A strong military is essential to reclaiming control of core U.S. national security interests. Today, the U.S. urgently needs to rebuild and transform its military to deal with present and future threats and challenges. A transformed military would enable the U.S. to return to a strategy of engagement in the world, one that secures our global interests through leadership and diplomacy.
The Center for American Progress Action Fund hosts Congressman Joe Sestak (D-PA), who will speak about Iraq and America’s engagement in the world. We must bring about a responsible end to the war in Iraq. How we end it is even more important for our troops’ safety, our own security, and that of the greater Middle East. We need a strategic approach that defines the “end” of the commitment which President Bush once said would not be open-ended and also secures U.S. interests in the region for the foreseeable future. The Democratic majority in Congress must define why and how such an approach is in our best interests. A stable situation in Iraq can be achieved only by a setting a date certain for withdrawal. When the consequences to our nation are as great as they are in the Middle East, Congress has a responsibility to define our return to leadership, diplomacy, and global engagement that is so desperately needed.
Featured Speaker: Congressman Joe Sestak (D-PA)
Introduction by: Lawrence J. Korb, Senior Fellow, Center for American Progress Action Fund
Tuesday, August 07, 2007 Program: 9:00am to 10:00am Admission is free.
A light breakfast will be served beginning at 8:30 a.m.
Center for American Progress Action Fund 1333 H St. NW, 10th Floor Washington, DC 20005 Map & Directions
Nearest Metro: Blue/Orange Line to McPherson Square or Red Line to Metro Center
RSVP for this Event
For more information, please call 202-741-6246.
Biographies
Joe Sestak is serving his first-term as the representative from Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District, which includes most of Delaware County and parts of Chester and Montgomery Counties. Born and raised in Delaware County, Sestak spent 31 years serving in the U.S. Navy, where he rose to the rank of three-star Admiral.
Sestak brings to Congress the same dedication and commitment with which he served this country in the Navy. In Congress, he is working to strengthen our country’s national security–national security that begins at home with the health, education, and economic promise of our people, as well as with our defense security. Joe’s primary focus is on fixing problems and moving our country forward, not on governing from the left or the right.
During his distinguished career in the Navy, Joe led a series of operational commands, culminating in the command of the George Washington aircraft carrier battle group, which consisted of 30 U.S. and allied ships, 15,000 sailors, and close to 100 aircraft. Under Joe’s watch, the George Washington battle group conducted combat operations in Afghanistan and precursor operations to the war in Iraq.
Joe also served in President Clinton’s White House as the Director for Defense Policy on the National Security Council. After 9/11, he was selected to serve as the first Director of “Deep Blue,” the Navy’s anti-terrorism unit where he worked to establish new strategies for the Navy to fight the Global War on Terror.
After graduating from Cardinal O’Hara High School, Joe followed in the footsteps of his father, a Navy captain who served in World War II, and attended the U.S. Naval Academy, where he graduated second in his class. Joe also holds a M.P.A. and a Ph.D. in Political Economy and Government from Harvard University.
Joe has one brother and six sisters. He and his wife, Susan, have a daughter, Alexandra.
Lawrence J. Korb is a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress Action Fund and a Senior Adviser to the Center for Defense Information. Prior to joining the Action Fund, he was a Senior Fellow and Director of National Security Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. From July 1998 to October 2002, he was Council Vice President, Director of Studies, and holder of the Maurice Greenberg Chair. Prior to joining the Council, Mr. Korb served as Director of the Center for Public Policy Education and Senior Fellow in the Foreign Policy Studies Program at the Brookings Institution, Dean of the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh, and Vice President of Corporate Operations at the Raytheon Company.
Dr. Korb served as Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower, Reserve Affairs, Installations, and Logistics) from 1981 through 1985. In that position, he administered about 70 percent of the Defense budget. For his service in that position, he was awarded the Department of Defense’s medal for Distinguished Public Service. Dr. Korb served on active duty for four years as Naval Flight Officer and retired from the Naval Reserve with the rank of Captain.
Dr. Korb’s 20 books and more than 100 articles on national security issues include The Joint Chiefs of Staff: The First Twenty-five Years, The Fall and Rise of the Pentagon, American National Security: Policy and Process, Future Visions for U.S. Defense Policy, Reshaping America’s Military, and A New National Security Strategy in an Age of Terrorists, Tyrants, and Weapons of Mass Destruction. His articles have appeared in such journals as Foreign Affairs, Public Administration Review, New York Times Sunday Magazine, Naval Institute Proceedings, and International Security. Over the past decade, Dr. Korb has made over 1,000 appearances as a commentator on such shows as The Today Show, The Early Show, Good Morning America, Face the Nation, This Week with David Brinkley, MacNeil-Lehrer News Hour, News Hour with Jim Lehrer, Nightline, 60 Minutes, Larry King Live, The O’Reilly Factor, and Crossfire. His more than 100 op-ed pieces have appeared in such major newspapers as the Washington Post, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Times, Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, Baltimore Sun, Philadelphia Inquirer, and Christian Science Monitor.