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You see, essentially, you cannot win the war on terror by military force. It is first and foremost a battle of ideas. It is secondly a law enforcement effort and a cooperative effort among nations. And only as a last resort do you use military force. This president has distorted the capabilities of the United States Armed Forces. He's used our men and women in uniform improperly in Guantanamo and engaged in actions that I think are totally against the Uniform Code of Military Justice and against what we stand for as the American people.

Wesley Clark#27

PolicyWarSecurityJustice

About this quote

What does it mean?
The war on terror is primarily a battle of ideas and law enforcement, not military force, and the current president has misused the armed forces.
In plain terms
We cannot win the war on terror with just military force; it requires ideas and cooperation, and the president has misused the military.
What can you take from it?
Use military force only as a last resort and prioritize legal and ideological approaches to terrorism.

Where it applies

  • national security strategy
  • legal debates
  • military operations

Putting it to work

  • limit military use
  • focus on legal frameworks

Questions to consider

  • What is the right role for the military?
  • How do we balance force and law?

Another view

Over-reliance on law enforcement may fail against state-sponsored threats.

More from Wesley Clark

  1. As with science and technology, there could be a dark side of globalization, in which progress for some means poverty for others, as jobs and opportunities ebb…

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  2. The truth is, about the Middle East is, had there been no oil there, it would be like Africa. Nobody is threatening to intervene in Africa.

    Permalink to quote #28
  3. Working together, we can build a world in which the rule of law - not the rule of force - governs relations between states. A world in which leaders respect th…

    Permalink to quote #25

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