US Presidency
2008

By defeating Al Qaida in Iraq, we will show the world that Al Qaida is the weak horse. We will show that men and women who love liberty can defeat the terrorists. And we will show that the future of the Middle East does not belong to terror. The future of the Middle East belongs to freedom. The challenge in this period ahead is to consolidate the gains we have made and seal the extremists ' defeat. We have learned through hard experience what happens when we pull our forces back too fast; the terrorists and extremists step in, they fill vacuums, establish safe havens, and use them to spread chaos and carnage. General Petraeus has warned that too fast a drawdown could result in such an unraveling with Al Qaida and insurgents and militia extremists regaining lost ground and increasing violence. Men and women of the Armed Forces: Having come so far and achieved so much, we're not going to let this to happen. Next month, General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker will come to Washington to testify before Congress.