Obama, Graham praise bipartisanship

And I asked Senator Graham to come along with me, because this is -- these are all bipartisan issues. This is not a partisan question as it relates to any one of these three countries that we visited. And I really appreciate the fact he came along. And I think you'll find we're pretty much on the same page.

This is not the moment, because we've not given the full-detail report to the president, on all our findings, but so I'm not going to discuss any detail of the trip at this point, except to say three things.

One, and it's going to sound like it's the normal thing you have to say. But the truth of the matter is this is, I think, my 10th and Senator Graham's 12th or 13th trip into Iraq and my 15th trip into the region.

It is amazing. It is amazing, the confidence of our military commanders and the sacrifice our military is making in Afghanistan and Pakistan. It is truly amazing.

The second point I'd like to make is, we went to listen. We went to listen, not to convey policy. As the president-elect has stated, we have one president at a time. And so I made it very clear in speaking with -- I think we literally met with every leader in each of the three countries; military as well as civilian.

I made it absolutely clear that I was not there to make policies; I was there to listen and occasionally express concern about some of their actions or lack of actions.

The third point I'd like to make is, there is about to become a shift, which you've all known has been talked about. We mentioned it in the campaign. And that is that there needs to be more resources to attend to the situation in Afghanistan, which has deteriorated over the last six years. It has not gotten better.

And so there's going to be a significant shift.

The president of the United States, President Bush, has ordered 35,000 troops into the region. We spent a great deal of time with the commanders in place discussing how they'd be deployed, what the objective was, what the purposes were. But the truth is that things are going to get tougher in Afghanistan before they get better.

And so we spent considerable time talking to the Pakistani leadership, the military leadership, their intelligence leadership, their ISI, and their political leadership. And Pakistan's position on Afghanistan is going to affect our ability to succeed in Afghanistan.

So there's a good deal that the president is going to have on his plate when he is sworn in, when we are sworn in. But we are going to be providing a much more detailed report to the president and his national security team, in conjunction with -- in conjunction with Senator Lindsey Graham, who is -- is adding his own nuanced positions to some of the things we've talked about. But it was -- the concluding point I'll make is -- and I think, before I turn it over to Senator Graham -- we both conveyed a message -- a generic message, and we both concluded that unless we accomplished what I'm about to say, it's going to be difficult in all three countries. There's a need to build institutions, political institutions that are sustainable, in each of the three countries. Personalities, focusing on personalities, is not the key to success in any one of the three countries.

And we conveyed that notion to each of the countries in question, and they all have slightly different -- actually, significant -- different problems. But the success in each of the countries affects the possibility of success in the other countries.

And so it was a very worthwhile trip. And again, we conclude, Mr. President, by saying you're about to become the commander in chief of the finest group of military personnel I think this country has ever, ever assembled, the finest in the world. And I know that sounds like hyperbole, but you would be stunned at the capacity and the understanding and the wisdom of the military leadership you have in place and you're about to inherit.

I'd like to turn it over to Senator Graham.

SEN. GRAHAM: Well, number one, I think this is a good way to get started. The campaign is over; I am disappointed in the outcome, but like every American I'm excited about what awaits our country in the future.

This time next week we will have a new president. We'll have made history in our own country. And I cannot tell you the impression it left upon everybody we met that -- the fact the two of us came. And that's why I wanted to come.

They followed the election. They know how contentious it was. And quite frankly, a lot of the leaders of these countries were surprised that there would be a bipartisan delegation this soon, and that I would be in it, given my relationship to Senator McCain. But I talked with Senator McCain.

The reason I wanted to go is because our young men in harm's way need us to do better here at home. The campaign's over, but the war is not. When it comes to Afghanistan, I am completely supportive of the president-elect's decision to send 35,000 troops into Afghanistan. They're needed.

It is a fair criticism to say, Mr. President, that we have taken our eye off the ball in Afghanistan and we need to reengage. And that reengagement is going to come at a heavy price. I would like every American to know that not only are the troops needed; unfortunately, casualties are likely to increase. But we have a game plan in Afghanistan that I think justifies the expenditures of blood and treasure that's about to come.

As we all know, this is the place where we were attacked -- the planning came from on 9/11. This new president and vice-president are as committed to any administration that I know of to make sure that we get Afghanistan right. And to get Afghanistan right, you need to leave where there's stability. We've got to recapture lost ground, and we do need to build up the institutions.

As to Pakistan: historic change in Pakistan. We have a civilian government, duly elected by its people, taking over from what had been, in the past, a dictatorship.

I cannot tell you how much enthusiasm we saw in Pakistan for this new president. There's a moment in time here for this country to reengage the international community, to make sure that we have international support to stabilize Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq. And this president's popularity, and the respect that he has earned throughout the world, gives America a chance to reengage not only in the region, but in a way that will, in the long term, make this job easier, take some pressure off our troops.

And that's a compliment to you and the way you have campaigned.

The Biden-Lugar that's pending before the Senate that would create economic aid in a variety of fashions to Pakistan over a 10- year period is a must.

And I know people at home in South Carolina have lost their jobs. We're about to incur $1 trillion of debt here soon to stabilize a weakened economy never seen since the Great Depression. But to those Americans, taxpayers, the money is needed in Pakistan because we cannot win in Afghanistan without Pakistan. So I support expenditures of public treasure into Pakistan under the Biden-Lugar legislation. I think it will go a long ways toward helping us correct some of the problems we have in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

As to Iraq, one of the central issues in this campaign was what to do about Iraq. I am pleased, and have a high degree of confidence, that this new administration is going to implement a game plan in Iraq to secure the gains that have been achieved. The sacrifices that were made because of our initial mistakes were inside the 20.

And I can say this to the new president -- next week, he will be president -- that the challenges facing us in Iraq cannot be solved by 100,000 troops. We have an opportunity now in a responsible manner to bring our troops home, but we have huge challenges on the political front. And the vice president and myself have briefed the president about a new strategy to create a unified vision within Iraq that will allow us to come home and leave behind a stable, reliable partner called Iraq that will shift the balance of power in the Mideast in a positive way.

So it's going to take more money. It's going to take more troop engagement. But having been one of the chief opponents of these two gentlemen, I am very pleased with the attitude and the policies they're fashioning to make sure that America gets it right in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq.

And thank you for allowing me to go.

PRESIDENT-ELECT BARACK OBAMA: Well, let me be brief. First of all, thank you, Joe, for the outstanding trip that you took, and thank you for having the wisdom and foresight to invite Lindsey Graham, because there -- these two represent in their respective parties as smart and as dedicated a pair of public officials as we have.

And Joe I drafted as vice president, but Lindsey Graham I'm drafting as one of our counselors in dealing with foreign policy, because the fact is, is our tradition has always been that our differences end at the water's edge, and that at a certain point it is imperative for us to have a clear, coherent strategy at home so that the young men and women who are day to day engaged in extraordinary -- extraordinarily difficult, you know, deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq, that they are well served.

And so the trip that both of you took and the recommendations that you're going to be delivering to me are going to be of enormous help in making sure that we do what is my number-one task as president-elect and as president, and that is to keep the American people safe and to make sure that when we deploy our military, that we do so with a clear sense of mission and with strong support from the American people. And I think the trip that you've taken helps us move in that direction.

So, with that, I'm going to take --

VICE PRESIDENT-ELECT BIDEN: One comment I want to make.

PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA: Yeah.

VICE PRESIDENT-ELECT BIDEN: Every place we went, we visited our troops.

PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA: Right.

VICE PRESIDENT-ELECT BIDEN: Every place, the degree of enthusiasm and well wishes for you, personally, were -- I've been there a lot -- were spontaneous. So they're wishing you well, man, and they're looking forward to you being commander in chief. And it really was -- it was heartening to see.

PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA: Well, that's wonderful.

Go ahead.

Q Sir, just a quick question going back to Capitol Hill. Are you concerned that Timothy Geithner's taxes mishap will affect his chances of confirmation? And if he is confirmed, will it affect the Treasury?

PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA: No. You know, Tim Geithner, when I nominate him, was rightly lauded by people from both sides of the aisle, from the market, from labor as somebody who is uniquely qualified to deal with, as -- what Lindsey described properly as the biggest crisis that we've had since the Great Depression.

You know, look, is this an embarrassment for him? Yes. He said so himself. But it was an innocent mistake. It is a mistake that is commonly made for people who are working internationally or for international institutions. It has been corrected. He paid the penalties.

And as I've said before, if my criteria, whether it was for Cabinet secretary or vice presidents or presidents or reporters, was that you'd never made a mistake in your life, none of us would be employed.

So my expectation is that Tim Geithner will be confirmed, and my expectation is, is that he is going to do an outstanding job on part of -- on the part of the -- on behalf of the American people.

STAFF: Last question.

PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA: Lindsey, do you want to add on that?

SEN. GRAHAM: Just speaking as a single -- as one Republican, I couldn't agree more. These are huge times. It's not -- now's not the time to think in small political terms. He has a great resume. He's been involved with Secretary Paulson. He knows the past. I think he can help fashion the future.

So the problems that we talked about, I think, have been dealt with responsibly, and I don't see any desire by the Republican Party to play "gotcha" on something like this. We need a new secretary of Treasury that understands where this country's at financially and has a game plan to move forward. I think he's the right guy.

Q Mr. President-elect --

PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA: I'm sorry, I think we had interrupted her. Go ahead.

Q Thank you, Mr. President-elect.

Mr. Vice President-elect, what was the update on Osama bin Laden when you took your trip -- (off mike)? And also, Mr. President-elect, a new tape surfaced from Osama bin Laden. What are your thoughts about this tape? And what are your -- (off mike) -- moving into your new administration that -- (off mike)?

PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA: Yeah, I'm going to take the question first, and then, Joe, if you want to add something. But I've been assiduous about this, I've been consistent about this, that we have one president at a time when it comes to foreign policy. And so I don't want to get too far afield in terms of what our policies are going to be.

I can refer back to what I said during the campaign and the fact that I haven't changed my mind. Bin Laden and al Qaeda are our number-one threat when it comes to American security. And this administration, working in concert with Congress, with Republicans and with the American people, we're going to do everything in our power to make sure that they cannot create safe havens, they can attack America. That's the bottom line.

Now, as Joe indicated, we have to take a regional approach. We're not going to solve the problem just in Afghanistan; we're going to have to address issues in Pakistan, as well. On the 20th, 21st, 22nd and moving forward, I'll have more to say about the particulars about how we intend to proceed.

VICE PRESIDENT-ELECT: The only thing I'd say, Mr. President (sic), is I have been encouraged by the trip, the assets we have in place. The progress and cooperation that is incrementally occurring gives me -- I come away from the trip more encouraged rather than less encouraged.

So I am -- I think you will have the assets, Mr. President, to increase the prospects of success.

PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA: Well, thank you. (Cross talk.) Okay, guys.

STAFF: Thank you very, very much. I wanted to end this now.

PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA: Thank you so much.

Q Thank you.