Wayne Allard: “for the last 4 years, the United States has been locked in combat with the forces of terror. These extremists do not…”

“for the last 4 years, the United States has been locked in combat with the forces of terror. These extremists do not understand freedom and are trying even to this very day to spread their message of hate and oppression. America did not fire the first shot. Those killed on September 11 were innocent and did not deserve to die. They should be with us today. The forces of terror remain determined to defeat our Nation. They believe the United States will abandon Iraq and Afghanistan. They question our will to fight. They doubt our courage and our fortitude. They are wrong. Our Nation has stepped up to fight and has never looked back. Under President Bush's leadership, our country has taken the battle to the enemy. As the President said in his State of the Union Address: Our country is still the target of terrorists who want to kill many and intimidate us all, and we will stay on the offensive against them until the fight is won. In less than 3 months after September 11, United States and Afghan forces toppled the Taliban regime, a brutal theocracy shielding al- Qaida and other terrorists. A year after September 11, the President challenged the United Nations to confront another protector of terror, Saddam Hussein. This cruel dictator threatened his neighbors, his people, and our country with his support for terror and his pursuit of weapons of mass destruction. He lied, cajoled, intimidated, and murdered. Our Nation did not stop with Afghanistan and Iraq.”