"That partnership on our side between defense, development, and diplomacy is the building block to successfully build the partnerships with the local countries."
"As far as how we reform development policy, I think the best thing we could do is centralize it."
"Capping the number of troops in Colombia was an important part of the success because it made the Colombians aware that we would help but it was their fight."
"I think every military commander's first instinct is to say: Give me another 30,000 troops, and I can save the situation."
"My view is we are in Afghanistan today for the same reason we were in Afghanistan in the fall of 2001, to prevent it from becoming a safe haven for terrorists for attacking us."
"I wish that we didn't have national security interests in Afghanistan and Pakistan. It is a very, very difficult place to work with."
"Trying to maintain some stability in Afghanistan... it is still very fractious and still very difficult."
"Our outside experts sort of basically said that the strategy is sound. It is the implementation that is key."
"This is an issue that Congress will have to vote on; one we cannot avoid."
"It gives us a chance to be deliberative, to listen to experts, and to have a really robust debate about what exactly the agreement does."
"Explicitly in the agreement is Iran agreeing to never build a nuclear weapon."
"What this agreement does clearly do for at least the next 15 years is significantly degrades Iran's ability to enrich uranium."