Jim Webb

That's not the military I grew up in. That's not the military you and I served in, Admiral.

I don't believe, quite frankly, that the DOD budget should be sacrosanct when it comes to looking at the constraints and the examinations that we ought to be putting on different programs.

I made it very clear at that time that this survey was going to be vital in terms of evaluating whether we should move forward on this law.

I think this has been a very good opportunity for us to exercise some oversight, here in the Congress, on the evolution of policy.

This is the division, in terms of the debate.

We take one standard on electoral process in a place like Thailand, and then we'll say--or we will not say, to Vietnam or China, that they should even have elections.

We tend to focus on human rights, which are separate from governmental systems, in terms of analysis.

We have clearly articulated, from a governmental perspective, different standards, in terms of electoral process, openness of the media, freedom of movement, et cetera.

The leading authoritarian states in the world... are engaging more and more in efforts to weaken regional and global institutions that have democracy and human rights as part of their mandates.

To the extent that we can help create more space for them, for the bloggers, for activists, for others to begin to raise these issues with their own governments, that's the key.

The fate of these societies and their political evolution rests not with us, the United States Government or NGOs, it rests with the citizens.

Democracy, human rights have to be part of the dialogue, on an ongoing, consistent basis.

The interdependence we have with the Chinese Government.

To what extend does the United States become vulnerable through an increasing dependence on a governmental structure that's not like our own?

The United States is the leading power of Asia.

It's an across-the-board concern that we have.

I think we need to be clear here, it was just signed, as of this month.

The nongovernmental impact of the United States is enormous in Asia.

This is, I think, a fresh opportunity to try to bring some consistency into our policies.

If we are not consistent in how we deal with these incidents, such as locking up dissidents and these sorts of things, in a country like China, then the rest of the region does not believe we're serious about what our policies really are.

One of the precepts in ASEAN is that, if you are a member, then you are treated equally inside ASEAN, as a member.

For ASEAN to be effective, to be the dominant institution of Asia... it has to have a greater leveling effect.

I totally agree with you. We tend to forget, in this country, the amazing story of Japan since the end of World War II.

Asia is really moving toward multilateral relationships. And it's positive.

I think it is incumbent on the United States to raise those issues at the highest levels.