After every major conflict - World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the fall of the Soviet Union - what happened was that we ultimately hollowed out the force, largely by doing deep across-the-board cuts.
I think soon after I became director of the CIA - President Obama pulled me into the Oval Office and said: 'Look, I just want you to know that your top priority is to go after Osama bin Laden.'
We either believe in the dignity of the individual, the rule of law, and the prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment, or we don't. There is no middle ground.
Rising sea levels, severe draughts, the melting of the polar caps, the more frequent and devastating natural disasters all raise demand for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
I mean, the Taliban, my view is that they have been weakened. We have not seen them able to conduct any kind of organized attack to regain any territory that they've lost. We've seen levels of violence going down.
The United States has to have the capability to deal with more than one enemy at one time and be able to confront them and win.
The American Dream has been defended, in every generation, by the brave men and women willing to fight and die for America. They are our greatest national treasure. They deserve a serious Commander-in-Chief.
Throughout the 40 years I've been in Washington, I've always worked hard, particularly with regards to the budget issues.
Go forward, knowing that you are greater than the challenges of your time.
Unfortunately these days, there is a hell of a lot that keeps me awake.
When the president went around the table to the country's national security leadership, Hillary was clear: We have to go get bin Laden. And our Special Operations Forces did just that.
Winning in Afghanistan is having a country that is stable enough to ensure that there is no safe haven for Al Qaida or for a militant Taliban that welcomes Al Qaida. That's really the measure of success for the United States.
During my time as CIA Director and Secretary of Defense, Hillary was a strong supporter of our efforts to protect our homeland, decimate al-Qaeda, and bring Osama bin Laden to justice.
I mean, the Taliban, my view is that they have been weakened.
There's no question that the main location of Al Qaida is in tribal areas of Pakistan.
The fundamental premise is that neither the United States or the international community is going to allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon.
Today, I think the attitude is that governing is not necessarily good politics, and the result is that it's much more partisan and much more divided.
I don't think there's any question that America is safer as a result of the bin Laden operation.
In this century, the 21st century, the U.S. recognizes our prosperity and our security depends even more on the Asia-Pacific region.
When you cut a half-a-trillion dollars from the defense budget, it affects almost every area in the defense budget.
