[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 43, Number 27 (Monday, July 9, 2007)]
[Pages 895-896]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
The President's Radio Address

June 30, 2007

    Good morning. Next week, Americans will gather with friends and 
family to celebrate the Fourth of July. I look forward to spending this 
Independence Day in Martinsburg, West Virginia, with the men and women 
of the West Virginia Air National Guard.
    On the Fourth of July, we celebrate the courage and convictions of 
America's founders. We remember the spirit of liberty that led men from 
13 different colonies to gather in Philadelphia and pen the Declaration 
of Independence. In that revolutionary document, they proclaimed our 
independence based on the belief that freedom was God's gift to all 
mankind.
    To defend that freedom, the 56 signers of the Declaration pledged 
their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. Their sacrifices 
built a new nation and created a future of freedom for millions yet to 
be born.
    Today, a new generation of Americans has stepped forward and 
volunteered to defend the ideals of our Nation's founding. Around the 
world, our brave men and women in uniform are facing danger to protect 
their fellow citizens from harm. In Afghanistan, our military and NATO 
forces are hunting down the Taliban and Al Qaida and helping the Afghan 
people defend their young democracy. And in Iraq, American and Iraqi 
forces are standing with the nearly 12 million Iraqis who voted for a 
future of peace and opposing ruthless enemies who want to bring down 
Iraq's democracy and turn that nation into a terrorist safe haven.
    This week, I traveled to the Naval War College in Rhode Island to 
give an update on the strategy we're pursuing in Iraq. This strategy is 
being led by a new commander, General David Petraeus, and a new 
Ambassador, Ryan Crocker. It recognizes that our top priority must be to 
help the Iraqi Government and its security forces protect their 
population, especially in Baghdad. And its goal is to help the Iraqis 
make progress toward reconciliation and build a free nation that 
respects the rights of its people, upholds the rule of law, and is an 
ally in the war on terror.
    So America has sent reinforcements to help the Iraqis secure their 
population, go after the terrorists, insurgents, and militias

[[Page 896]]

that are inciting sectarian violence, and get the capital under control. 
The last of these reinforcements arrived in Iraq earlier this month, and 
the full surge has begun. One of our top commanders in Iraq, General Ray 
Odierno, put it this way: ``We are beyond a surge of forces. We're now 
into a surge of operations.''
    Recently, we launched Operation Phantom Thunder, which has taken the 
fight to the enemy in Baghdad as well as the surrounding regions. We're 
still at the beginning of this offensive, but we're seeing some hopeful 
signs. We're engaging the enemy and killing or capturing hundreds. Just 
this week, our commanders reported the killing of two senior Al Qaida 
leaders north of Baghdad. Within Baghdad, our military reports that 
despite an upward trend in May, sectarian murders in the capital are 
significantly down from what they were in January. We're also finding 
arms caches at more than three times the rate of a year ago. The enemy 
continues to carry out sensational attacks, but the number of car 
bombings and suicide attacks has been down in May and June. And because 
of our new strategy, U.S. and Iraqi forces are living among the people 
they secure, with the result that many Iraqis are now coming forward 
with information on where the terrorists are hiding.
    The fight in Iraq has been tough, and it will remain difficult. 
We've lost good men and women in this fight. One of those lost was a 
marine lance corporal named Luke Yepsen. In the spring of 2005, Luke 
withdrew from his classes at Texas A&M to join the United States 
Marines. And in October 2006, he deployed to Iraq, where he manned a 50-
caliber machine gun on a Humvee. Six months ago, Luke was killed by a 
sniper while on patrol in Anbar Province. Luke's father describes his 
son's sacrifice this way: ``Luke died bringing freedom to an oppressed 
people. My urgent request is, finish the mission. Bring freedom to the 
Iraqi people.''
    On this Fourth of July, we remember Luke Yepsen and all the men and 
women in uniform who have given their lives in this struggle. They've 
helped bring freedom to the Iraqi people. They've helped make Americans 
more secure. We will not forget their sacrifice. We remember their loved 
ones in our prayers. And we give thanks for all those from every 
generation who have defended our Nation and our freedoms.
    Laura and I wish you a safe and happy Fourth of July. Thank you for 
listening.

Note: The address was recorded at 7:50 a.m. on June 29 in Kennebunkport, 
ME, for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on June 30. The transcript was made 
available by the Office of the Press Secretary on June 29 but was 
embargoed for release until the broadcast. The Office of the Press 
Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of this address.