I have recently announced the beginning of a change in direction to stem the rise tide of violence in Iraq.
These measures are in active implementation and indications are that the direction is positive.
There is however a faction in the equation that stands in the way of peace.
It is Al Qaeda and their objective to terrorize populations into submission.
Perhaps, the most unfortunate consequence of our previous policy in Iraq was that the chaos of the war fed Al Qaeda's growth and appeal.
Our new direction will begin the process of extinguishing the fuel of violence and chaos that supplies Al Qaeda with the energy to grow.
In conjunction with our new direction I am redirecting our efforts to defeat Al Qaeda and terrorism.
We will now engage them in a psychological war and we will strike them with the sword of truth.
Our enemy is an organism comprised of individual cells.
To a certain extent their growth plays to our strategic advantage.
Their external growth results in a loss of internal cohesion making our enemy susceptible to higher orders of dispute, schism and infiltration.
Our new direction changes the environment that fuels Al Qaeda and terrorism by mitigating the fuel required to grow.
Soon the cells of Al Qaeda starved by the diminishing fuel of chaos will begin to feed on each other.
Their demise under these conditions is a forgone conclusion.
Second, we intend to kill the leaders of any and all the cells.
This will set the Al Qaeda movement into disarray and further fuel internal disputes, schisms and infiltration.
Al Qaeda offers its followers a vision of an Islamic utopia.
A utopia society governed by a fourteenth century view of reality, it is tribal, paternalistic and totally lacks respect for individual freedom.
At the same time the leadership of Al Qaeda employs western technology to carry out their horrible acts of terrorism.
Modern explosives, communication devices and transportation are all the weapons of terror.
Their fourteenth century view disintegrates in the stark reality of the world we live in today.
Their utopian vision is nonsensical, completely unworkable and ludicrous in the view of the majority of the Muslim community.
We can do much to teach about this fallacy and thereby undermine all of its power.
We can accomplish this simply by pressing the truth and withdrawing our support and participation from the equation.
It will be cheaper and more effective for us to redirect our assets towards breaking our dependency on the Middle East for oil then it would be to attempt to hold our position by force.
Accordingly, I am initiating today a Manhattan style project with the objective of inventing, innovating, engineering and designing our nation out of dependence on oil.
Our nation has prevailed in every challenge when the goals and objectives were clear and we will prevail in this regard more quickly then anyone imagines.
If Al Qaeda wants a fourteenth century utopia let them try to win it but without our treasure and technology.
They will be welcome to live as they wish but they can not do so by pressing violence on others.
Quite simply we will begin today to relentlessly withdrawing our material support from this part of the world.
We will spend our treasure here and trade our technology only to partners who will not use it against us.
This effort will almost certainly cause some discomfort, inconvenience and even sacrifice during a period of adjustment.
These are trifling when compared to the security and stability changing course now offers to our nation and future generations.
I call upon every American to stand up to this challenge and proudly accept this as a down payment for the freedom and prosperity of our children.
We will pass the legacy of this great nation on to the next generation and we will demonstrate to them what is required to sustain greatness.
Make no mistake we are still at war.
But we will wage it with different weapons.
Will withdraw from our enemy those things that make it stronger and in this effort there will be sacrifices.
We will strike our blows with the sword of truth and from the intellectual and moral high ground.
To pick up this sword we will be required to examine ourselves in harsh reality.
We will be required to change and grow.
This will be the most difficult sacrifice of all.
We have grown complacent and arrogant.
We must collectively discharge ourselves from these tendencies.
Each of us must become stronger and leaner in our relationship to the world.
This is the ultimate battle that must be fought by every man, woman and child in this country so that the great potential that is the United States of America can find its way again and lead the world with the bright and shining beacon that is liberty.
The last vestige of Al Qaeda will likely employ the most gruesome tactics and strategy it can imagine.
We will meet these with an iron clad defense and resolve to prevail.
Like the sparks of a dying fire we will employ a strategy that denies fuel to the fire, than scatters the embers and stomps them out one by one.
The leaders of Al Qaeda have declared that they will prevail in this battle because they love death more then we love life.
We will pursue a rigorous policy of providing them with a choice.
They can capitulate and live in peace or persist and we will insure that they find the opportunity to embrace the death they claim to love.
I think for the time being it serves our collective interests if I pursue a policy of frequent conferences with you to explain and respond to the most important questions facing our nation.
Let me assure you that my intention is to visit with you often.
However, I have much to do and so will not be taking further questions this morning.
Thank you all for your time, please have a productive day.