Secretary
of State Hillary Clinton commemorated the 10-year anniversary of the 9/11
attacks by saying that the United States still has a lot to do to fight global
extremism, but the country must not to repeat the mistakes of President George W. Bush's administration and
sacrifice American values in the process.
"The
United States has thrived as an open society, a principled nation, and a global
leader. We cannot afford to live in fear, sacrifice our values, or pull back
from the world," Clinton said in a Friday morning speech at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York.
"Over
the last decade our government also sometimes went off course and failed to
live up to our core values and principles," she said. "We have begun to set
this right, and to make progress on the other gaps as well. And as we move forward, we are determined not
to let the specter of terrorism darken the national character that has always been
America's greatest asset."
Clinton
pledged that the Obama administration would respect the rule of law when going
after terror suspects, including international law principles guiding the use
of force in self-defense, respect
for the sovereignty of other states, and the laws of armed conflict.
"When
we capture al Qaeda members, we detain them humanely and consistent with
international standards. And when we do strike, we seek to protect innocent
civilians from harm," she said. She also argued that some terrorists must be
tried in civilian courts, while the use of "reformed" military commissions is
also appropriate in some cases.
The
United States must use a "smart power" approach to counterterrorism that
combines military action with financial, diplomatic, development, and public
relations efforts, she said. She linked terrorism to the problems of poverty
and weak states around the world.
Clinton
also noted that as she was speaking in New York City, the federal government
was working diligently on a credible but unconfirmed
threat of a
possible car bomb attack in New York and/or Washington
"As
you know, we are meeting here in New York amid reports that al Qaeda is again
seeking to harm Americans. This should surprise no one. But it is a reminder of
the continuing stakes in our struggle against violent extremism," she said. "We
are taking this threat seriously, and federal, state and local authorities are
taking all necessary steps to address it."
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