“Fighting a Comprehensive War on
Terrorism”
Remarks by Senator John Kerry at the Ronald W. Burkle
Center for International Relations
February 27, 2004
... Like all Americans, I responded to President
Bush’s reassuring words in the days after September 11th. But
since then, his actions have fallen short.
I do not fault George Bush for doing too much in the
War on Terror; I believe he’s done too little.
Where he’s acted, his doctrine of unilateral
preemption has driven away our allies and cost us the support of other
nations. Iraq is in disarray, with American troops still bogged down in
a deadly guerrilla war with no exit in sight. In Afghanistan, the area
outside Kabul is sliding back into the hands of a resurgent Taliban and
emboldened warlords.
In other areas, the Administration has done nothing or
been too little and too late. The Mideast Peace process disdained for 14
months by the Bush Administration is paralyzed. North Korea and Iran
continue their quest for nuclear weapons – weapons which one day
could land in the hands of terrorists. And as Defense Secretary Don
Rumsfeld has admitted, the Administration is still searching for an
effective plan to drain the swamps of terrorist recruitment. The
President’s budget for the National Endowment for
Democracy’s efforts around the world, including the entire Islamic
world, is less than three percent of what this Administration gives
Halliburton – hardly a way to win the contest of ideas.
Finally, by virtually every measure, we still have a
homeland security strategy that falls far short of the vulnerabilities we
have and the threats we face. ...
First, if I am President I will not hesitate to order
direct military action when needed to capture and destroy terrorist
groups and their leaders. George Bush inherited the strongest military
in the world – and he has weakened it. What George Bush and his
armchair hawks have never understood is that our military is about more
than moving pins on a map or buying expensive new weapons systems.
America’s greatest military strength has always
been the courageous, talented men and women whose love of country and
devotion to service lead them to attempt and achieve the impossible
everyday.
But today, far too often troops are going into
harm’s way without the weapons and equipment they depend on to do
their jobs safely. National Guard helicopters are flying missions in
dangerous territory without the best available ground-fire protection
systems. Un-armored Humvees are falling victim to road-side bombs and
small-arms fire.
And families across America have had to collect funds
from their neighbors to buy body armor for their loved ones in uniform
because George Bush failed to provide it
The next President must ensure that our forces are
structured for maximum effectiveness and provided with all that they need
to succeed in their missions. We must better prepare our forces for
post-conflict operations and the task of building stability by adding
more engineers, military police, psychological warfare personnel, and
civil affairs teams.
And to replenish our overextended military, as
President, I will add 40,000 active-duty Army troops, a temporary
increase likely to last the remainder of the decade.
Second, if I am President I will strengthen the
capacity of intelligence and law enforcement at home and forge stronger
international coalitions to provide better information and the best
chance to target and capture terrorists even before they act.
But the challenge for us is not to cooperate abroad;
it is to coordinate here at home. Whether it was September 11th or
Iraq’s supposed weapons of mass destruction, we have endured
unprecedented intelligence failures. We must do what George Bush has
refused to do – reform our intelligence system by making the next
Director of the CIA a true Director of National Intelligence with real
control of intelligence personnel and budgets. We must train more
analysts in languages like Arabic. And we must break down the old
barriers between national intelligence and local law enforcement.
In the months leading up to September 11th, two of the
hijackers were arrested for drunk driving – and another was stopped
for speeding and then let go, although he was already the subject of an
arrest warrant in a neighboring county and was on a federal terrorist
watch list. We need to simplify and streamline the multiple national
terrorist watch lists and make sure the right information is available to
the right people on the frontlines of preventing the next attack.
But we can’t take any of those steps
effectively if we are stuck with an Administration that continues to
stonewall those who are trying to get to the bottom of our September 11th
intelligence failures. Two days ago, the Republican Speaker of the House
Dennis Hastert refused the request of the bipartisan 9-11 commission for
just a little more time just to complete their mission. This after the
Commission has had to deal with an Administration that opposed its very
creation and has stonewalled its efforts. ...
Third, we must cut off the flow of terrorist funds.
In the case of Saudi Arabia, the Bush Administration has adopted a
kid-glove approach to the supply and laundering of terrorist money. If I
am President, we will impose tough financial sanctions against nations or
banks that engage in money laundering or fail to act against it. We will
launch a "name and shame" campaign against those that are
financing terror. And if they do not respond, they will be shut out of
the U.S. financial system.
Fourth, because finding and defeating terrorist groups
is a long-term effort, we must act immediately to prevent terrorists from
acquiring nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons. I propose to appoint
a high-level Presidential envoy empowered to bring other nations together
to secure and stop the spread of these weapons. We must develop common
standards to make sure dangerous materials and armaments are tracked,
accounted for, and secured. Today, parts of Russia’s vast nuclear
arsenal are easy prey for those offering cash to scientists and security
forces who too often are under-employed and under-paid. If I am
President, I will expand the Nunn/Lugar program to buy up and destroy the
loose nuclear materials of the former Soviet Union and to ensure that all
of Russia’s nuclear weapons and materials are out of the reach of
terrorists and off the black market.
Next, whatever we thought of the Bush
Administration’s decisions and mistakes – especially in Iraq
– we now have a solemn obligation to complete the mission, in that
country and in Afghanistan. Iraq is now a major magnet and center for
terror. Our forces in Iraq are paying the price everyday.
And our safety at home may someday soon be endangered
as Iraq becomes a training ground for the next generation of terrorists.
It is time to return to the United Nations and return
America to the community of nations to share both authority and
responsibility in Iraq, and take the target off the back of our troops.
This also requires a genuine Iraqi security force. The Bush
Administration simply signs up recruits and gives them rudimentary
training. In a Kerry Administration, we will create and train an Iraqi
security force equal to the task of safeguarding itself and the people it
is supposed to protect.
We must offer the UN the lead role in assisting Iraq
with the development of new political institutions. And we must stay in
Iraq until the job is finished.
In Afghanistan, we have some NATO involvement, but the
training of the Afghan Army is insufficient to disarm the warlord
militias or to bring the billion dollar drug trade under control. This
Administration has all but turned away from Afghanistan. Two years ago,
President Bush promised a Marshall Plan to rebuild that country. His
latest budget scorns that commitment.
We must – and if I am President, I will –
apply the wisdom Franklin Roosevelt shared with the American people in a
fireside chat in 1942, “it is useless to win battles if the cause
for which we fight these battles is lost. It is useless to win a war
unless it stays won.” This Administration has not met that
challenge; a Kerry Administration will. ...
Finally, if we are going to be serious about the War
on Terror, we need to be much more serious about homeland security.
Today, fire departments only have enough radios for half their
firefighters and almost two-thirds of firehouses are short-staffed. We
should not be opening firehouses in Baghdad and closing them down in New
York City. We need to put 100,000 more firefighters on duty and we need
to restore the 100,000 police on our streets which I fought for and won
in 1994 but which the Bush Administration has cut in budget after budget.
We need to provide public health labs with the basic
expertise they need but now lack to respond to chemical or biological
attack. We need new safeguards for our chemical and nuclear facilities.
And our ports – like the Port of Los Angeles
– need new technology to screen the 95 percent of containers that
now enter this country without any inspection at all. And we should
accelerate the action plans agreed to in US-Canada and US-Mexico
“smart border” accords while implementing new security
measures for cross border bridges. President Bush says we can’t
afford to fund homeland security. I say we can’t afford not to.
I believe we can bring a real victory in the War on
Terror. I believe we must, not only for ourselves but for all who look
to America as “the last best hope of earth.” I believe we
can meet that ideal – and that’s why I’m running for
President.