2008 Woodie Awards
Gen. Wesley Clark delivers speech on U.S. security
Online exclusive
Derrick Neuner
Issue date: 4/11/08 Section: News
Listen up, students: Now is the time to take a stand against the problems that America faces. That was the message that General Wesley Clark brought to Saint Louis University on the night of Tuesday, April 8, as part of his speech, "U.S. Security in the New Millennium." The retired four-star general spoke to about 400 in the St. Louis Room of the Busch Student Center.
Clark, former supreme allied commander of NATO in Europe and an MSNBC analyst, was welcomed by the Great Issues Committee, the SLU chapter of College Democrats and the Center for International Studies.
"This is a call for a generation to take change," Clark said.
He said that this decade is "a difficult time for the United States" and that the generation of 20-somethings will be the generation to decide the direction of the country over the course of the next 50 years.
He cited the current Middle East conflicts and the waning economy as priorities for the next president and Congress.
Clark has been an opponent of the Iraqi invasion, and he elaborated on how the United States has fallen into the "greatest strategic blunder" in United States military history. Clark said that General David Petraeus, who is testifying to Congress about the war this week, is in a tough spot, but called him "brilliant and honest."
"[The military doesn't] know when to get out," Clark said. "Petraeus' job is success. That's his mission. But progress is fragile."
Clark credits the Iraq War to the "shock" of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. "Americans didn't know what to do," he said. "The attack became the rational for cleaning up the Middle East. We had no strategy."
Clark described his plan to vacate the Middle East peacefully and productively, saying, "It's time to go." The plan involves diplomatic, political and economic initiatives in order to force results.
"The world has gone on," Clark said. "This is America's problem now."
Clark admitted that there will be "nothing more difficult" than for the United States to disengage from Iraq. "We can't do this alone," he said.
Clark, former supreme allied commander of NATO in Europe and an MSNBC analyst, was welcomed by the Great Issues Committee, the SLU chapter of College Democrats and the Center for International Studies.
"This is a call for a generation to take change," Clark said.
He said that this decade is "a difficult time for the United States" and that the generation of 20-somethings will be the generation to decide the direction of the country over the course of the next 50 years.
He cited the current Middle East conflicts and the waning economy as priorities for the next president and Congress.
Clark has been an opponent of the Iraqi invasion, and he elaborated on how the United States has fallen into the "greatest strategic blunder" in United States military history. Clark said that General David Petraeus, who is testifying to Congress about the war this week, is in a tough spot, but called him "brilliant and honest."
"[The military doesn't] know when to get out," Clark said. "Petraeus' job is success. That's his mission. But progress is fragile."
Clark credits the Iraq War to the "shock" of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. "Americans didn't know what to do," he said. "The attack became the rational for cleaning up the Middle East. We had no strategy."
Clark described his plan to vacate the Middle East peacefully and productively, saying, "It's time to go." The plan involves diplomatic, political and economic initiatives in order to force results.
"The world has gone on," Clark said. "This is America's problem now."
Clark admitted that there will be "nothing more difficult" than for the United States to disengage from Iraq. "We can't do this alone," he said.
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