Is it your view that we have the ability-- and I am truly agnostic on this. I do not know the answer to this.

The mandate was a central government controlling all of Afghanistan that was multi-ethnic and violence-free.

And the guy who sweeps the barracks floor, according to Green Berets we have talked to, gets paid more money.

I need at some point a clear definition from the administration of what constitutes the mission, the mission.

What bothers me is the administration redefinition of what constitutes security and stability.

I would come with some specifics.

And a constituent of mine.

So my point is this is doable, this is doable, and I think you might find you get some support.

Tell me how you think, no matter how much money got sent to the north, there would be a reasonable prospect of being able to safely begin to develop those oil reserves.

We have a great deal of work left to do in Afghanistan.

Unless I can secure the area first, there is no likelihood that the resources in the rest of my country are going to be the province of or under the control of the central government.

It is very difficult for me anyway to convince them that we in fact should be taking a greater risk by extending ourselves even more relative to Afghanistan.

I urge this Committee to continue to support the expansion of ISAF, and I hope the Administration will make every effort to press America's friends and allies to join in this effort.

Yes, Saddam Hussein is a very serious problem.

Thank you very much.

My frustration has existed from this time a year ago in Bagram to today.

If that is how we define it, you are right, we are approaching stability.

I promise you, as somebody who sat here for 30 years, we can get you that money.

I have seen the transition, to use the popular phrase, a morphing of the policy.

The American people understand that, because we have told them, you have told them, everyone has told them, that very conservative elements of Islam, particularly Wahabi in origin, out of primarily Saudi Arabia, over the past years have…

It frustrates the devil out of me, as you can tell, by us sort of sugar-coating this.

It would be helpful if you acknowledge the altruism of the American people.

I just have one, not a comment, one closing question if I may.

I think our credibility is at stake, we have a government there we obviously can work with.

Well, see, that I totally agree with you on that. But that is a programmatic, that is a policy decision we have been having trouble getting the administration to sign on.