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I don't engage in hypotheticals.

Leon Panetta

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Leon Panetta
Age: 86
Born: 1938
Born: June 28
Former Director Of The Central Intelligence Agency
Lawyer
Political Scientist
Politician
Monterey
California
Leon Edward Panetta
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More quotes by Leon Panetta

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I think what both Republicans and Democrats need to do and the leaders on both sides is to recognize that if sequester takes place, it would be disastrous for our national defense and very frankly for a lot of very important domestic programs. They have a responsibility to come together, find the money necessary to de-trigger sequester.
Leon Panetta
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These days, it takes only seconds - seconds - for a picture, a photo, to suddenly become an international headline.
Leon Panetta
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The reason we've always had a civilian in that job [Secretary of Defence] is because we really believe that it is policymakers who ought to control the military and not have the military control the military.
Leon Panetta
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Al Qaeda still remains a threat.
Leon Panetta
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The United States has to be a leader in the world, because the problem is: If we are not leading, nobody else will.
Leon Panetta
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Frankly, my fundamental beliefs have not changed.
Leon Panetta
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We either believe in the dignity of the individual, the rule of law, and the prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment, or we don't. There is no middle ground.
Leon Panetta
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China is a major power in the Pacific and I think we are dealing with some common threats in that region: the whole issue of Korea and the stability of Korea, the whole issue of nuclear proliferation, the whole issue of providing free access to our ships that are operating in that area.
Leon Panetta
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The one thing that I remember from all of my intelligence briefings and my dealings with the Russians is that when you deal with the Russians, you have to deal with them from strength, not from weakness.
Leon Panetta
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The consequence could be that we would have an escalation that would take place that would not only involve many lives, but I think it could consume the Middle East in a confrontation and a conflict that we would regret.
Leon Panetta
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I know that young people sometimes, caught up in the moment, make some very foolish decisions.
Leon Panetta
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There's no question that the main location of al Qaeda is in tribal areas of Pakistan.
Leon Panetta
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Well, the United States is a Pacific power. And we have always had a presence in the Pacific.
Leon Panetta
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An aggressor nation or extremist group could gain control of critical switches and derail passenger trains, or trains loaded with lethal chemicals.
Leon Panetta
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I'm not big on commissions.
Leon Panetta
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Clearly, Russia has lied to the world about what's going on in Ukraine. They have clearly violated the cease-fire agreements.
Leon Panetta
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You don't deploy forces into harm's way without knowing what's going on.
Leon Panetta
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Iran's continued drive to develop nuclear capabilities, including troubling enrichment activities and past work on weaponization documented by the IAEA, and its continued support to groups like Hezbollah, Hamas and other terrorist organizations make clear that the regime in Tehran is a very grave threat to all of us.
Leon Panetta
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The terrorism from 9/11 has metastasized. It's metastasized in Iraq and Syria, in Nigeria, in Somalia, in Yemen and in other places in North Africa. We need a very comprehensive strategy to deal with that threat.
Leon Panetta
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We are a nation at war. This is also a time for hard choices. It's about ensuring that we are able to prevail in the conflicts in which we are now engaged. But it's also about being able to be strong and disciplined in applying our nation's limited resources to defending America.
Leon Panetta