morning of a nato and afghanistan in which i, on behalf of the afghan people, thank the members of nato for the contributions they have been making to afghanistan for the past nine years, for the sacrifices they have endured, and for the assistance they have provided to afghanistan with the taxpayers' money. i think them for all of that and inform them -- i thank them for all of them and inform them of the progress as we have made in

afghanistan over the last years and also the continuing difficulties of the afghan people. i think them for the sacrifice of the men and women of nato and in afghanistan and the help that have provided to education and the well-being of the afghan people that have truly made a great difference to the lives of the afghan people. . .

by our nato allies. the world leaders at today's meeting demonstrated a keen awareness of afghanistan and of the realities there in our country. we also spoke about the peace process and the need for the world leaders to back the peace process and i'm glad to report to you now that on all the agendas that were common between us, i found voices of concord and agreement by the world leaders. i once again would express the

gratitude of the afghanistan people, and thank you very much for very ably conducting that very important meeting for afghanistan and for pulling it together in a manner that will benefit the afghan people for a better future, for a more secure future, for a future in which afghanistan will be contributing toward security and the economy rather than one that will be a burden on the world's community. i thank you very much for it and also thank you for signing today the enduring partnership with us looked over and approved by the secretary-general of the united nations. thank you very much, gentlemen, very nice. >> thank you, mr. president. >> thank you, it's a great

honor and pleasure for me to be standing with president karzai and the secretary-general. i thank you for your leadership over this ver important meeting on afghanistan. we have just had a successful meeting culminating in the adoption of this decoration and nato-afghanistan partnership agreement. these important steps forward will all of your conferences in london, in kabul and on the ground in afghanistan. let me stress that the united nations will work closely with the government and people of afghanistan with other partners. we all share the same goal, stability, governance, respect for human rights, and harmonious relationship between

afghanistan and her neighbors. there have been obvious difficulties in recent months, but we remain united and committed. we have to define the clear path for transition. institutions have demonstrated that they can take on increasing leadership and responsibility the united nations will do its part to support the aspect of this transition. we also recognize that there can be no military solution. afghanistan's stability and well-being depends on a genuine dialogue amongst all our friends revolve the country. the political solution has entered its initial stage. the united nations will support the process. as we move ahead, we must be guided by realities, not

schedules. let us remember that afghanistan has been at war for several decades. the united nations has been working in afghanistan throughout this period helping afghans at every moment of its country history. there are no short cuts to peace. the united nations is committed to supporting the afghans over the longer term. i thank the leaders of nato for their commitment and i pay tribute to all those soldiers and civilians, afghans and international, who have given their lives in this effort. the costs have been high, but the objective, afghanistan at peace, remains necessary and just. i look for a continuing close collaboration with afghanistan and its partners in the period ahead.

thank you very much. >> a question for all three gentlemen. given the very serious challenges you still face on security, on institution building and on reconstruction, how confident are you that the 2014 deadline can be achieved. thank you very much. >> i'm confident that we can meet the 2014 deadline primarily because we see a rapid growth in the capacity and the quality of the afghan security forces. we started our training mission last year. already now, we have more than 260,000 afghan soldiers and afghan police. the number is growing and by the end of next year, we have set the goal to have 300,000

afghan soldiers and afghan police and 85% of the afghan soldiers are partnering with the international troops in some major military operations. more than half of the participating troops are afghans and they do a great job and this is a fact at why i'm confident that we can fulfill this goal and let me take this opportunity to pay tribute to afghan security forces who do their job in such an excellent manner. >> we are confident that the transition will succeed to the afghan authority, leadership, and honorship because i found today strong commitment by the international community. this strong commitment by the international community will be

matched by determination and hard work by the people of afghanistan, the two combined will give us the results of an effective irreversible and sustainable transition. >> the position taken by the secretary-general rass men and secretary karzai, i believe the transition is not about the end of dates. it is about the state of affairs when afghanistan can take their leadership role, can take a more rulership to guarantee their own stability and peace. this will be a greater process and will require patience and commitment from the international community. you have the hart, but the strong commitment from world

leaders and why transition will take place in military aspects, the international community will have to support an afghan government in line with their national priorities this is what we have agreed in london and kabul this year. the united nations will be having the afghan government to build capacity for the civilian side of the transition. the united nations has been there the last six decades and the united nations will continue to be engaged in working together closely with president karzai and his cabinet and other international partners. thank you. >> my first question is to mr. rasmussen.

as nato has said to 2014 to any threat outside of afghanistan and i wonder to know what is your thought about pakistan interfering with internal affairs. my second is to mr. president. [speaking in foreign language] >> first of all, let me stress that the long term agreement we have signed today is not only a clear signal to the afghan people that we will stay

committed beyond the date when our combat mission ends, we will not leave behind a security that will create instability in the region. i see this in parallel with a steadily strengthened partnership with pakistan as well. >> [speaking in foreign language]

>> president karzai, just recently you criticized nato tactics in conducting night trades and other actions. have you resolved this issue

with your partners here in lisbon? >> well, we are engaging in a very friendly and substantial discussions on all issues that are of relevance to afghanistan and to success of our joint mission. i was happy to see that there was in the signing of the afghan demands on the issues of the afghan people, this was during the summit of the world and appreciated and interested by the viewers attending the summit. i found an environment in which afghanistan's difficulties and afghanistan's conditions, the realities on the ground were substantially understood and agreed upon by our partners.

i hope that as we move forward that this will go away and that our movement to the future will be one without the difficulty that you are encountering. generally i found the environment today one of satisfaction and of confidence which is a partnership that will bring us success in our universe. >> canyon press over here. president karzai, as you know canada is withdrawing its combat troops from kandahar next year but it will remain militarily in a noncombat training role. i'm wondering what you think of that and what you think of what canada should be doing with its military after 2014. [speaking in french] >> could you reply to that question in french, please?

>> sir, canada has been at the forefront of assistant to afghanistan from the very beginning. the afghan people are extremely grateful to the canadian contribution to the help of the afghan people. canada's decision to continue to assist afghanistan after they have ended their military mission is welcome and i'm sure as it was announced today by prime minister harper that canada will continue to assist afghanistan with the training of the afghan forces and with the construction and the continuity of canadian assistance. we are very grateful for that. >> [speaking in french]

>> lau me to express my -- allow me to express my appreciation for the canadians to give trainers for our training mission in afghanistan. this training mission is crucial for the transition process and i hope that the canadian decision will serve as an outstanding example for the allies and partners. >> president karzai, i would like to know as the second general said, all afghanistan, all people from afghanistan should be part of the process. i would like to know how is the current situation on the talks

with the taliban groups or people from the taliban? >> well, we had a grand afghanistan meeting july this year which proposed the formation of a high council for peace alongside other recommendations we have moved ahead on those recommendations and the high council for peace, they're now with their membership and leadership. the afghan desire for peace is strong and unanimous in afghanistan and i'm glad to report to you today that this was also recognized during the summit this morning, so there is an afghan unanimity and

there is also backing by the international community. >> mr. karzai, secretary-general rasmussen, i'm on this side. you have mentioned, second general, that in october next year, there might be 300,000 security forces that are positive to the situation. what has changed that you are so positive that nato can hand over the responsibility in 2014? what are the positive results at the moment that you can mention that led to this decision you just announced? do you have military offensive in the south at the moment? will all the military offenses be completed until 2014?

>> as i mentioned, i base my optimism on the fact that we have seen a very encouraging development on the capacity within the afghan security forces. actually we are ahead of schedule in the buildup of the afghan security forces. and also as regards quality, we see strong improvements. so this is the first reason. secondly, we have sent in more international troops and we also see the positive impact already now. we see more fighting, actually, in the south of afghanistan in helmond and kandahar. we are attacking the taliban strong holds and we are making progress and we will see steady progress in the coming months and years.

so this is the reason why i am optimistic about fulfilling this timetable to start transition at the beginning of next year, complete it by the end of 2014. the road map outlined by president karzai. having said that, i fully agree with u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon that this process must be conditioned-based and not calendar-driven. we have to make sure that we do not leave afghanistan prematurely. we have to make sure that the afghan security forces can actually take responsibility before we leave, but based on the facts i have described, i think this is a realistic timetable. and according to that, i don't foresee troops in a combat role beyond 2014 provided, of course, that the security

situation allows us to move into a more supportive role. >> president karzai, the military strategy seems to be to fight and to begin talks at the same time, but you're the afghan commander in chief. you made it clear you don't want to see so much fighting and there clearly isn't a lot of very serious talking going on now. so if you don't like this strategy, what are you going to do about it? >> well, your pulling my legs. we outlined today during the summit a plan for transition towards 2014 whereby afghanistan will be ridding itself with regards to the

forces and the capacity available for that. whereby our nato allies will be committing themselves to training and to equipping and providing the necessary tools for that event to happen and take place on time. why we are moving in that direction, we also are keenly aware of the need for dialogue, of the need for talking to those who are fighting their own country for whatever reason that they have taken guns for. now, this was referred to in particular by the leaders attending this summit and understood generally by the meeting itself. so as i stand before you today, we are moving in the direction of transition to afghan leadership and afghan ownership.

we are moving in the direction of conducting peace talks and afghan leadership back and understood and endorsed by the international community. [captioning performed by national captioning instite] [ctions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010]

>> and now from the nato summit in lisbon with remarks from president obama. after meetings, he spoke with reporters on several issues including renewing the start treaty with russia and the 2014 timetable for withdrawing troops from afghanistan. this is 45 minutes.

>> afternoon, everyone, we have concluded an extremely productive nato summit. we want to thank the people of portugal for their hospitality in this beautiful city of lisbon. i thank my fellow leaders for the sense of common purpose to the work we brought here. for more than 60 years, nato has proven itself as the most successful alliance in history. it's defended the independence and freedom of its members, it has nurtured young democracies and welcomed them into europe that is whole and free. it has acted to end ethnic cleansing beyond our borders and today we stand united in afghanistan so that terrorists who threaten us all have no safe haven and so that the

afghan people can forge a more hopeful future. at noime during these past six decades was our success guaranteed. indeed there have been many times when except particulars have predicted the end of this alliance, but each time nato has risen to the occasion and adapted to meet the challenges of that time. and now as we face a new century with very different challenges from the last, we have come together here in lisbon to take action in four areas that are critical to the future of the alliance. first, we aligned our approach on the way forward in afghanistan, particularly on a transition to full afghan lead that will begin in early 2011 and will conclude in 2014. it is important for the american people to remember that afghanistan is not just an american battle. we are joined by a nato-led coalition made up of 48 nations

with over 40,000 troops from allied and partnered countries and we honor the service and i sacrifice of every single one. with the additional resources that we have put in place, we're now achieving our objective of breaking the taliban's moment up and doing the hard work of training afghan security forces in assisting the afghan people. and i want to thank our allies who committed additional trainers and mentors to support the vital mission of training afghan forces. with these commitments, i'm confident we can meet our objective. here in lisbon, we agreed that early 2011 will mark the transition to afghan responsibility and we adopted the goal of afghan forces taking the lead for security across the country by the end of 2014. this is a goal that president karzai has put forward. i have made it clear that even as americans transition and troop reductions will begin in july, we will also forge a

long-term partnership with the afghan people and today nato has done the same. this leaves no doubt that as afghans stand up and take the lead, they will not be standing alone. as we look ahead to a new phase in afghanistan, we also reached agreement in a second year. a new strategic concept for nato that recognizes the capabilities and partners that the alliance needs to meet the challenges of the 21st century. i want to give special thanks to secretary-general rasmussen for his outstanding leadership and vision that preserves the alliance while adapting it to meet the missions of the future. as i said yesterday, we have reaffirmed the central premise of nato. our article 5 commitment that an attack one is an attack on all. and to ensure this commitment has meeting, we agreed to take action in a third area, to

modernize our conventional forces and develop the full range of military capabilities that we need to defend our nations. we'll invest in technologies so that allied forces can deploy and operate together more effectively, we'll deploy new defenses against threats such as cyber attacks and we will reform alliance command structures to make them more flexible and more efficient. most important, we agreed to develop a missile defense capability for mato territory, which is necessary to defend against the growing threat from ballistic missiles. the new approach to european missile defense that i announced last year, the phase-adaptive approach, will be the united states' contribution to this effort and a foundation for greater collaboration. after years of talk about how to meet this objective, we now have a clear plan to protect all of our allies in europe as well as the united states. when it comes to nuclear

weapons, our strategic concepts reflects both today'sealities as well as our future aspirations. the alliance will work to create the conditions so that we can reduce nuclear weapons and pursue the vision of a world without them. at the same time we have made it very clear that so long as these weapons exist, nato will remain a nuclear alliance and the united states will maintain a safe, secure, and effective nuclear arsenal to deter adversaries and guarantee the defense of all of our allies. finally, we agreed to keep forging the partnership beyond nato that helped make our alliance a pillar of global security. we'll continue to enhance nato's cooperation with e.u., which i will talk about in my summit later this afternoon with e.u. leaders. after a two-year break, we are also resuming cooperation between nato and russia. i was very pleased that my friend and partner, president

dmitry medvedev, joined us today at the nato-russia council summit. together we have worked harto reset the relations between the united states and russia, which has led to concrete benefits for both of our nations. now we're also resetting the nato-russia relationship. we see russia as a partner, not an adversary, and we agreed to deepen our cooperation in several critical areas. on afghanistan, counter narcotics and a range of 21st century security challenges. and perhaps most significantly, we agreed to cooperate on missile defense which turns a source of past tension into a source of potential cooperation against a shared threat. so overall, this has been an extremely productive two days. we came to lisbon with a clear task and that was to revitalize our alliance to meet the challenges of our time. that's what we have done here. of course, it's work that

cannot end here. i'm pleased to announce that the united states will host the next nato summit in 2012, a summit that will allow us to build on the commitments that we made here today as we transition to full afghan lead, build new capabilities and expand our partnerships and ensure that the most successful alliance in history will continue to advance our security and our prosperity well into the future. i said to the prime minister that considering he has thrown such a successful summit here in lisbon, i have been taking notes. you have set a very high bar of outstanding hospitality and so i appreciate everything that the people of portugal have done and we will try to reciprocate that hospitality when we host in 2012. so with that, let me take some questions and i'm going to start with margaret warner of pbs.

margaret, why don't you get a microphone. >> thank you, mr. president. what message do you hope this summit sends to senator john kyle and other republicans in the senate who are resisting voting on and ratifying stark in the lame duck session? >> well, a couple of messages they just want to send to the american people. number one, i think that americans should be proud that an alliance that began 60 years ago through the extraordinary sacrifices in part of american young men and women sustained throughout a cold war, has resulted in a europe that's more unified than it's ever been before, that is an

extraordinarily strong ally of the united states and that continues to be a cornerstone of prosperity, not just for the united states and europe, but for the world. this is a direct result of america's efforts and american sacrifice. and i think the world appreciates it. the second message i want to send is that after a period in which relations between the united states and europe were severely strained, that strain no longer exists. there are occasions where there may be disagreements on certain tactical issues, but in terms of a broad vision of how we achieve transatlantic security that, alliance has never been stronger. that's something that americans should feel good about. number three, that i think the americans should know that american leadership remains

absolutely critical to achieving some of these important security objectives and i think our european partners would be the first to acknowledge that. what we ratified here today is the direct result of work that we have done over the last two years to get to this point. and just to take the example of afghanistan, i think that if you said even a year ago or even maybe six months ago that we would have a unified approach on the part of our allies to move forward in afghanistan with a sustained commitment where we actually increased the resources available and closed the training gap in order to be successful, i think a lot of except particulars would have said that is not going to happen. it has happened in part because we have rebuilt those strong bonds of trust between the united states and our allies.

the fourth thing and this finally goes to your specific question, unprompted i have received overwhelming support from our allies here that start the new start treaty is a critical component to u.s. and european security. and they have urged both privately and publicly that this gets done. and i think you have seen the comments of a wide range of european partners on this issue, including those who live right next to russia who used to live behind the iron curtain. they have the most cause for concern with respect to russian

intentions and who have uniformly said that they will feel safer and more secure if this treaty gets ratified. in part because right now we have no verification mechanism on the ground with respect to russian arsenals and ronald reagan said trust but verify, we can't verify right now, in part because of the -- united states and russia. we have received enormous help from the russians because of sanks on iran that are tougher than anything we have seen before. there are a whole range of security interests in which we are cooperating with russia and it would be a profound mistake for us to slip back into mistrust as a consequence of our failure to ratify. and the third reason is that

with the cold war over, it is in everybody's interests to work on reducing our nuclear arsenals which are hugely expensive and contain the possibilities of great damage. if not in terms of nuclear war, then in terms of nuclear proliferation. so we got our european allies saying this is important. we have got the u.s. military saying this is important. we have got the national security advisors and the secretaries of defense and generals from the reagan administration, the bush administration, bush one and bush two as well as from the clinton administration and my administration saying this is important to our national

security. we have got the republican chairman of the foreign relations committee saying this is in our national interest to get done now. this isn't an issue that has traditionally received strong bipartisan report. we have gone through 18 hearings. we have answered 1,000 questions. we have met the concerns about modernizing our nuclear stockpile with concrete budget numbers. it's time for us to go ahead and get it done. and my hope is that we will do so. there is no other reason not to do it than the fact that washington has become a very partisan place and this is a classic area where we have to rise above partisanship. nobody is going to score points in the 2012 election around this issue, but it's something that we should be doing because

it helps keep america safe. and my expectation is that my republican friends in the senate will ultimately conclude that it makes sense for us to do this. all right. karen young. >> thank you, mr. president. i wonder if you could talk to us a bit about your conversation with president karzai. he has made some complaints recently, part of a long line of complaints, did he raise those with you and did you address them correctly? has he stepped back from his call to reduce the military footprint there? thank you. >> karen, i want to put your question in the context of what has taken place this weekend here in lisbon. president kzai is the head of a government of a sovereign

nation that has gone through 30 years of war and understandably, he is eager to reassert full sovereignty including control of security operations within his country. at the same time the united states and all of our allies have every interest in wanting to turn over responsibility, security responsibility to afghan forces as soon as is practicalable. our interested are in line and our 2014 date that was stated in the document that was coming out of the summit and was widely agreed to didn't come from us, it wasn't an arbitrary date. this was a date that president karzai identified as an

appropriate target for when afghans could take over full responsibility. between now and 2014, our constant effort is to train up afghan security forces so that they can take more and more responsibility. that's what transition is all about. and during that time, president karzai in his eagerness to accelerate that transition is going to be interested in reducing our footprint, finding ways that afghans can take more responsibility and those are things that we welcome. we want him to be assertive as possible in moving towards afghan responsibility. but in that transition, there are also going to be a whole series of judgment calls and

adjustments that are necessary to make that effective. so, for example, president karzai raised concerns about private security contractors and what he perceived as heavy-handedness on the part of these contractors in afghanistan. i think that concern is perfectly appropriate. on the other hand what i have told him in the past and i repeated in our meeting today is i can't send u.s. aid workers or civilians into areas where i can't guarantee their safety. so theoretically it would be nice if i could just send them in and they could help build a road or construct a school or engage in an irrigation project without a full battalion around them, but i have to think practically and so we're going to have to balance the issues of being sensitive to our

footprint with the need to get certain objectives done. now i have instituted ongoing conversations with president karzai. i have talked to him by video conference at least once every six weeks or so. secretary clinton and secretary gates are in constant communications with him. general petraeus, carl agen berry are in constant communications with him. what i have communicated are two things. number one, we have to make sure we understand that our objectiveses are aligned, the end point that we want to reach are the same, and number two, we have to be in good enough communications with each other that when issues come up that raise sensitivities about afghan sovereignty that may ail in that afghan populations that we should be sensitive to them and listening to them.

at the same time, he has to be sensitive to our concerns about the security of our personnel, but making sure that taxpayer dollars from the united states or other partners aren't being wasted as a consequence of ruppings. that sacrifices that are being made by our military to clear out areas are reinforced by good governance practices on the part othe afghans so that we're not just clearing an area, but unable to hold it because people have no confidence in, for example, the administration of justice in that area through afghan government structures. so that's going to be a constant conversation. i don't think it's going to go away immediately, but we're trying to do is make sure that our goals are aligned and then work through these problems in a systematic way. i will say that for all of the

noise that has existed in the press, the fact of the matter is that over the last year we have made progress and i expect that we're going to make more progress next year and it will not be without occasional controversies and occasional differences. "wall street journal." >> to follow up on the last question, mr. karzai is the president of the country. if he makes a request, why isn't that good enough and why wouldn't there be a change of course? and on just to -- on we're getting close to december, excuse me, do you think the strategy, the surge strategy is working and do you think at this point that you'll be able to make a substantial troop reduction in july? >> let me take the second question first. when i went through a rigorous

and sometimes painful review process as you remember last december, our goal was to make sure that we had blunted the taliban. the whole point of ramping up our troop presence was not because we wanted to maintain a long-term presence in afghanistan, but it was to immediately blunt the momentum that we saw from the taliban and created a space for the training of effective afghan security forces. and on both those fronts, i think the objective assessment is that we have made progress. you have fewer areas for afghanistan until taliban control. you have the taliban on the defensive in a number of areas that were their strong holds. we have met or exceeded our targets in terms of recruitment

of afghan security forces and our assessments are that the performance of afghan security forces has improved significantly. so thanks to the hard work of people like dave petraeus and others and obviously the incredible sacrifices of the troops on the ground, we are in a better place now than we were a year ago. as a consequence, i'm confident that we are going to be able to execute our transition starting in july of next year and general petraeus is in fact in the process now of planning and mapping out where those areas where we feel there is enough security that we can be thinning out our troops in those areas, where are areas that need certain reinforcements as certain areas get thinned out so we can continually consolidate the security gains and then

backfill it with the effective civilian improvements that are going to be needed. so we have made progress. the key is to make sure that we don't stand still, but we keep accelerating that progress, that we build on it, and the contributions of our coalition forces around trainers is particularly important and i have already said this, but when countries like canada, which had originally said they were going to pull out at the end of next year say we are willing to supplement the training forces, a very difficult political decision when countries like italy are willing to come in and step up on the trainer that's a testament to the confidence they have in general petraeus'

plans and the fact that we are much more unified and clear of how we're going to achieve our ultimate end state in afghanistan. now to go to the point about president karzai, we are there at their invitation. you are absolutely correct. afghanistan is a sovereign nation. president karzai believes that it is very important for us to help him with security and development issues or not just the next couple of years, but over the long term. that partnership is obviously a two away street. so -- two-way street. so that my message to president karzai is we have to be sensitive to his concerns and the concerns of the afghan people. we can't simply tell them what is good for them. we have to listen and learn and be mindful of the fact that afghans ultimately make decisions about how they want

to structure their governance. how they want to structure their justice system, how they want to approach economic development. on the other hand, if we're putting in big resources, if we're ponying up billions of dollars, if the expectation is that our troops are going to be there to help secure the countryside and ensure that president karzai can continue to build and develop his country, then he has got to also pay attention to our concerns as well. i don't think that's unreasonable and i don't think he thinks that's unreasonable. there has to be a constant conversation to make sure that we're moving in the right direction and sometimes that conversation is very blunt. there are going to be some strong disagreements and sometimes real tensions. for example, the issue of civilian casualties. that's an entirely real issue for president karzai. he is the president of the

country and you have foreign forces who in the heat of battle, despite everything we do to avoid it, may occasionally cause civilian casualties and that is understandably upsetting. i don't fault president karzai for raising those issues. on the other hand, he has got to understand that i have got a bunch of young men and women from small towns and big cities all across america who are in a foreign country being shot at and having to traverse terrain full of i.e.d.'s and they need to protect themselves. so if we're setting things up where they're just sitting ducks for the taliban, that's not an acceptable answer either. so we have to go back and forth on all of these issues. chuck todd. >> thank you, mr. president.

i want to follow up on margaret's question. it sounds like you believe senator kyle's opposition on start is purely political or mostly political. is that what you're telling your fellow world leaders on this stage and do you think failure to ratify by the end of the year, is that going to undermine your ability on the world stage? second, you care to comment on the dust-up over t.s.a. patdowns? >> i have spoken to senator kyl directly and i believe that senator kyl wants a safe and secure america just like i do and is well motivated and so what i said in terms of partisanship is that the climate in washington is one where it's hard to get parties to cooperate, especially after

a big election. that's understandable. folks are reorganizing. you got a lame duck session. there is a limited amount of time. it's been a long year. we have done a lot of stuff. people are thinking about thanksgiving and then thinking about getting off to christmas and i'm sure that the republican caucus in the senate is really focused on next year and we're going to have a republican house and what are the things that we want to get done and what are our priorities? senator kyl has never said to me that he doesn't want to start ratifying. he never said he was opposed to the treaty. he said he thought there wasn't enough time to get it done in the lame duck. i take him at his word. but what i have been trying to communicate is that this is an issue of critical national

security interest that has been fully vetted. it has been extensively debated. it has received strong bipartisan support coming out of the foreign relations committee. it has received strong backing from our u.s. military. it has received strong backing from republicans predecessors in the national security office, in the secretary of defense's office, secretary of state and so in that context, i want to emphasize to everybody that this is important and there is a time element to this. we don't have any mechanism to verify what is going on right now on the ground in russia.

six months from now, that's a six-month gap in which we don't have good information. so even if you -- let me say it this way. especially if you mistrust russian intentions, you should want to get this done right ay. i happen to think that president medvedev has made every effort to move russia in the right direction. so if you agree with me on that front, then it's also important that we don't leave a partner hanging after having negotiated an agreement like this that is good for both countries. and there is another element to this. we have instituted iran sanctions thanks to the work of the e.u., thanks to the work of russia, thanks to the work of some of our other partners, these are the strongest sanctions, we have ever implemented. we have keep pressure on if

iran decides to return to negotiations on its nuclear program. this is the wrong time for us to be sending a message that there are divisions between the p-5 plus one, there is uncertainty. my point here, chuck, is, there are a lot of issues to debate between the democrats and republicans over the next year. this shouldn't be one of them. with respect to the t.s.a., let me first of all make a confession, i don't go through security checks to get on planes these days, so i haven't personally experienced some of the procedures that have been put in place by t.s.a. i will also say that in the aftermath of the christmas day bombing, our t.s.a. personnel are properly under enormous

pressure to make sure that you don't have somebody slipping on a plane with some sort of explosive device on their persons. and since the explosive device that was on the man was not detected by ordinary metal detectors, it has meant that t.s.a. has to try to adapt to make sure that passengers on planes are safe. now, that's a tough situation. one of the most frustrating aspects of this fight against terrorism is that it has created a whole security apparatus around us that causes huge inconvenience for all of us. and i understand people's frustrations and what i said to the t.s.a. is you have to constantly refine and measure whether what we're doing is the

only way to assure the american people's safety and you also have to think through, are there ways of doing it that are less intrusive. but at this point, t.s.a. in consultation with our counterterrorism experts have indicated to me that the procedures that they have been putting in place are the only ones right now that they consider to be effective against the kind of threat that we saw in the christmas day bombing. every week i meet with my counterterrorism team and i'm constantly asking them whether is what we're doing absolutely necessary? have we thought it through? are there other ways of accomplishing it that meet the same objective