Speech to Georgetown University Tropaia
Master of Science of Foreign Service
May 17, 2002 - Gaston Hall

So let me congratulate the 2002 Graduating Class of Masters of Science of Foreign Service.

You have studied, listened and learned about international relations. And you have watched as September 11 has redefined our role in these post-Cold War world days.

Your task now - Take that knowledge and experience and apply it to the challenges that all of us as Americans now face.

Some of you will begin careers in government. And others will go to the private sector. But as you enter the workforce, let me give you three pieces of advice:

• Develop staying power - Any productive life, while hopefully marked by success, will also encounter defeat. Like the mythical bird of San Francisco, the Phoenix, you need on occasion to rise up from your own ashes. Drive, staying power, and motivation are really what sustains a successful career.

• Work to your longsuit, not your shortsuit. - Many young people choose a career for the wrong reasons - because someone else wants them to, out of economic need, out of societal pressures.

But what I'd like to say to you tonight -- Look deeply into yourself, think about what you do best, what will allow you to wake up fresh each morning to ignore slights, to thrust away disappointment, and work to your strengths, not your weaknesses.

A 50 year career is not an unrealistic expectation. It is very difficult to work for 50 years if you are not doing things you enjoy.

I hope that your career is a long one, and I believe you will gain success if each of you work to your strength, not to your weakness.

• Remember to ask the question: "will it work?" -

One of the things I learned in the graduate work that I did was to ask the question, "Will it work?" This is important because you will find that often what you learn in the textbook is not what works on the streets or in the real world.

In much the same way, this nation needs to show our drive, motivation, and staying power in what could be a long war on terror.

So what I want to do tonight is to share a few thoughts on what I believe we must do to be successful over the long term to win this war on terror.

War on Terrorism

The direction of U.S. foreign policy was changed dramatically by the events of September 11.

We in the Congress authorized the President in a carefully-crafted resolution to use force against those responsible for or connected to the attacks.

And while the war in Afghanistan has gone well so far, it is far from over. It is much too soon to pat ourselves on the back.

Just today, we learned that British commandos and American forces are engaging Al Qaeda and Taliban forces in the mountains of Afghanistan.

We know that Al Qaeda has spread throughout the world in 40-60 cells and has trained thousands of terrorists. And we know that the great bulk of its leadership are still at large including Osama Bin Laden.

The war on terrorism will be long and truly test our resolve -- so this nation must stay the course. We know that the Taliban and Al Qaeda will come back if given the chance.

That is why it is so important to help Afghanistan restore its government, keep the peace, protect its people, and most fundamentally, grow its economy and improve the quality of life of its people.

In addition, the United States and its allies must also strive to make sure that this war on terrorism does not become the global "clash of civilizations" that Osama bin Laden so desires

We must find the culprits and bring them to justice. We must defeat Al Qaeda. But we must also reach out to those moderate forces in the Islamic world who understand that the future lies with tolerant, multi-cultural, free-market democracies.

As we fight the war abroad, we must also focus our attention at home.

Recent developments in Washington are causing us to reexamine our intelligence structure.

I serve on the Intelligence Committee and am the Chairman of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Technology, Terrorism and Government Information.

What I have found in those roles is that we have a very unwieldy intelligence structure, with intelligence functions in more than 40 federal departments and agencies and 12 agencies that function in the so-called intelligence world.

I want to speak for a moment about the Phoenix memo. It should have been fully processed and analyzed by the Counter-Terrorism Center at the CIA.

As near as we can tell, it did not reach the center until 10 days ago. Because if the memo had been considered in light of the August 17 arrest of Zacharias Moussaoui, more could have been learned.

That, to me, identifies a real and serious flaw in the way in which our counter-terrorism community operates.

Those of us in the Senate do not have access to the President's daily intelligence briefing. However, I do not believe he was given information sufficient to anticipate the attack.

But let me be very clear. I do not believe that anyone was able to anticipate the time, place, type, or method of attack. And that includes the President.

The bottom line is that America's intelligence structure needs to be remolded, to be much more efficient, and able to respond much more quickly in this new world in which we find ourselves.

The FBI, the CIA, the State Department, and the Immigration and Naturalization Service must have integrated communications systems, where critical intelligence data can flow between agencies, where it can be quickly analyzed and referred to those in leadership.

Today, the Director of the intelligence community is also the Director of the CIA -- I strongly believe this is a mistake. They should be two separate positions.

There needs to be one person that runs each intelligence agency and one person responsible for the entire intelligence community, with the authority to make changes as they are needed, to oversee the proper functioning of all aspects and agencies of this community.

When historians look back at this time, they will find that September 11 transformed the United States' role in the 21^st Century, much as December 7^th and the attack on Pearl Harbor changed our role in the 20^th Century.

We will be judged on how we respond to the crisis and how it ends -- so we must be vigilant and stay the course.

But we must also examine the root causes. Why the hatred? Why the fanaticism? What can we do about it?

Poverty

I think that here in this strong and prosperous country, most people don't realize that:

• 2.8 billion people on this planet live in abject poverty - getting by on $2 a day or less. That's less than a cappuccino at Starbucks.
• Close to 1 billion people are undernourished.
• And 2.5 billion do not have access to adequate sanitation.

Here we are the strongest, richest, most powerful nation on Earth. But, believe it or not, we contribute very little to improve the condition of the people of our planet.

I often ask people: "how much of our budget do they think goes for foreign aid?" They respond: "10 percent", "12 percent", and, sometimes, "15 percent" of our total federal budget.

In fact, United States foreign assistance spending is just eight-tenths of 1 percent of the budget with less than six tenths of 1 percent going to humanitarian assistance.

I deeply believe it is in our national interest to triple our foreign aid program, and I have introduced legislation to do so.

So I was pleased when President Bush committed to increasing United States foreign aid by an additional $10 billion over four years.

However, a tripling will just bring us up to where we were at the end of World War II.

The United States devoted 3 percent of its federal budget to foreign assistance in 1946 - a high water mark which was reached again under the Kennedy Administration.

Even looking beyond the humanitarian rationale, the United States will never be secure in a world in which:

• Sub-Saharan Africa is ravaged by the AIDS pandemic;
• More than half the people of the world go to bed hungry;
• Civil wars are a constant; and
• Where failed or failing states, unable to meet the needs of their peoples see America and Americans as the cause of their anger and discontent

If the United States is to be successful in the war on terrorism, we must therefore be willing to step up and carry out the role of leadership.

Middle East

Of all the hot spots around the world today, the Israeli/Palestinian Crisis is the most critical with regard to the war on terrorism.

Its resolution, therefore, must be of the highest priority to our government.

I'm one who believes that Israel has a right to exist with defensible borders, and that the Palestinians have a right to a State as well.

Unfortunately, the past years' Intifada has fostered the intense kind of hatred that makes discussion of peace very difficult. Thousands of hours, however, have already been spent in negotiation, and every permutation has been discussed.

In fact, President Clinton, before he left office in January, actually put an agreement on the table that had been negotiated with Palestinian officials ahead of time and included:

• A Palestinian State accounting for 97 percent of the territory of the West Bank,
• A Palestinian capitol in Jerusalem, in which the Palestinian portion would be under Palestinian control;
• A Right of return for Palestinians to a new state and $30 billion in payments to refugees.
• A resolution of security issues.

But - defying all logic -- Arafat rejected this offer, and we have seen the results of the ensuing Intifada.

Eighteen months later, Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has offered a vision for resolution of conflict. This vision has created a window of opportunity.

His plan includes Israel "withdrawal from all occupied territory, in exchange for full normalization of relations with Arab States.

My view is that America's role as an honest broker in this crisis has never been more important.

Despite the ups and downs of the past 18 months, we must lead a way to peace, to continue to build on the negotiations that have gone before, and take pragmatic steps to pursue a solution that works.

The leaders of our government, especially the President, must put their prestige on the line to formulate a comprehensive proposal for a just and lasting settlement, and present it to both sides.

Such a proposal should utilize the window of opportunity provided by King Abdullah's vision and include a Palestinian State and recognized, safe, and defensible borders for the State of Israel.

Conclusion

One of my deepest concerns is that throughout the world the United States is becoming increasingly seen as an arrogant and selfish nation.

I believe the United States has a choice: We can work with our friends and allies and be effective. Or we can be ideological and arrogant.

Too often we choose arrogance. You see this in our decision not to sign the Kyoto treaty on global warming.

You see this in our decision to withdraw from the ABM Treaty and pursue a program of aggressive Missile Defense.

And you see this in the revelation that the United States has targeted certain states for a first use of nuclear weapons under certain circumstances.

You must help us change that.

For those of you that actively go into the foreign policy arena you must help us work for an America that listens, an America that consults with allies and friends, and an America that fully utilizes international relations in the best sense, solving problems before they become crises.

If we are not, I fear we will become a world governed by brute force, where weaponry will control our future.

And as these weapons become more deadly, and more available, we will find ourselves less secure, not more.

Great opportunities exist around the world to build peace and democracy -- if only we are prepared to take hold of them.

Graduates -- this is your challenge. You have been given a good legacy - do not squander it.

I wish you the best of luck as you leave Georgetown and apply the skills you have learned in these past two years.