The Job Of The Leader Is To

I Am Neither A Pessimist Nor An Optimist. I Am A Realist, And The Reality In Iraq Is That It Has Been Very Hard And It Continues To Be Hard.

Isis Is On Its Way To Defeat But Terrorism Threat Persists.

Over The Last Few Years They Have Done A Superb Job In Their Fight Against Al-qaida. As You May Recall, Our Embassy In Jedda (in Saudi Arabia) Was Overrun Some Four Years Ago And A Number Of Foreign Workers Went Home Because Of Violence Against Them.

Political Progress Will Only Take Place If Sufficient Security Exists.

Al-qaida In Particular Remains Dangerous, And There [in Iraq] Is Some Residual Militia And Special Group Presence. There Are Still Between 20 And 30 Attacks Per Day, Still Periodic Car Bombs And Still Loss Of Innocent Civilians.