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Dallas Morning News
May 4, 2007
Dallas: Visiting defense chief says exiting now would lead to disaster
By Paul Meyer, The Dallas Morning News
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates came to Dallas on Thursday with encouragement for war-weary troops and a warning for a war-divided nation.
"Our country is troubled and divided by a long, difficult war in Iraq," Dr. Gates told members of the Greater Dallas Chamber after meeting troops at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.
"We want our troops to come home and be out of harm's way. And yet most know, or at least sense, that leaving chaos behind us in Iraq will bring dramatically more suffering for Iraqis and also disaster for the Middle East and ultimately for us."
Dr. Gates, speaking at the Hilton Anatole two days after President Bush vetoed legislation that set a deadline for troop withdrawal, said history cautions against pulling back from America's global responsibilities and military resources.
"Five times over the past 90 years ... the United States has slashed defense spending or disarmed outright in the mistaken belief that the nature of man or the behavior of nations had changed at the end of each of the wars," he said.
For Dr. Gates, Thursday also marked a return to Texas after he left Texas A&M University in December for the defense secretary post. He had served as president of the university since Aug. 1, 2002, and was one of the 14 members of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group created last year.
He also served as director of the Central Intelligence Agency from 1991 to 1993, the only career officer in the CIA's history to rise from entry-level employee to director.
"In Washington, most of my public remarks tend to begin with someone asking me to raise my right hand and then asking if I'm actually going to tell the truth," Dr. Gates quipped about his recent job change.
The truth, he said, is that America is at a crucial juncture and needs to bolster defense spending and troop levels to help "recoup the underinvestment of the past."
History teaches two lessons in dealing with the war in Iraq, Dr. Gates said.
"First, our weariness with conflict, with the setbacks and tragedy of war, is understandable and even to be expected," he said.
"But second, we must not let that weariness cause us to withdraw from the world or diminish our ability to deal with the threats and challenges of tomorrow."
May 4, 2007
Dallas: Visiting defense chief says exiting now would lead to disaster
By Paul Meyer, The Dallas Morning News
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates came to Dallas on Thursday with encouragement for war-weary troops and a warning for a war-divided nation.
"Our country is troubled and divided by a long, difficult war in Iraq," Dr. Gates told members of the Greater Dallas Chamber after meeting troops at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.
"We want our troops to come home and be out of harm's way. And yet most know, or at least sense, that leaving chaos behind us in Iraq will bring dramatically more suffering for Iraqis and also disaster for the Middle East and ultimately for us."
Dr. Gates, speaking at the Hilton Anatole two days after President Bush vetoed legislation that set a deadline for troop withdrawal, said history cautions against pulling back from America's global responsibilities and military resources.
"Five times over the past 90 years ... the United States has slashed defense spending or disarmed outright in the mistaken belief that the nature of man or the behavior of nations had changed at the end of each of the wars," he said.
For Dr. Gates, Thursday also marked a return to Texas after he left Texas A&M University in December for the defense secretary post. He had served as president of the university since Aug. 1, 2002, and was one of the 14 members of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group created last year.
He also served as director of the Central Intelligence Agency from 1991 to 1993, the only career officer in the CIA's history to rise from entry-level employee to director.
"In Washington, most of my public remarks tend to begin with someone asking me to raise my right hand and then asking if I'm actually going to tell the truth," Dr. Gates quipped about his recent job change.
The truth, he said, is that America is at a crucial juncture and needs to bolster defense spending and troop levels to help "recoup the underinvestment of the past."
History teaches two lessons in dealing with the war in Iraq, Dr. Gates said.
"First, our weariness with conflict, with the setbacks and tragedy of war, is understandable and even to be expected," he said.
"But second, we must not let that weariness cause us to withdraw from the world or diminish our ability to deal with the threats and challenges of tomorrow."