i'm bill o'reilly. the spin stops right here. we're definitely looking out for tonight the obama campaign strategy for victory has been revealed. hi, i'm monica crowley in for sean. in an exclusive interview with white house correspondent ed henry the top campaign advisor david axelrod says republicans are screwing up the economy into to win in 2012. >> you have to wonder whether some folks over there think screwing up the economy is a good political strategy for them. it somehow slowing the recovery down if they can cause a half

million or delay half million jobs, that will hurt the president. as senator mcconnell said, defeating the president was his top priority. i think there are some people for whom that is absolutely true. >> make no mistake will be the president's pick the voters over over the next year. blame all the problems on the so-called do nothing congress. now, the question is, will it work. here with some answers are the host of varney and company, stewart varney and dana perino. the first thing i want to get clear. i think we need to make something clear to strip away the argument. congress is made up of two chambers, the house that is controlled by the republicans has been passing pro-growth policies. they go over to the senate, controlled by the democrats and

president obama where they go to die. let's make a clear distinction so obama and axelrod can't get away with that lie is that congress does nothing. the republican house side has been doing their job to get the economy going. the democratic side has been stalling and killing these bills. >> let's be clear. david axelrod, hey, it's not us, it's you. you are being disloyal. you are deliberately screwing up the economy for political gain, the exact opposite of the truth. we have a failed administration that spends money like a drunken sailor, runs up a stimulus bill and ended up with no new jobs and massive debt. look at what they want to do. they want to extend the payroll tax holiday and bring in a whole new bunch of unemployment benefits at a cost of quarter trillion dollars of extra debt.

this will fix our economy? this will create jobs? the exact opposite. >> so what do you make of it. most did he say pick kli that the republicans wanted to keep the economy bad to be able to win in 2012. >> this is what happens when you can't run on your own record, you have to run on somebody else's record. we didn't have a chance to talk before the show. right here i said, the house has passed 24 bills and they go over to the senate side and they don't go anywhere. if you are going to make a charge like that, i would like to have specifics. what specifically are the republicans holding up? if it's the payroll tax cut, two month extension is not going to make hill's worth difference. so they put axelrod to throw bombs like in this because they don't run on the record. can anybody name names secretary

of commerce, business administrator, they don't run on their record or policy so they distort somebody else's. >> that is the game they have played all along. >> it will not work. it's not good enough to say, it's your fault and you are being disloyal. >> how about this. when i heard him say that, it struck me as a perfect example of projection. you are accusing republicans of deliberately destroying the economy, we have seen class warfare, socialized medicine, record-breaking deficits and debt. they are the ones that have destroyed the economy. >> it's the exact opposite what axelrod is saying. it's the democrats that have done this. you are right. a trillion dollars worth of stimulus, record budget spending massive reregulation of all kinds of stuff in the economy. obamacare, the list goes on and

on and enormous debt. that is what has killed this economy. that is why we have no growth. that is why we look like europe right now. >> it's also a question of intentions. i think that obama healthcare plan is one of the worst. i don't think he pushed it through because he wanted to sabotage the economy. many look at free trade agreements if it were true, what david axelrod said, why would the republicans would have delivered the vote on the free trade agreement, they believe free trade is better for economic growth. >> i believe the republican members of the congress that are up for reelection next year ought to be making this exact distinction, don't let them get away with calling them a do nothing congress. they have been passing these pro-growth policies and it's the democrats. let's not dissociate and harry reid with president obama

because they are acting on obama's instructions. >> it's been 90 days -- 900 days since they passed a budget. >> i don't think president obama wants to sabotage the economy. he wants to reorganize it, make it in a european fashion. that in a way ruins the economy. >> you argue that based on the merits. you think the policy is wrong. it's not because the motivations are wrong. what axle vod saying republicans want to hurt america, therefore, he gives no credibility to their beliefs that they have a different way of helping the economy. >> that is why i say they can't run on their own record. you don't see any people around them, all you get is axelrod and lots of policies from white house. >> that is why i think it's pure projection, their policies have been so destructive. president bush he was pounded he didn't take responsibility.

i think that was a totally unfair wrap on president bush. this guy, president obama takes no responsibility continuing to play the blame game. blaming everything from the japanese tsunami to the european debt crisis still blaming president bush. >> it is outrageous for a senior politician to say the opposition is disloyal. that they have deliberately wrecked our economy for political gain. that is one of the most outrageous things to say. >> the campaign that lasted two weeks, i have a feeling that something like this with david axelrod is saying, a trial balloon, test the waters and if it doesn't work, nobody holds him to accounts what he says any way. >> remember the republicans during the debt crisis debate, we only control one-half of one-third of the federal government. you can't control that little part of the u.s. government and

still carry all of the blame. this is the president and democrats who have controlled the majority of the seats in the congress for the first two years plus the presidency. this is their doing. >> there is a huge gap between what they are saying and what people are feeling. that is why they are testing all these messages because you can't get to what the heart of what people are feeling. >> and it's emotional and intellectual. >> 11 months until the election and turned ugly. >> it's going to get ugly. great to see you. merry christmas. coming up, tebow mainian sweeps the nation. former n.f.l. quarterback boomer sizeman is here with reaction but first a report card time. arizona senator john mccain grades the pot his 2011 foreign policy performance, that is

[ male announcer ] the more you lose, the more you lose, because for every two pounds you lose through diet and exercise, alli can help you lose one more by blocking some of the fat you eat. let's fight fat with alli. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] they've been tested, built

and driven like no other. and now they're being offered like no other. come to the winter event and get an exceptional offer on the mercedes-benz of your dreams. it's our way of showing a little holiday spirit. but hurry -- the offer ends january 3rd. ♪ i'm a dad, coach... and i quit smoking with chantix. knowing that i could smoke during the first week was really important to me. [ male announcer ] along with support,

chantix is proven to help people quit smoking. chantix reduced my urge to smoke -- and personally that's what i knew i needed. [ male announcer ] some people had changes in behavior, thinking or mood, hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. if you notice any of these, stop taking chantix and call your doctor right away. tell your doctor about any history of depression or other mental health problems, which could get worse while taking chantix. don't take chantix if you've had a serious allergic or skin reaction to it. if youevelop these, stop taking chantix and see your doctor right away as some can be life-threatening. if you have a history of heart or blood vessel problems, tell your doctor if you have new or worse symptoms. get medical help right away if you have symptoms of a heart attack. use caution when driving or operating machinery. common side effects include nausea, trouble sleeping and unusual dreams. these are the reasons i quit smoking. [ male announcer ] ask your doctor if chantix is right for you.

>> monica: over the past year, severe consequences of electing the president with no prior foreign policy experience. from the arab spring of discontented and with overthrow of mir hossein mousavi and long time capture of macaulay culin and to try to keep their 2008

promise to -- momar khadafy. >> we have seen a smoking lack of bold and responsible leadership and now with the unexpected death of kim jong-il. maximum security is to the forefront of the political discussion. but after such disappointing foreign policy stumbles how can anybody think that he deserves another four years. turning now to john mccain. welcome. >> thank you for having me on. >> monica: we have a lot of ground to cover tonight. first we've got dictated frers the middle east really biting the dust which sounds like a good thing but oftentimes the dictators are replaced by something worse. what is your sense of with what is happening in north korea and is there anything the united

states can do beyond leaning on china? >> we may have saved the taxpayers several millions dollars by his departure because we were about, again, to try to bribe the north koreans into abandoning their nuclear arsenal with millions of dollars of food which goes into the hands of the elite and does not do anything to alleviate the suffering of the people of north korea which is horrendous. we saw the departure of one of the most brutal dictaters in history. the peek that can affect the situation is not the united states is chinese. if the chinese wanted them to act in a responsible way and move forward during a democrats korean peninsula of them could do that. instead the chinese continue to prop them up. i don't mean to change the subject. latest outrage is vice

president's statement that taliban is not our enemy. i have been flooded from comments about men and women that serve in the military. it shows what the reaction of the men and women who is serving. if they aren't the enemy who has been shooting at us all the time? it is unbelievable that the vice president of the united states who does have some foreign policy experience albeit almost always wrong includes the surge wouldn't succeed. for the vice president of the united states to make a statement likes that is an insult to the men and women serving today, like the young man from afghanistan wrote, what about what about the families of those that have been killed by the ides the same taliban that

shellered bin laden and was responsible for 9/11. it's just disgraceful. the vice president has some idea that we can negotiate some kind of peace settlement with the taliban while we are leaving and by the way, news reports are they want to trade as confidence building measures to release taliban prisoners from guantanamo. this is the wrong headed kind of thing i have ever than countered. >> monica: you are hundred percent correct. were you really surprised given the fact that this administration they do want a political settlement in afghanistan so hightail out of there and high tailed out of iraq and they have sent john kerry and reaching out to the muslim brotherhood which is sworn to the destruction of the west and israel. this is an administration on one hand we're fighting islamic terror but we're getting into the bed with some of the same

terrorists. >> let me point out again, in iraq while the president and vice president have taken another victory lap, things are deteriorating very badly in iraq as many of us predicted if we didn't leave a resued all force behind. even wendall goller of fox, we couldn't get an agreement on immunity, we couldn't get that because the president didn't want to stay in iraq. you we could have gotten an agreement but we never gave them the number of troops that they wanted to stay there and what their mission would be. now, we are seeing very serious political upheaval in iraq with nouri al-maliki calling for the arrest of the vice president, abandonment of the parliament. you could see senator biden, then his wish to have three

different countries actually happen, not in the way he envisioned. >> monica: you know where he got that idea to partition it he got it from the ayatollah hoe main any. >> what about the fragile gains we have made in iraq. my eye is on the predator next store, iran. iran can go in, but they could go on with another faction and go in and take over the country straight through influence and then we will have lost everything we've worked so hard for? >> sadder says he review the remaining members of the embassy. they have held their fire while the troops were leaving because they didn't want anything to impair that. he has key place in the maliki

government. maliki is still appointed minister of defense. he controls all the reins of government. yes, iran's influence is increasing and continuing to do so. i can tell you that something turned around, we may see an incredibly chaotic situation in iraq which would only open the door to more iranian influence and maybe return sectarian violence and al-qaeda in iraq. i'm very concerned. >> monica: i have to tell you we are all focused on the economy at home and presidential election coming up next year but the world has a way of thrusting upon the scene. we've got the north korea and middle east and vladimir putin being more aggressive now. and i don't think the united states is very well-prepared. we thank you for junior service.

>> did you see that mr. putin, after i tweeted to him, arab spring is coming to a neighborhood near you. he said i was crazy. affirming some of my critics suspicions. >> that is a huge compliment coming from vladimir putin. >> coming up, governor sarah palin says it's not too late to enter the race of the little. rumors are swirling that jeb bush is reconsidering. and later, n.f.l. great, boomer sizeman will be in the studio to weigh in tebow mania and he is óg to try to teach me how to

>> monica: with the iowa caucuses only two weeks away, it's no secret that some americans are unhappy with the current crop of republican candidates, now some resent news about sarah palin and jeb bush have increased speculation that the field may not be finalized. let's hear what sarah palin said last night. >> can you please ask the governor to run for president?

it's not too late. any chance we can see you making a play even after iowa and new hampshire. there is still plenty of time, governor? >> it's not too late for folks to jump in. i don't know. who knows what will happen in the future. >> monica: meanwhile, governor jeb bush is getting a lot of attention thanks to high profile interview yesterday. some called that piece a trial balloon testing the waters for a 2012 run. joining me now to weigh in fox political analyst and former advisor. great to see you both of you. what is your sense of all the indices that are happening on the republican side? >> i think the indices are good for good for obama, fact there isn't a candidate that any of the base seems to be really excited about. if there was, they would have

coalesced around that person. the chaos probably benefits obama in the long run. i think they have an expectation that romney will be the nominee, obviously leading to the possibility of new people getting in and highly unlikely at this point. it looks like will l it will be romney or one of these other. >> monica: i agree. i don't think governor bush or palin are likely to enter the race. but if you are one of the candidate that are in, working their tails off in iowa and new hampshire and elsewhere, if you are mitt or newt or michelle, you have to be looking at a craving for another candidate, hi, i'm here. it's got to be frustrating for the candidates who are putting in the would work. >> it's a process for people that have great accomplishments

and can make you a smaller figure. although, in this race you have to say with five different leaders before a single vote has been cast, they come from relative obscurity to lead the pack. at the end of the day it's going to be about president obama. mitt romney, i think in this process he is a better candidate. at the end of the day, it's the obama record that will be on trial and that is what the american people will focus on. >> monica: conventional wisdom is governor romney is the most electable, that has been the conventional wisdom going through this process why is you see the rise and fall where mitt stays pretty stabilize in the polling. do you think that is still true, of the field he is most electable in a general? >> i can have opinions on that. if you are looking at the polling you are right. he polls the strongest against president obama in the general

election. primary numbers, he is actually been slowly rising to around 30%. in this process where we've had different leaders and different conservative candidates and in leading the pack, he seems to be steady, growing. it's really in the best position to get the nomination. >> monica: when you look at president obama as the incumbent going into this race from the democratic side, his poll numbers have picked up. the economy is still bad. his signature policy accomplishments, the stimulus to obamacare is so incredibly unpopular. given the economy is bad and signature items are unpopular, do you think he is going to have to go negative. if he does, what does that do to the obama brand which was built on hope and change? >> if he goes negative, he would have to do it in a sort of

nuance way because of his brand. i think because what i consider a weak republican field he is not in as much danger, if he had a jeb bush running against him i think he would have a hard time beating him, frankly. right now, if romney is the candidate, it will be tough race but obama could still pull it out. if nothing else, obama is a good campaigner. he did run of the one of the best campaigns in american history. i expect him to be very smart how to play that. maybe they don't go negative but they have super pack going negative, much the way romney has been doing against gingrich. >> monica: he could run on hope and change and wispy notions because he didn't have a record. now, he has a record and the republicans are going to plaster

him with that. >> he is going to say his record it's mischaracterized by the republicans. look, the economy is turning around. albeit slowly but it is turning around. stimulus staved off a great depression. you want to stay with me because i'm moving this steadily in the right direction. i'm sorry it's going slowly but that will be fundamental message. >> monica: i think the republicans will play their cards by keeping the focus on obama and dismal economic record in other words, make it less so about who the republicans dominate and keep the focus on obama? >> that is exactly right. kirsten, it's nice theory but at the end of the day, president obama's numbers are weak. the american people look at the incumbent president to blame when the economy turns south. whether or not you call it depression or recession or mild

recovery, the american people are hurting. they are not happy about it. clearly they are cranky about politics which is one of the reasons the republican nomination process seems interesting. i think it's chop pir waters for president obama to be re-elected. >> monica: very interesting guys. merry christmas to both of you. coming up, tim tebow was mocked on and off the field of being open about his christian faith. boomer sizeman is here to give his take. and he is going to teach me how to throw a football or at least he will try. and the great american panel is straight ahead.

[ male announcer ] you are a business pro. lord of the carry-on. sovereign of the security line. you never take an upgrade for granted. and you rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle. and go. you can even take a full-size or above. and still pay th mid-size price. i deserve this. [ male announcer ] you do, business pro. you do. go national. go like a pro.

[ male announcer ] you do, business pro. you do. i have copd. if you have it, you know how hard it can be to breathe and what that fes like copd includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema. spiriva helps control my copd symptoms... ...by keepinmy airways open... ...a full 24 hours. plus, it reduces copd flare-ups. spiriva is the only once-daily inhaled copd maintence treatment that does both. and it's eroid-free. spiriva doesot replace fast-acting inlers for sudden symptoms. tell your doctor if you have kidney problems, glaucoma, trouble urinating, or an enlarged prostate. these may worsen with spiriva. discuss all medicines you take, even eye drops. stop taking spiriva and call your doctor right away if your breathing suddenly worsens,... ...your throat or tongue swells, you get hives, vision changes or eye pain,...

...or problems passing urine. other side effects include dry mouth and constipation. nothing can reverse copd. spiriva helps meeathing with copd is no small thing. ask your doctor about spiriva. >> monica: welcome back. it seems that everybody in the football world has something to stay about denver's quarterback tim tebow. he is a fan favorite and he isn't afraid to openly show his christian faith. who can forget left turn lions linebacker dropped and mocked tebow after dpg him on the field and saturday night mocked him, as well. >> i think the most important person in my life is jesus christ because i could not do

this without him. thank you, jesus. ♪ >> hey, everybody, jesus. >> no, no, not really. everybody take a seat. take a seat. chill out. first of all, you are welcome, all right? yes, jesus christ, i'm the reason you won your past six football games. make room for the holy ghost. [ laughter ] >> monica: joining me now is reaction. superstar quarterback, boomer and radio show that is sum you will cast. boomer sizemore. and few minutes you will teach me how to throw the ball. it might not be pretty but we'll talk. let's start with tim tebow.

let's start from the perspective as a football. when he came up this season there was a lot of talk of his skills. whether or not he would be able to do it as a starting quarterback. piss performances of the last six or seven weeks have been quite extraordinary. what do you think of i am? >> at the beginning of the sciences i said he couldn't throw and couldn't play. he has proven he wrong. i will say that. there is a lot of room for improvement on the field. he struggles in that area. he is inaccurate and this week he ran into a competitive quarterback by the name of tom brady. i think what you saw a bona fide quarterback can do when a game is on the line. that is what brady and his team did to the broncos. but it's the most fascinating story in the n.f.l. for all the different reasons.

i said i would love to have tim as my son-in-law but i wouldn't want him as starting quarterback in the n.f.l. that is why i'm here to teach you to pass. you know he is a great kid. he has arrived when you have a parody and you have sold out your entire jersey allotment and you gave us a 19.5 rating on cbs which is was the highest rating of the year. he a popular and there is a lot of criticism thrown towards him because we live in a cynical society. we can't believe a kid can be this good and this honest about his faith. i for one if this is the way he wants to live his life, more power to him. >> monica: you've been a professional athletes, praising the lord, praying. i'm sure you saw on the field. why do you think he gets it? >> he wears it on his sleeve.

i played with a lot of players that were christian orientated but not quite like tim. one that speaks fervently about his religion but didn't do it as openly as tim does. i watch him on the football field and i get to assess what he does. he does things that i could never do. he lowers his head and tries to run people over. i think it's a great story for all of us. i would much be talking about talking about tim at the bow then the one that was arrested on cocaine charges. he is winning and that is what he is doing. why can't we embrace that. i was wrong in the beginning, but i still think he has a lot of improvement to do when it

comes to throwing the football. >> monica: drew greene breez having quite a season? >> he underrated because he completing 71% of his passes, he will break marino's record which is unbelievable and for 39 touchdown passes. he is having a seasons for the ages. if the green bay packers don't get beat by kansas city, they will be the story. on any given sunday. >> monica: we have a minute left. throw me how to throw because i throw like a girl. >> sean does this every night and you are clearly better than sean already. you want to make sure your pointing finger is on the end of the football. you have two fingers on the laces. when you let go of the ball you have to make sure your wrist goes out. it doesn't go in.

it goes out. you whip it bang to your producer right in the chest. very good in red. guys drop balls. you are a jet fan and you think you'll make the playoffs. >> i don't know. that was a sad display. >> on christmas eve the jets and giants. i do like the jets a little more than the giants. the reason i would lien to the giants, they share the building and they are wearing road uniforms and they are not having to play in front of their negative fans. the jets to have play in front of their negative fans. >> monica: mark is no boomer yet. great to see you. the great american panel is the great american panel is next. i'd like one of those desserts and some coffee.

sure. cake or pie? pie. apple or cherry? cherry. oil or cream? oil or cream? cream. reddi-wip us real dairy crm. nothing's more real than reddi-wip.

>> monica: tonight on great american panel, fox news contributor are tucker carlson. she is a contributor and host of leslie marble show joins us and from redeye, bill schlutz.

lets let me start with you. hypothetical match-up between barack obama and mitt romney and barack obama versus newt gingrich and surprise, surprise they are even. both candidates are tying even with obama. obama polls 50, romney polls 48. same situation with newt gingrich. this isn't generic republicans. this is going up against the incumbent president and they are tying him. what does it tell i? >> you would hope for better numbers. >> monica: for him? >> for the republicans. he has worked really hard to do a bad job as president. you would hope that voters would reward him with a little more hostility. i think this a reflection of the cost of the primaries. it's been a tough primary season. they are hurting each other in iowa and new hampshire. i think they'll recover from it

but the numbers indicate they have been damaged. >> monica: leslie, what do you think about this. tucker says he has presided a dismal record. his numbers should be higher than this but he has the full power of presidency. he has a billion dollars behind him. shouldn't his numbers be higher than this? you guys on the democratic side a little worried? >> i'm with tucker very different reasons. [ laughter ] >> bottom line here i'm not surprised to be honest. all i'm hearing from the republican party, i don't want obama, anyone but obama or romney or newt has his finger on the self-destruction button. there is no ronald reagan. >> remember in 2008 we had a democratic primary process that was scorched earth, hillary

clinton machine they were killing each other out there for months and months. it went until june until hillary clinton backed off. i don't think a tough primary race hurts a political party it strengthens the candidate. >> what you are saying that gingrich is going to end up being romney's secretary of state. i'll take that to the bank. i equate what is going on in the n.f.l. season. you've got a lot of people that are sticking around late in the game. you've got your parity. one of presidential quarterbacks is going to the gym and there is not a lot of talent there but the personal stories are wildly entertaining. also newt looks like a football. so all around the gridiron. >> monica: whoa! do you think team obama is worried they are drawing even right now with the top

republican candidate? >> he's got to be. the fact that romney i feel is a little more presidential but a little more worried about him. the numbers and how well they seem to be doing. >> monica: dho do you think the white house wants to run against? >> they wanted race to be about a republican. >> it's like this. if the general election is about the president a referendum on his president he loses. if it comes about personal of the opposing candidate, of the republican, then he has a shot. so they want the candidate who is easiest, complicated personal life and said controversial things. >> monica: i asked kirsten earlier the obama brand was built on hope and change and uplifting message. he was going to be transcending

guy. he has to go negative, he can't run on his record, does it hurt him? >> no, i think it helps him. right now we're looking at republicans having a nasty christmas present whether reimbursements for doctors to provide patients that have medicare. i would agree with tucker but i would say newt gingrich they want to be on the platform. romney has wider appeal. those are the people that will be determine the next president. >> monica: more after of the great american pan

>> monica: we continue with a our great american panel n the last few days, vice president of the united states actually said, quote. taliban, per se, is not our enemy. the statement is so biden especially the per se? >> and per se classes it up and gives you leeway, as well. i go back and forth. the fact of the matter is, unlike al-qaeda, we negotiate with the taliban. we have for a long time. sort of like friendenemies.

this the relationship of the whole area. but secondly, i read the kite runner. i thought this was a self-help book but these taliban are awful people so we shouldn't be negotiating with them at all. check out "the kite runner." >> but the taliban are loathsome but he went on to say that is the point. to keep united states from being attacked by terrorists. and moral judgments, i'm not sure if they have a place in international affairs. point is protecting the united states. >> monica: here is the issue, this administration has been opposed to the iraq and afghanistan wars. they have been looking for every opportunity to get out. now obama is completely out of

iraq. now with afghanistan, announcing the withdrawal. so what they are doing here by talking to the taliban and trying to get a political resolution to this is just an excuse to get out. this is not about protecting the united states. >> why wouldn't we want to get out? isn't the whole point to get out. >> to kill and destroy the enemy. >> the objective is to protect the united states, period. that is the only objective we've had. >> the negotiations with a terrorist adversary, are is no negotiation to be had, do you think that is wise thing? >> i do think it's wise. because after the began government has been secretly negotiating with the taliban, the united states is aware of that. i think per se comes in with the vice president. the taliban does have power over

people in more rural areas. the people have allegiance to some of the areas with the taliban. that is the reason the afghan government worked with them because if they negotiate with them they are protecting their best interests and in the long run, that protects americans. >> monica: what does it say for ten years of engagement, if we have identified the enemy as al-qaeda and taliban and there is an afghani taliban and pakistani taliban, we still have troops on the ground taking bullets from the taliban, what does that say, okay, we're going to withdraw. and it goes back to taliban control in afghanistan that is the way it is. >> it ain't great. if biden hasn't said that yet he probably will. what i remember from the taliban they don't necessarily leave afghanistan. they aren't coming over to our towers.

al-qaeda has been decimated over there. that you can look at as a victory. while the government is horribly corrupt, it's still a working semi government. so i'd rather negotiate with the taliban to stay there five years. taliban is not very mobile. >> monica: let's talk about a bigger foreign policy picture issue which is the idea of entrench. so all the u.s. troops are out. will re-trenching pretty soon from afghanistan. we have these massive defense cuts coming down the pike which the president said he is not going to fight. he wants a trillion dollars gutted from the pentagon over ten years. we can debate iraq and afghanistan but when you put it altogether there is disputism in this foreign policy. >> there is no question about that. point is not to be involved in land wars in central asia or the

middle east. that is not an a aim in itself. the aim is protect the united states and preserve some kind of peace in the world. to actually act as the world's police. you can do that with a smaller military and do it without land wars. you don't need to hate the united states to give in to take the long view. britain ruled the world. a tiny island, how did they do that? by peeg being intelligent how they engaged and we can do the same. >> this isn't about ruling. we don't want to be perceived as occupiers. it is time to come home. when i was a kid, had i on bike with training wheels and eventually you take the training wheels off and afghanistan and iraq has to do it on their own. >> monica: and we have to hope that the threats don't come home to roos t. thank you, thatis