Bill Clinton: “I don't think anyone argues we now face three great challenges in our Nation. First, we have a national security…”

“I don't think anyone argues we now face three great challenges in our Nation. First, we have a national security challenge. Our men and women in uniform are addressing that challenge even as we speak--all over the world from Afghanistan to the Persian Gulf to the border of North and South Korea, and many other places as well. All of us support our military and have voted to provide the largest appropriations ever in our history to give our men and women who put themselves in harm's way all of the resources, technology and compensations that our great military deserves. We have a new challenge; that is, the challenge of homeland security. Certainly, many of us have not had to think of this issue as we are now. On September 11 of last year when we were so grievously attacked, it became clear that we had to begin to apply the techniques of security much closer to home that we have used to defend America's interests abroad for so many generations. We have to take a very hard look at our vulnerabilities, our infrastructure, our borders, and our public health capacity to deal with biological or chemical warfare.”