Foreign Affairs
The first responsibility of the federal government, according to our Constitution, is to "provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States."
I have had the privilege to work on national security issues extensively during my years in public service as a naval flight officer during the Vietnam War and the Cold War, Delaware's representative in Congress in the 1980s, as governor of Delaware and commander-in-chief of the Delaware National Guard in the 1990s and now, as a United States Senator.
Since 9/11, my colleagues and I on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee have overseen both the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and the historic overhaul of our nation's intelligence agencies.
This is a pivotal moment for the United States. Thousands of our young men and women remain deployed overseas in harm's way in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Events are unfolding in the Middle East that will shape that region for many years to come. Dangerous regimes, particularly in Iran, are rushing to acquire nuclear weapons and long-range missiles. Meanwhile, America's important system of security alliances, built in a bipartisan fashion over more than half a century, has shown profound strain in recent years. And today, nine years into a brand new century, there are many global challenges that we must together confront. Americans know that our nation and our world face great perils: From ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to the spread of weapons of mass destruction, to the continuing threat posed by terrorists around the world; from the dangers of climate change to a dangerous proliferation of pandemic diseases; from financial meltdown to worldwide poverty.
If we are to restore America's reputation and keep our people safe, there is much work to be done.
Facing Unfriendly Regimes — Iran has become a key sponsor of terrorism and threat in the Middle East. The United States and its allies must develop a coherent Iran strategy that establishes both short- and long-term goals. I held a Senate hearing to examine these concerns in April 2008.
Another concern for the United States and its allies is the proliferation of dangerous weapons, and the possibility that they could fall into the hands of someone who wants to do us harm. For example, North Korea is known to have sold its military technology on the black market.
The acquisition of nuclear weapons on the part of either of these regimes constitutes a grave threat to America's security. Stopping the nuclear ambitions of Iran and North Korea should be a priority of our government and our allies. To achieve this, we must continue to strengthen relationships with our European partners and work with the United Nations and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to give diplomacy its very best chance to succeed.
Furthermore, I am deeply concerned about the deteriorating situations in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. Within the last half-decade, al-Qaeda and the Taliban have posed increasing threats to the national security of the United States, which we must continue to aggressively address.
To protect our homeland from attacks, I, with support from many of my Senate colleagues, have urged President Obama to re-focus our counter-terrorism strategy and our national security resources on this region and implement a comprehensive new strategy to keep America safe. He has already signaled his commitment to do so.
The Road Ahead in Iraq — Having been to Iraq twice, I still cannot say with any certainty that we are winning the war in Iraq, but I do believe we have created a window of opportunity for the Iraqis to move forward with the difficult yet necessary political decisions required of them to salvage their country.
The United States must continue to put pressure on Iraqi political leaders to take positive toward political reconciliation. Above all, as we begin to draw down our troops along the lines of the plan outlined by President Obama, we must ensure that two main objectives have been accomplished: that Iraq will not be a threat to America; and that the Iraqi people will be better off after we leave than they were under Saddam Hussein's reign.
Protecting America at Home — Seven years after 9/11, Osama bin Laden remains at large and determined to strike again in America. Protecting our citizens will require more than just beefing up security at America's airports.
Delaware might be small geographically, but it is home to significant critical infrastructure such as chemical facilities, oil refineries, and one of the most important ports in the country. The consequences of an attack on any of these sites would be disastrous. I will continue to work with my colleagues to ensure that even states like Delaware get an appropriate share of federal first responder aid.
The bombings in Madrid, London, Islamabad and Mumbai and other cities around the world in recent years are stark warnings that we need to do far more to enhance the security of our rail and transit systems. While Amtrak, freight railroads and local transit agencies are doing what they can to increase safety measures, the federal government must do more to safeguard our nation's transportation system against terrorist attacks.
Finally, a terrorist attack with weapons of mass destruction remains the "nightmare scenario" that ought to keep everyone in charge of our security up at night. Although our ports remain the most likely route through which dangerous weapons might be smuggled into the country, only a fraction of the cargo that enters our ports every day is inspected. Even the screening of port workers for terrorist ties is behind schedule. We must get more serious about port security.
Defending American Values — American leaders from both political parties recognized during the Cold War that Soviet communism could not be defeated through military confrontation alone. We recognized that we had to win the battle of ideas. We had to strive to make our nation a better example of the ideals we espoused, a "more perfect union" and "a city upon a hill," in order to demonstrate that the cause we were fighting for was not just one of narrow American interests, but one of broad human values.
In our global struggle against terrorism, we have too often lost sight of the importance of ideas and idealism. If we compromise the values that have historically made us unique, a beacon of hope, an inspiring country to the world, the terrorists will have won.
America is at its best - and its safest - when we are not only feared by a few enemies, but respected far and wide by many friends. If we remain true to ourselves, and to the legacy of leaders before us from both political parties, we will have both the friendship and the safety we deserve.