the president also announced that our military commander in afghanistan, general stanley mcchrystal, the best we have in this time of conflict, would receive an additional 30,000 troops to implement this counterinsurgency strategy. these additional combat troops, combined with those already in theater, would allow our troops and civilian experts to partner with their afghan counterparts, reverse the momentum of the taliban and create conditions needed for governance and the economic development. even if a fraction of these in place, we've already seen success. they launched an operation to push the taliban out of marja, a town of about 50,000 people that became a new hub of activity for the taliban and insurgence after our marines drove them out nearby. we successfully pushed the taliban out there and ban to re-establish the government there, the second phase of the operation. the new afghan administrator has been put in place, and the process of building that government has begun. additionally, in recent days pakistani forces made the most significant taliban captures since the war

the president arrived aboard air force one, greeted by general stanley mcchrystal. he was crickly taken by helicopter to the pred denl palace where afghanistan's president awaited him with the ceremonial guard. >> i want to send a strong message that the partnership between the united states and afghanistan will continue. >> translator: president praised karzai. it's clear he wants him to do more to fight corruption. but the president said the may score reason he came here is to visit u.s. troops. and he did that tonight. thousands of them who waited hours to see him. in powerful remarks, the president stressed the nation's gratitude to the men and women of the military and the importance of their mission. >> i'm confident you'll get the job done here in afghanistan. i'm confident of that. >> reporter: his visit as the 30,000 additional troops he ordered continue to flow into the country. there are currently about 80,000 troops here. the mum will be close to 100,000 by september. the trip also comes as u.s. and nato troops prepare. general stanley mcchrystal has sai

we have an opportunity to let general mcchrystal apply the successes in iraq to afghanistan which i might add, my friends on the other side of the aisle, opposed and possibly stabilize the country. we must let the strategy work and achieve the success like we had in iraq. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from ohio is recognized. mr. kucinich: i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlewoman from florida is recognized. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, madam speaker. now i'd like to yield a minute to the gentleman from florida, another florida colleague, mr. rooney, a member of the armed services and judiciary committees. the speaker pro tempore: how long? ms. ros-lehtinen: one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. rooney: first i want to acknowledge and thank congressman buche disturb bue chair -- bue chairy and duncan for their service. i hear from many directly about the progress being made and the need for the continued support of this congress. it's for that

in fact, one of the important elements of general mcchrystal's overall approach is to achieve greater unity of effort. and that means conventional forces, special forces, civilian elements and so forth all working together to a common aim trying not to duplicate efforts in trying to do it in a way where little bureaucracy is necessary but recognizing some of that is necessary. so there is a need to do more in this area, and that is one of general mcchrystal's thrusts in his effort. >> well, i strongly support that. thank you. >> thank you, senator sessions. senator hagen? >> thank you, mr. chairman. admiral olson and general petraeus, as other members of the committee have said, i thank you for your service to our country and for your testimony today. you know, aim proud north carolina is part of the training center of fort bragg and as you know, all special joint operations combat are trained to obtain the skills they need on the battlefield. several months ago i had the opportunity to visit this facility and i witnessed the great training that has taken place there. i understand com

i concurred with the administration's decision to support general stanley mcchrystal's counterinsurgency strategy. that was an important step toward stabilizing afghanistan. the president's reinforcement of our marines and soldier the so-called surge, helped achieve that objective and does provide additional security. the reinforcements have worked. their success in afghanistan. our troops deserve support and this resolution deserves to be soundly defeated. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. who seeks recognition? the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: i yield my -- i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields himself such time as he may consume. mr. kucinich: one of the things that really doesn't often get discussion here on this floor with respect to a war is the specifics about how it affects people back home. because i come from cleveland, i want to share with you some things about my community. cleveland -- cleveland, as some of you may know was the epicenter of subprime mortgage meltdown, predatory lenders d

general mcchrystal, the commander of the u.s. forces and international forces, indicated that we have made progress since the new strategy was announced on december 1. witnessing the first major joint nato afghanistan military operation in the city of marja, considered a strategic folcrum for ridding the taliban. they are ridding their afghan counterparts. they are making the afghan people their number one priority, which is the basis for this counterinsurgency strategy. and to that end state department, usaid, they have been working hard to develop a concrete governance strategy. i was here during the frenzy debate during 9/11 when congress authorized the use of force against those responsible for the horrors of that day and those who chose to provide the perpetrators a safe haven, and i was here for the vote a year later -- i yield myself 30 additional seconds. and i was here for the vote a year later to authorize military force against iraq. please don't conflat the two. the fight in afghanistan is the fight against those who

mcchrystal, general mcchrystal, rather, with all respect, is much more concerned with hearts and mindsk you for coming in. >> good to see you, sir. >> brian: appreciate. you saw him on 24 last season and the west front of the capitol moments ago, jon voight will come to our microphones, we will have that j just a moment. will everyone with constipation please report to gate 17? thank you so much. constipation's uncomfortable enough, so why take a harsh laxative? phillips' caplets work naturally with your colon... for overnight relief without cramps. phillips' caplets. >> well, let's go straight to capitol hill and check in with molly henneberg who has a special guest. >> hi, brian, we're here with one of the most popular people outside the capitol, actor jon voight who spoke to the people at the tea party. you said you want to be here because it's time for you and others to save america as we know it. what do you mean? >> well, obviously, we're in a situation right now, we've been losing freedoms, week by week the last year. it's becoming you know, a huge government bureaucracy and tha

you are with the chairman or mcchrystal. they are doing the same thing that you are doing. they are trying to protect themselves. when the big cheese shows up, everyone says that we are doing great. they say to give us a little more time and we will get the job done. they have heard it all before. particularly, in afghanistan, you can see the progress going in exactly the wrong direction. when we went with the chairman, admiral mullen, he told us that when he made admiral, they said, "congratulations, you will always eat well, but you'll never see the truth again. -- never hear the truth again." we are trying to break through two bubbles. >> the one bubble that he is trying to break through the one that he is trying to project is one that is under control. in terms of the spin that goes around this city, the military is a distant second to the real professionals in the white house. >> when you are having a quiet moment with the top leaders in the pentagon and others, what do they say to you off-camera about barack obama? >> i am trying to think -- i am not sure that any of

general mcchrystal, the commander of the u.s. forces and international forces, indicated that we have made progress since the new strategy was announced on december 1. witnessing the first major joint nato afghanistan military operation in the city of marja, considered a strategic folcrum for ridding the taliban. they are ridding their afghan counterparts. they are making the afghan people their number one priority, which is the basis for this counterinsurgency strategy. and to that end state department, usaid, they have been working hard to develop a concrete governance strategy. i was here during the frenzy debate during 9/11 when congress authorized the use of force against those responsible for the horrors of that day and those who chose to provide the perpetrators a safe haven, and i was here for the vote a year later -- i yield myself 30 additional seconds. and i was here for the vote a year later to authorize military force against iraq. please don't conflat the two. the fight in afghanistan is the fight against those who

stanley mcchrystal as well.wo of them together have paired up to do an extraordinarily difficult task, but they are doing it extraordinarily well and we are proud of them. please give your outstanding team a big round of applause. they've got my full confidence and my full support. [applause] we are also joined by troops from some of our coalition partners, because this is not simply an american mission or even just a nato mission. al qaeda and their extremist allies are a threat to the people of afghanistan and the threat to the people of america, but they're also a threat to people all around the world, and that is why were so proud to have our coalition partners with us. thank you very much for the great work you do. we salute you and we honor you saw all the sacrifices. you are a true friend to the united states of america. thank you very much. [applause] we also salute the members of the afghan w national theho are fighting alongside you. -- afghan national army fighting alongside you. our intent is to make

. >> since general mcchrystal took over in afghanistan, we've devoted significant more training to strafe captain's squadrons are preparing for their next tour over afghanistan. cbs news spent two days flying with them. hundreds of bullets are loaded into the nose, turning lieutenant commander jason gustin's $60 million jet into a flying machine gun. >> we expect the bullets to come out of the gun to be within about 30 feet from where we point the muzzle on the ground. >> reporter: that's about the same accuracy as a laser or satellite-guided bomb. but look at the difference between the blast effects of a bomb and a strafing run in afghanistan. gustin noses in to the dive. that helmet he's wearing has a computer which projects the target on to the inside of his visor. the number of bombs dropped in afghanistan is steadily decreasing. but strafing runs remain constant at more than 1,000 each year. the old fashioned tactic of strafing is becoming the weapon of choice. david martin, cbs news, with fighter attack squadron 211. >>> for a tv anchor in finland, a career low light when she fell o

. >> since general mcchrystal took over in afghanistan, we've devoted significant more training to strafe >> reporter: captain ken whitesell's f-18 squadron is preparing for their tour over afghanistan and cbs news spent two days flying with them. hundreds of bullets are loaded into the news, turning lieutenant commander jason gustin's $60 million jet into a fly magazine gun. >> we expect the bullets to come out of the gun to be within about 30 feet from where we point the muzzle on the ground. >> reporter: that's about the same accuracy as a laser of satellite-guided bomb. but look at the difference between the blast affects of a bomb and a strafing run in afghanistan. so what about the danger to you flying that close to the ground? >> we are closer to the enemy so we're in range for small arms such as machine guns and assault rifles. but our biggest risk is probably flying into the terrain. >> reporter: gustin has flown strafing missions in afghanistan but it's a skill that requires constant practice. normally, he would get help from his backseater. but not on this ride. it's a short ho

but, mcchrystal yesterday in marja and effects of the military phase was coming to an end. but they're always going to be ied's. there's always going to be terrorist attacks. those happen in the middle of kabul and for that matter they have been in the middle of major cities all over the world these days. the -- i have a feeling, however, that tommy know, some of the energy has gone out of this approach to warfare. now, the critical test of marja, which was well reflected increased chivers's speech. the critical burial is to bring civilian services to the people of the region and to make sure that they are not tainted by corruption. that they have the order in that area. given the history of the area and given the danger of operating and given the complexity of it. but we are committed to it. and what the military likes to call proof of concept, marja is a test of the strategies that are being put into place. so just to make clear, there was going to be a date in which this campaign and if we start saying we succeeded and we start to pull out. we're going to repeat the past

general stanley mcchrystal will have firmer central control. he's the overall nato commander in afghanistan. "the new york times" reported mcchrystal wants to rein in special forces, mainly to cut down on civilian casualties. the nato spokesman denied that report. pepsi-co announced today it's removing all full-calorie, sugary drinks from schools around the world in the next two years. it would be the first soda maker to do so worldwide in both elementary and high schools. coca-cola has said it will no longer sell its drinks in primary schools around the world, unless parents or school districts ask. tiger woods returns to tournament golf at the masters next month. he confirmed it today in a statement. woods has not competed since disclosures last fall of his multiple infidelities. also today, sony music and the late michael jackson's estate announced the largest recording deal ever for the artist's work, worth $250 million. the seven-year agreement includes songs never before released, plus jackson's music catalog. those are some of the day's

i met with general mcchrystal. he is the commander of the forces. met with our soldiers. went out to afghanistan. and i have strongly supported president obama's decision to send reinforcements into afghanistan. the sense i receive from our military leaders in afghanistan, from afghani military and political leaders and most importantly from our soldiers on the ground is that we are leaning into the fight. we are providing our soldiers with the resources and reinforcements they need to succeed and come home safe. now is not the time for the congress of the united states to be second-guessing our commanders in the field and second-guessing our commander in chief. base odd what i have seen and heard in the last month-and-a-half in afghanistan that we have the right strategy, the right tactics and we ought to continue to proceed on the course that we are proceeding on. we are talking about real lives. i can't help but reflect on the experience of having been just north of kandahar where we visited with the governor of the river area. and he spoke about the taliban being on t

general mcchrystal, the commander of the u.s.orces and international forces, indicated that we have made progress since the new strategy was announced on december 1. witnessing the first major joint nato afghanistan military operation in the city of marja, considered a strategic folcrum for ridding the taliban. they are ridding their afghan counterparts. they are making the afghan people their number one priority, which is the basis for this counterinsurgency strategy. and to that end state department, usaid, they have been working hard to develop a concrete governance strategy. i was here during the frenzy debate during 9/11 when congress authorized the use of force against those responsible for the horrors of that day and those who chose to provide the perpetrators a safe haven, and i was here for the vote a year later -- i yield myself 30 additional seconds. and i was here for the vote a year later to authorize military force against iraq. please don't conflat the two. the fight in afghanistan is the fight against those who at

i believe that with additional forces, combined with giving general mcchrystal the time, space and resources he needs we can win this conflict. we do not have a choice. we must defeat al qaeda and the taliban. this means taking all necessary steps to ensure al qaeda does not have a sant wear in -- sanctuary in afghanistan or pakistan. at the end of last year i hoped that the war debate in this country ended and we would give a chance for this strategy to work, we would give a chance for those soldiers, marines, airmen, sailors who have been sent there to carry out their mission, to be successful. i had hoped as a nation we could move toward a place of action. we wouldn't be in a position of second guessing before we've even had a chance to complete that mission. during the debate last year, no one said that it was going to be easy. the current operation in afghanistan has been successful, but has not come without challenges. however, as we stand here today, the afghan flag is flying in marja city's center, the taliban flag has been removed. this lone flag sends a clear message to afghans, th

i know this is an important reform. >> on afghanistan, the meeting this morning -- general mcchrystal -- is he satisfied with nato involvement in the marja offensive? knowing that nato has not been able yet to reach the goal of several thousand nato volunteers on the ground, does the president intended to reach to nato leaders, the canadian prime minister in particular, on this issue? >> nato came up in the sense of discussing their contributions and in walking through the commitment we need from all of our partners, particularly in the realm of training. we did not discuss any additional steps the president might take. again, the president and many on the team understand the importance of what we have to do, not just in forced contributions. as i mentioned, general mcchrystal believed that the pace of force flow from what the president had asked for was on schedule. we have critical improvements that have to be made, as it relates to an afghan national army, and critical improvements that have to be made in and afghan national police. the importance of getting additional trainers fro

so general mcchrystal doesn't will have a civilian counterpart. and i think, you know, as far as when you cry no joy, i think we've already done that. i think that general mcchrystal understands all too well that the current troop levels in afghanistan cannot be sustained that i think the president has made clear to both the people of this contributing nature and other contributing nations that we will not be in afghanistan forever. i think that also, you know, when he said we will start withdrawing in 18 months, you know, i didn't like what he said that because i think that sends the wrong message to afghan people who have to make a choice in this campaign, as well as wrong message to the pakistanis and the insurgent. but at the same time i think it sends a positive message to the afghan political decision-makers. and so, your question is, you know, what happens if you are facing recalcitrant or destructive political, your, host host nation government. i think you do have to make clear as we have made that our presence in afghanistan goes up or d

general bob livingston i know we must trust our military leaders, led by general petraeus and general mcchrystal. these leaders will fight for victory to protect american families by defeating terrorists overseas. even liberal "newsweek," highlights the surge in the march 8 edition with the subtile "all signs point america's way." though the taliban is entrenched in the province, its grip is slipping in the rest of afghanistan. this undercuts the common believe that america is doom to fail. the military situation and politics all favor obama's counterinsurgency strategy. if the taliban can't gain populous support it can't win. in conclusion, god bless our troops and we will never forget september 11 and the global war on terrorism. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? ms. slaughter: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlewoman from new york is recognized for one minute. ms. slaughter: mr. speaker, i'm honored to ope

i have confidence that general mcchrystal, after a thorough and main staking calculus, has provided a clear plan to increase stability in afghanistan and allow our troops to withdrawal quickly and as responsibly as possible. moreover, now is not the time to leave fledgling civil society programs more vulnerable to intimidation and attack. so, madam speaker, i respectfully submit it that we cannot afford, risk compromising the future of that region at this most difficult time, and i urge my colleagues to vote no on this resolution. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: mr. kucinich is recognized. mr. kucinich: i yield three minutes to the gentlelady from texas, ms. jackson lee. the speaker pro tempore: ms. jackson lee of texas will be recognized for three minutes. ms. jackson lee: thank you very much. i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: so ordered. ms. jackson lee: madam speaker, i was one of those members who understood the horror of 9/11 and joined with then the president of the united states to respond to an attack on the united states. subsequent

i think dave mcchrystal is right in trying that approach.still wonder if conventional forces are ready. they have provided an advisory core to get do not ventional forces that are steeped in that cultural know-how because you spr to keep going back to the same place, ideally to the same unit, and i know that's what the special forces dorks but when we are talking about these exercises of big coin, we want to do small coin, we have to have something that's better, that's more knowledgible. i think professionalism occurs by osmosis. i think the professional u.s. soldier, that will rub off. but going the other way, having the u.s. soldier understanding what he's dealing with, we need more intensive training. to train the trainers. >> thank you for being here. andrew, you alluded to this earlier. you indicated when third parties fight on behalf of a host nation, recently president karzai usurped power from his electoral commission, and i'm wondering what the panel's thoughts are. when a counterinsurgent is already engaged in an insurgency, and i

whether or not general mcchrystal is going to be a lot to do that in the coalition fight and able too general rodriguez to the same purpose with u.s. troops i think it's very much up in the air. so if i could just eat this up again for afghanistan. and with respect to lessons learned. i think that there've been some significant lessons that have been learned in iraq and that linda have time i've written quite well on paschal and operational lessons. the strategic and political lessons i don't think we've learned nearly as much as we needed to. i don't think that we've done a lot of hard searching.about how exactly you apply leverage when operating, you know, when in doubt to a counterinsurgency campaign is the third rd. and as far as her should she get culture of the u.s. military, i think it's very much remains to be seen whether or not the cultural changes that have taken place in d.c. and the junior officers in iraq and afghanistan are enduring or fleeting. and afghanistan and in a lot of ways is going to be a test case for whether or not that's the case. >> thank you very much. t

general stanley mcchrystal said the campaign is a gradual effort, not one main military assault. also today, the british military announced two of their soldiers died tuesday in a bombing in helmand province. and up to 35 afghans died when a bus smashed into other vehicles and caught fire in a mountain pass north of kabul. shi-ite rebels in yemen released at least 170 government soldiers today under a truce. the hostages were handed over in the northern province of saada, where most of the fighting has taken place. the release came a day after the government charged the rebels were not living up to the terms of the truce. state prison populations in the u.s. have dropped for the first time since 1972. a report by the pew center on the states found more than two dozen states cut their number of inmates last year. california and michigan led the way, together they reduced their populations by 7,500 fewer inmates. according to the report, the decreases are due in part to budget cuts. those are some of the day's main stories. i'll be back at the end of the program with a preview of w

because we are trying to get closer to something resembling a unity of command, so that general mcchrystald our other military commanders are able to coordinate. when they go into an area anmarja, -- an area like marjah, they have to be able to stand up the police force that will be there as our troops transition. there is a very close connection between the military and police training and a plan or. the defense department will take over that irresponsibility. -- the defense department will take over that responsibility. >> thank you. please limit your questions to about four minutes apiece. >> thank you, mr. chairman. first off, i am pleased to see secretary clinton and secretary gates. you both know the high regard i have for you. you're doing superb jobs for our nation. i'm also glad to see -- and this is something i have talked with you both about privately -- the effort of the department of defense to have the department of state take over those things that are best-suited for the department of state. i have to figure out where the money goes when it is appropriated for fiscal year 2

certainly general mcchrystal in afghanistan seems more intent on not killing very many people and apologizing every time someone does get killed. >> lehrer: you're talking about non-al qaeda civilians? >> yeah. all of these things, mr. lehrer, the drone, rendition, special forces, all of these are compliments to a major military action. as long as we're depending on the compliments, we're never going to really turn the tide against these folks. >> lehrer: what do you mean? >> well, the military ought to be very much involved in driving the taliban as far out of afghanistan as they can. but now they're committed to a hearts and minds campaign. we're involved in a war in afghanistan where the enemy doesn't wear a uniform, lives among civilians who support them. and if you have rules of engagement that you don't attack at night and you can't attack if you might kill civilians, you end up giving the enemy a tremendous opportunity to stay alive. >> lehrer: do you see it the same way? >> i don't, really. as close as al qaeda and the taliban have become prior to 9/11 and certainly since, i think it'

when i spoke to general mcchrystal sukkot first objective being to reverse -- general mcchrystal's first objective being to change the psychology about who will win the struggle. i think the thing to keep in mind it is that the taliban may be vicious, but they are unpopular in afghanistan. every reliable poll i have seen over the past couple of years shows taliban his support at around 10% or less in afghanistan. these people are not fond of them, they are just intimidated by them. and the key here is, when we begin the process of transitioning security control to the afghans, province or district by district area, that we have degraded the capabilities of the taliban to wear local security forces in the national army and police units can sustain the security of the people. so is not that the afghan army or police will ever achieve the skill level of american forces. nobody in the world will ever do that, with all due respect, even to our allies. but can we degrade the capabilities into the numbers of the taliban to the point where tel local security forces can keep them under control an

so general mcchrystal doesn't really have a civilian counterpart. and i think, you know, as far as when you cry and no joy i think that we partied the night. i think that general mcchrystal understands all too well that the current troop levels in afghanistan cannot be sustained i think the president has made clear to both the people of district contributing nation and other true country reading nations that were not going to be in afghanistan forever. and i think also when he said were going to be withdrawing in 18 months, you know, i didn't like what he said that because i think that sends the wrong message to afghan people to have to make a choice in this campaign as was my message to the pakistanis into the insurgents. i think it's in a positive message the afghan political decision-makers. and so, your question is, you know, what happens if you face a recalcitrant or destructive political host nation government you know, i think you do have to make clear is we've made that our presence in afghanistan goes up or down largely depending on what th

army general stanley mcchrystal said the coming campaign will be different from last month's assaulton the smaller city of marjah. instead, he said the kandahar operation will build gradually over several months. >> we have already put additional forces in the districts around kandahar, but we'll be able to reinforce that significantly over time. so there won't be a d-day that is climactic. it will be a rising tide of security as it comes. >> sreenivasan: u.s. defense secretary robert gates arrived in kabul today, to review plans for the kandahar operation. he also met with president hamid karzai who announced a three-day peace conference in late april. at least 13 people have died in a suicide car bombing in eastern pakistan. the attack came in lahore. it targeted a building where police interrogate high-value terror suspects. the offices were shattered and more than 60 people were wounded. the taliban claimed responsibility. meanwhile, in northwest pakistan, intelligence officials said a suspected u.s. missile strike killed three people near the afghan border. a new tanker plane fo

couldn't he spare one full day for general mcchrystal and to see what our troops are actually doing?> bill: all right. so you thought he should spend more time and basically show that he is not afraid -- america is not afraid of the taliban by arriving. all right. people can make up their own mind. >> that's just a daytime press conference. >> bill: i have to say that i think his administration has done a pretty good job with pakistan in particular. i mean, he has been able to rally the pakistanis, no easy task as you well know. to take at least some action against al qaeda and the taliban. and the drone missile program, the hell fire missiles have wiped out a lot of the taliban and al qaeda leadership. and so i don't have a lot of quibble with what he is doing over there. am i wrong? >> no. actually, i give obama full credit for allowing the cia and our special operators to continue to kill terrorists. that's what we should be doing. and, you know, while i think the visit during hours of darkness was dumb, just dumb, i have got some really good news from a deep inside friend today w

general mcchrystal's request earlier in august for those troops in the insurgency program.n't see a map program upfront and bold headline, much of this talk of an unconventional approach to this as a quote social problem. but i think those things or they are. i think karzai, president karzai going just last week to help me with tribal elders. you've got to remember, this would be -- i don't even know how to describe this. the fact that these people are fighting and fighting with the taliban is because they don't think karzai even knows they exist. and the folks he has in power there, they feel are so corrupt that any money they give never trickles down. for him to show up as a symbolic act to sit on the fourth 400 of these guys and they tell me what your problems are is an earthmoving kind of symbolic gesture. i think you're going to see more of this approach. we are hearing british foreign secretary miller brand so that we need to deal with the taliban and, the ones that work for the dollars opposed to the ideology. the $500 million package that was announced in london in

whether or not general mcchrystal can do that in a collision fight and be able to use general rodriguez to the same purpose with u.s. troops i think is very much of error. so if i can to keep this up again for afghanistan and with respect to the lessons learned i think there's been some significant lessons learned in iraq and with linda and tom have written quite well on the tactical and operational lessons. the strategic and political lessons i don't think we have learned nearly as much as we needed to. i don't think that we have done a lot of hard searching and fought about how to apply the leverage when operating when conducting counterinsurgency campaign as a third party and then as far as our strategic culture, the culture of the u.s. military i think it remains to be seen whether or not the cultural changes that have taken place and that you see in the junior officers in iraq and afghanistan are in during or fleeting and afghanistan in a lot of ways is going to be a test case for whether or not that is the case. thanks. >> thanks for the excellent remarks. we have about 35 minutes

general stanley mcchrystal says this guy will be caught, brought to justice, presumably in a court of the opposing viewpoint offered by eric holder says, he thinks he won't be caught alive. what do you think about the differing views here? what's that signal to you? >> i think they're all trying to look really tough so the line from the right has been that the obama administration is soft on terrorism, they favor civilian trials instead military trials, they want to close down guantanamo and i think there is a big push-back against this saying we are being tough on these guys, we've killed 600 and some taliban and al qaeda figures just in the last year and a half. that's more than the bush administration was able to kill in the last four years in the administration. so we're being tough and they're just trying to project this toughness right now in congress and elsewhere. >> a lot of al qaeda-related operations though are secret. they're covert, joby. why is it that leon panetta's coming out now and talking about them? >> i think they're pushing several people out to make that point r

troops that was in my view, minimum recommended by -- minimum necessary recommended by general mcchrystal? >> in fact, senator, part of that is of course why we sought the additional 100,000 authorization for the afghan national security forces which came as you recall i think in the wake of the official -- 0 official authorization in the wake of the policy announcement and is also, frankly why secretary gates asked for and received some flex factor as you know, that he has discussed. and, so that is in the background, there, if there came to be an emergent, emergency need, that that is available as well. >> finally, general, and admiral olson, do you believe the don't ask, don't tell needs a thorough review before action is taken? >> senator, my position is, that -- can i give my statement on that, sir? >> we're short of time, but, please, go aheaded . >> how long is that statement? >> 8 minutes, sir. >> no. no. >> well, look, sir, that is not -- this is not a sound bite issue. >> i understand, a straightforward question. >> we respect, believe me, the thoughtfulness that you are applyin

in fact, one of the important elements of general mcchrystal's overhaul approach is to achieve greater unit of effort and that means conventional forces, special forces, civilian elements and so forth, all working together to mr. common name, trying not to duplicate efforts, but in -- and trying to do it in a way that is as limb bureaucracy as -- limb bureaucracy as necessary, but recognizing that some of that is necessary, show no, there is a need to do more in this area, and that is one of general m mccrystal's thrusts and thinks effort. >> well, i strongly some more that. thank you. >> thank you, senator sessions. senator hagan. >> thank you, mr. chairman. admiral olson and general petraeus, as other members of the committee have already shade, i thank you for your service to our country and for your testimony today. you know,ism proud that north carolina is home to the joint special operations medical training senator hat fort bragg and as you know, all special joint operations combat medics are trained at that facility to obtain the skills they need on the battlefield. just severa

but mcchrystal yesterday in marja in effect said the military phase was coming to an end. but there are always going to be i.e.d.'s, always going to be terrorist attacks. those happen in the middle of kabul and for those that matter they happen in the middle of major cities all over the world these days. i have a feeling, however, that the -- some of the energy has gone out of this approach to warfare. now, the critical test of marja, which was well reflected, for example, in chris' piece in the "new york times" over the weekend, the critical variable is to bring civilian services to the people of the region and to make sure that they are not tainted by corruption. that's a heavy order in that area. given the history of the area, given the danger of operating, and given the complexity of it. but we are committed to it. and the military likes to call prove of concept. marja is a test of the strategies that are now being put into place. so just to make clear there isn't going to be a date on which this campaign ends if we start saying we have succeeded and we start to pull o

has been, now, the surge into marjah and they're going to go to kandahar, evidently, and general mcchrystal'sategy seems to be taking advantage of the troops that he has received seems to be on the march. are you confident? do you feel better about the possibilities in afghanistan? >> the thing about afghanistan, charlie, is that ultimately it's not up to us. it's up to them. our troops, our other people on the ground will behave hero wickly, literally. but ultimately it's their country and as you know they don't have a long history of being a coherent nation state. do they have the ability to reconcile their differences amongst themselves that will allow them establish that state with the breathing period we are giving them? that's the bet. i think it's 50-50 wager. what the president did, he's giving the optimal outcome in afghanistan a chance. >> rose: right. >> because if we withdraw and there's no strong central government there, it will fragment and there was a reason that al qaeda located in afghanistan to begin with. the tribal areas in pakistan were not their top choice. they went th

eikenb, who is doing outstanding work, and the commander of our 43- nation coalition, general stan mcchrystale doing it extraordinarily well and we are proud of them. please give your outstanding team a big round of applause. they have got my full confidence and my full support. [applause] we're also joined by troops from some of our coalition partners, because this is not simply an american mission or even just a nato mission. al qaeda and their extremist allies are a threat to the people afghanistan and a threat to the people of america, but they are also a threat to people all around the world, and that is why we're so proud to have our coalition partners with us. thank you very much for the great work that you do. we salute you and we honor you for all the sacrifices that you make, and you are a true friend of the united states of america. i very much. -- thank you very much. [applause] we also salute the members of the afghan national army who are fighting alongside all of you. they are risking their lives to protect their country. and as i told president karzai today, the united states

working very hard with stan mcchrystal and bill caldwell to put focus on the retention side, as well.>> a new missile defense program in europe called phased adaptive approach that the obama administration has announced and begun to implement. does nato support that new missile defense plan? >> nato is beginning that conversation. and at the moment, what we have is a ballistic missile defense c-2 command and control structure which is being explored to decide where, when, and how nato could connect into this if the alliance decides to do so. i anticipate there will be a significant discussion about that at the defense,which will be in the may time frame. and i'm hoping to see a decision taken toward the time of the summit, which is in lisbon in november. so it's very much an active conversation. i don't want to pre-judge the political decisions of the nations, but it's certainly on the agenda. >> all right. from what you know, can you say there seems to be a positive response to it? >> i think overall, that would be fair to say. >> thank you very much, senator mccain. >> thank you ver

and i want to compliment you and general mcchrystal and everyone for realizing that we had the wild west of contracting in iraq in terms of logistical support and a lot of other contracting issues. i think we have the structures in place now. now, it remains to be seen whether those structures are going to provide the oversight that we need. but at least we've got the right people gathered in the right rooms. i have some significant questions about cerp big projects in continuity. but i'm out of time. so what i will do, mr. chairman, is i will make those questions for the record. i know 67% of the cerp money is going to projects over 500,000. >> actually, senator, i need to give you numbers on that because the average project for this past year -- or for this year so far in fiscal year '10 is somewhere around $20,000 per project in iraq and 40,000 in the other countries or is it vice versa? anyway, the average is somewhere around 30,000 this year. >> so we're pulling back down? >> oh, we have pulled way down. >> that's great. >> i mentioned in that my opening statement. i retain approval