President Barack Obama delivered a highly-anticipated speech on his administration's evolving counterterrorism policies on Thursday, suggesting that the U.S. needs to move away from a "boundless global war on terror."
More than a decade after the 9/11 attacks, Obama argued that the terrorist threat has shifted and evolved and said now is the time to ask hard questions about the nature of today's threats and how the nation should confront them.
"From our use of drones to the detention of terrorist suspects, the decisions we are making will define the type of nation - and world - that we leave to our children," Obama said in a speech at the National Defense University.
"So America is at a crossroads," he added. "We must define the nature and scope of this struggle, or else it will define us, mindful of James Madison's warning that 'No nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare.'"
Obama said no president can promise the total defeat of terror but noted that the core of al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan is on a path to defeat.
"Lethal yet less capable al Qaeda affiliates. Threats to diplomatic facilities and businesses abroad. Homegrown extremists. This is the future of terrorism," Obama said. "We must take these threats seriously, and do all that we can to confront them."
He added, "But as we shape our response, we have to recognize that the scale of this threat closely resembles the types of attacks we faced before 9/11."
On the controversial issue of drones, the president claimed the use of the remotely piloted aircraft is heavily constrained, noting that the preference is always to detain, interrogate, and prosecute individual terrorists.
Obama said, "America does not take strikes to punish individuals - we act against terrorists who pose a continuing and imminent threat to the American people, and when there are no other governments capable of effectively addressing the threat."
"And before any strike is taken, there must be near-certainty that no civilians will be killed or injured - the highest standard we can set," he added.
Obama also stressed his belief that it would not be constitutional for the government to target and kill any U.S. citizen without due process. He also said a president should not deploy armed drones over U.S. soil.
While the president acknowledged that the government targeted Anwar Awlaki, an American citizen killed in a drone strike in Yemen, he suggested the attack was justified because Awlaki posed a continuing and imminent threat to the American people.
"When a U.S. citizen goes abroad to wage war against America - and is actively plotting to kill U.S. citizens; and when neither the United States, nor our partners are in a position to capture him before he carries out a plot - his citizenship should no more serve as a shield than a sniper shooting down on an innocent crowd should be protected from a swat team," Obama said.
Obama said that he has asked his administration to review proposals to provide greater oversight of lethal actions outside of warzones but noted that the options pose difficulties in practice.
"Despite these challenges, I look forward to actively engaging Congress to explore these - and other - options for increased oversight," he said.
Obama also called for a continuation of foreign aid to create reservoirs of goodwill that marginalize extremists and asked Congress to fully fund efforts to bolster security at U.S. embassies following the deadly attacks in Benghazi, Libya.
Additionally, the president touched on the recent scandal over the secret subpoena of Associated Press phone records, noting that the government needs to work hard to strike the appropriate balance between the need for security and preserving freedoms.
"Journalists should not be at legal risk for doing their jobs," Obama said. "Our focus must be on those who break the law. That is why I have called on Congress to pass a media shield law to guard against government over-reach."
Obama also renewed his call for the closure of the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, arguing that the facility has become a symbol around the world for an America that flouts the rule of law.
"Given my Administration's relentless pursuit of al Qaeda's leadership, there is no justification beyond politics for Congress to prevent us from closing a facility that should never have been opened," Obama said.
He added, "Look at the current situation, where we are force-feeding detainees who are holding a hunger strike. Is that who we are? Is that something that our Founders foresaw? Is that the America we want to leave to our children? Our sense of justice is stronger than that."
Obama also said he intends engage Congress and the American people regarding efforts to refine and ultimately repeal the existing Authorization to Use Military Force.
"The AUMF is now nearly twelve years old. The Afghan War is coming to an end. Core al Qaeda is a shell of its former self," Obama said.
He added, "Our systematic effort to dismantle terrorist organizations must continue. But this war, like all wars, must end. That's what history advises. That's what our democracy demands."
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