Transcripts For CSPAN Washington Journal 20110502

the east -- 4:00 p.m. eastern time. on this monday morning, may 1, 2011, we will spend the entire three hours getting your take on this news this morning. phone number is our divided regionally. -- phone numbers are divided regionally. even begin dialing in and tell. here is the front page of open quote the star-ledger." -- from page of "the star- ledger." "bin laden is dead." "the chief slain at a hideout," that is from "the houston chronicle." here is "the richmond times dispatch." according to some reports, it was the navy seal team six, as they are called. first we want to get your thoughts on this this morning. josie is a democrat in pennsylvania. what do you think? caller: i am very proud of those young americans who carried out that very difficult mission. very proud of the fact that this is a unifying moment in our history. i want to give a lot of credit to president obama. even though it is not a political time, i want to think he and his staff and the intelligence community for their perseverance. i think that this is something that will help to bring us together as a nation and i am thankful for that. host: midway, massachusetts, democratic caller. paul, you are on the air. what do you think about this news? caller: i am absolutely delighted that america has finally achieved justice for all of the people, from whatever nation they were from, who were killed in the attacks on the world trade center and in shanksville. i am very concerned, however, that people who have supported him will continue to attack americans and american interests abroad. i am nervous today. very nervous. host: you think this will stoke more of a fire? caller: it could cause people who have supported him to take action and less shout that americans and american interests. -- lash out at americans and american interests. host: john, good morning. caller: i am kind of nervous. i want to get this out and ask a question. now that we have osama bin laden, we found out that pakistan was practically hiding them. i think that they are still an enemy in this country trying to consolidate power all over the world. people living on $2 per day. we were just robbed by wall street and multinational oil companies. it seems to me that there is a consolidation of power being taken away from the american people. this has to do with oil and subsidies for companies and all of this. i see fox news always going after the president. i remember one time when bush's uncle was program president of fox news, run by rupert murdoch, who has interests in saudi arabia. we need to look at previous interest to see what is going on, people in the elite selling our secrets to the enemy. host: we are talking about osama bin laden being killed this morning. colm lines are divided regionally this morning. st. louis, you are on the air, go ahead. caller: it is odd for me to celebrate. i celebrate the accomplishment of our men and women in uniform in accomplishing this task that has been daunting for a decade now. i understand the importance of osama bin laden's death. but he was not the head of a snake. he was the symbol used to keep conspiring in recruiting people who still share that mind-set. who's still have that stoned in their heart -- who still have that stone in their heart regarding religious freedom. that is just one segment of people. i would like to point out that this is one segment of people who share that view. we have got people that are not muslims that share a similar, like-minded view, who may not be as violent. we have had religious extremists throughout our history as human beings. what we have to focus on is how we stop that and not just -- we have got that one bad guy. host: all right. a little bit more from the newspaper this morning. this is from "the guardian." int: let's go to mike germantown, maryland. caller: thank you for taking my call. in with 911troop.org. in july of 2001, osama bin laden was treated at the embassy in to buy. his handlers name was tim osmond. he was cif, and the former prime minister of pakistan knew him. host: what do you make of this news that he was killed? caller: this was all staged. he is emanuel told steen, from 1984. an excuse to create a police state. host: all right, those are your thoughts. columbia, maryland. your opinion? caller: good morning, number one. number two, i pray that sovereign god will reveal the truth. i would like to say two things quickly. history is said to be man's greatest teacher. lucky of delhi once said as a general rule -- machiavelli once said [unintelligible] it would have been better if the u.s. would have preserved his body to show the american people across the media that he was captured. to piggyback on the previous caller, i do not buy it myself, personally. i think that it is a tactic, if you will, to rally behind the liberty and freedom of mantra. during ancient times, cyrus rarely went to war. host: united states is conducting dna testing and using facial techniques to identify him -- that is the official report. results of the tests should be available in the next few days. as we told you, the strike force was on the ground for less than 40 minutes and the operation was watched by and real-time bi cia officials. when word came that the operation was a success, according to officials there was applause. florida, good morning. caller: even if this is true, we will not be leaving afghanistan this century. or even iraq. no weapons of mass destruction were found there. unfortunately we are still killing millions of civilians over there. which should be more of a concerned and we are concerned about. -- than we are concerned about. hopefully we will not be invading iran. are we doing anything in afghanistan besides killing civilians? thank you very much. host: here is another headline from "the associated press." host: we will go next to el paso, texas. good morning, david. caller: i do not know why you listen to all of these crazy people talking about osama bin laden working for the cia and all of these conspiracy theories. today is a good day for the u.s. the person that infiltrated and committed that crime on 9/11 is dead. that is what all of this war has been about. his dead -- he is dead and all of his followers can see that god was not on his side. he died just like a criminal should die. host: from "the associated press" this morning -- host: kathy, you are next. arkansas. caller: alaska, actually. host: sorry about that. caller: my first response was -- thank god, the big bad wolf is dead. i never thought that i was the kind of person that would celebrate someone's death, but there it is. i was very confused earlier, watching your broadcast, the dell was questioning the timing -- gal was questioning the timing of obama's response. i heard something later about being dead for a week. i know that it has been confirmed that it was just hours before we knew. i do not know about any of that. i know that it is not the end. i do not think that is too naive to believe that. i am celebrating. host: all right. this is from with the pds -- wikipedia on seal team 6. it says host: again, this is according to wikipedia on seal team 6. we will continue to take your phone calls this morning, getting your reaction to this news. joining us on the phone is senator joseph lieberman, independent from connecticut. first of all, what was your reaction when you heard the news? caller: tremendous gratitude. the conclusion that every american is safe for this -- safer this morning. a very emotional feeling about what this means to the families and friends of people that were killed on 9/11. we have come to know over the years since then. -- who will we have come to know over the years since then. -- who we have come to know over the years since then. very proud of the soldiers to carry out this mission as effectively as they did. host: what does this mean going forward for homeland security? caller: it means that our homeland security is better this morning, but the threat does not go away. osama bin laden was unique. he created this movement. he was a transcendent and inspirational figure. you cannot replace him. the uprisings in the arab world, which are totally non-al qaeda, it really represents a significant turn in the arab world and muslim world. as we have known here for a last couple of years in the u.s., al qaeda and other terrorist groups, including the ones run by that radical cleric, they are using the internet. people are self-capable of carrying out terrorist attacks against us. the war against islamic extremism is going to be a long war. but this is a tremendous victory for the forces of law and security in the united states of america. hopefully the momentum will continue to build. host: senator lieberman, what questions do you have? caller: obviously the question is when to be what was the role of pakistan? we have had complicated relationships with pakistan on this front. one official once said to me, generally, that there is probably note intelligence service in the world that gives us more assistance than the pakistani isi intelligence service. but we have very good reason to believe that they are cooperating, in some aspects, with terrorists who are killing american soldiers in afghanistan. last night president obama appeared to be thinking the pakistanis for their help. i think that we have to ask how this compound could have existed within a develop community in pakistan. we ran it down based on the extraordinary work our intelligence service did following curriers, one of them actually lead us to this compound. that is my big question going forward. how do we assess the pakistani involvement in this? host: does that mean that you are wondering whether or not the pakistanis, someone in their government, new that osama bin laden was that this compound? -- knew that osama bin laden was that this compound? caller: you wonder if someone in the government or the intelligence service did not know. we know that they are tied to the [unintelligible] network, who is in the fight against americans. some blood is on their hands. those would be the big questions to me. the most powerful emotion is tremendous excitement. america has shown again that we can do it. if you target us, as osama bin laden did, you can run but we've been eventually find you. the best justice for this evil man was the death that he received last night. host: pictures are emerging of the interior of this compound. senator lieberman, as the homeland security chairman, how did you find out? caller: i was called by an official in the counter- terrorism apparatus of our government at about 10 minutes until 10:00 to let me know that this announcement was coming probably at around 10:30. look, our committee and a lot of other people in congress have spent a lot of time building agencies and institutions that will cooperate with one another on intelligence work and data gathering work that all goes into finding someone like osama bin laden. or finding the courier, following him and leading to a some of the mob. -- leading to osama bin laden. navy seals team special operation forces in afghanistan lead teams like this against terrorist almost every night in afghanistan. these are americans that put their lives on a line every night to protect their security and freedom. we can never think them enough. host: can you tell us more about this navy seal team? we are not reading a lot in the newspaper this morning. who are they? how many? caller: i cannot say much more about it. i am sure that at an appropriate time the pentagon will release more details. but these are extraordinarily highly trained individuals. my guess is that this is a team that was experienced. that they were involved in other raids. we have taken out a number of members of top leadership in al qaeda over the years. the two that were most significant was osama bin laden and it was dark alley -- is artizarquiri. cup title -- alt ket qaeda as an institution is not done. the state department just announced overnight that warning levels are up this morning because you have to worry about some other individuals, maybe not associated directly with al qaeda, who will want to take revenge. we will be on a higher level of alert from world. -- all round the world. host: "the new york times" finishes their long piece this morning with it this paragraph. -- with at this paragraph. -- with the this -- with this paragraph. haute -- caller: he had hoped that he would be taken and not captured. we have to be on alert now. i cannot stress enough that the most significant and powerful movement in the world today is not al qaeda, it is the peaceful and democratic protests that have successfully occurred in egypt and tunisia and are struggling to occur in places like libya and syria. what al qaeda has proven is that a very small group of evil and in maine people can do great damage to others -- in humane people can do great damage to others. host: will there be a greater emphasis on bringing troops home from afghanistan? caller: i do not think so. what you have got their nell is most of the taliban, the fanatical islamist extremist group that was in control of afghanistan, giving bin laden and al qaeda safe haven in afghanistan, from which they planned an attack on 9/11. we are making real progress against the taliban and associated other islamist extremist groups. i think that bin laden's death will be a blow to morale. but it will lead and the fight. i think that that judgment about how many troops to bring home and when to bring them home over the years has got to be made based not on this event, but on what we actually see happening it on the ground in afghanistan. -- what we actually see happening on the ground in afghanistan. but we cannot be too early, otherwise we will be faced with what we faced on 9/11 again. host: who are you reaching out to today to get more information? caller: i will be reaching out to more people in the intelligence and homeland security division to get further briefing. i am very interested in how this was carried out. but we have got to focus, i know, as the rest of the department, security people, intelligence people a real- world, on what is next. we are constantly mother during the movement of islamist extremists. we are watching their conversations. we are watching their e-mail. if anything begins to look at another -- look like another threat, we will snuffed it out quickly. we have had a great victory, but we cannot relax, as the enemy will not relax either. host: thank you for your time this morning. let's return to your thoughts on a sum of bin laden being killed. gordon, you are next -- thoughts on osama bin laden being killed. gordon, your next. caller: i would respectfully disagree with mr. lieberman. i question his being the first guest this morning. anyway, at what cost that we incurred as a country -- we lost our ability -- we are now subjected to warrantless searches. all of our e-mails and communications over the internet are monitored. we now have a citizen of the united states being held by and a prison without habeas corpus. -- held in a prison without habeas corpus. is there any way we could have gotten to a trial for osama bin laden? was there a shoot-to-kill order on him? many of the questions brought up this morning by your other colors, such as the involvement of osama bin laden in the 9/11 connection, we will not get any answers to now. host: san francisco, eddie. caller: thank you very kindly. first of all, we should continue to pray for those families that lost their loved ones. you know, one of the things what we need to think about, we need to thank president obama, his staff, and the navy seals for carrying out this operation. president roosevelt once told us, while he was president of the united states, that we have nothing to fear but fear itself. we are dog loving people and we should not be living under -- we are god loving people and we should not be living our lives under fear. we should carry on as we normally do. business as usual. that is what we should be doing. host: michael hayden is now joining us on the phone, former cia director from 2006 through 2009. let me read you this paragraph. from "the washington post." host: can you speak to that a little bit more? caller: i can tell without getting more specific. by the way, thank you for having done. this is largely based on human intelligence. which is the best kind. it gets you into the enemy's thinking. but this is slow moving. you have to painstakingly built it up. it seems to me that when you get to the level of confidence the president must have had this past weekend, this kind of network had built up the kind of confidence that he needed to take this politically and operationally risky step, ordering this strike. host: can you talk to was more about the process of briefing the president? up you say that he had to think long and hard about this. why? what goes into this kind of decision? caller: sure. we used to talk about being ready for prime time. you do not want to go down to the president with every possible lead. you want to build it up yourself, first as a national security adviser. at which point you have got something far enough along where you are asking the president for further guidance to begin to take more difficult or riskier steps. letting them know what you know, what you do not know, and how confident you are. host: was a the president that gave this order? caller: i cannot conceive of this being done without the president's involvement. host: how many times during your tenure in during the hunt for osama bin laden has the u.s. and other countries being close to him? caller: not many times at all. we believe that the trail went very cold in late 2001, early 2002. after that and for the last several years there was a gap of more than a few years where a lot of our information about osama bin laden had the feel of [unintelligible] to it, if you know what i mean. host: what is your reaction to this news from the associated press that of caller: absolutely expected. -- associated press? caller: absolutely expected. al qaeda will be trying to do something, anything, a spasmodic response of violence. as important as this was, al qaeda was a network, not a hierarchy. they are not directly tied to al qaeda along the border, but they do have considerable capability. it is a great moment and a great victory, but the war continues. host: this is from the associated press this morning. host: general, what do you suspect is going to happen at the cia over the next few days? caller: they are just going to be going back to work. host: what questions do you have coming out of this news? caller: reflecting what your colleagues are reporting, it was clear that the pakistanis were not informed of this operation. i understand that. this is not the kind of thing that you want to risk by widening the circle to large, too quick. the question they are already asking, and i do not have the answer, how far was this compound from the capitol? what, if anything or anyone in the pakistani government, did they know before this raid took place? we are obviously trying to find that out. we will see. president obama was right last night. when he tried to keep was in on this being good news for pakistan and the united states -- cue us in on this being good news for pakistan and the united states. this is an important victory, but it does not negate our reasons for doing what we are doing in afghanistan at the current time. we still have an enemy in the field. al qaeda is still a dangerous enemy. as important as yesterday's kill was, but would not be quick to assume that what happened yesterday means any sharp change in direction of our trajectory in afghanistan. host: you lead the cia from 2006 through 2009, general. was this a part of the effort? caller: to great satisfaction, proud as any american would have been. know that the people in that room yesterday had the highest regard for them what i was there. i feel good because i know that they feel good. look, it has been a tough slog for the agency. it is a rare moment in deed when our successes are made public. this is one of those moments. host: seal team 6, what can you tell us about them? caller: not surprising, people are asking me if the cia could have done this on their own. seal team 6, not surprised, they took the overall intelligence from the agency and, despite what appears to be a problem with one of the helicopters, it was executed with precision. host: the washington post has this to say. host: what can you tell us about him? caller: this is partially good news, al qaeda has never had to deal with succession crisis. as dedicated as the members might be, they do not all get along with each other equally well. there was a split between the gulf and the egyptians. as you recall, this al qaeda is an amalgam of operations. if elsewhere. -- if zwahiri moves to the top of this network, in addition to the satisfaction of seeing play out, i am trying to project how things go for al qaeda. this is new for them. success is not guaranteed from their perspective. host: the role of the joint special operations command? caller: we cooperated with jsoc, in a way. there is a story that they are pushing against each other. the day after the al qaeda leader in iraq was killed, i got a personal, handwritten note from stanley mcchrystal, just a simple thank you. host: thank you for helping us to understand this news this morning. caller: thank you, goodbye. host: david, your thoughts on osama bin laden being killed? caller: first of all, this is the real mission accomplished. i want to thank the troops. i disagree with the caller who asked what the cost of this was. the cost of this was showing the action of not making tough decisions, which have happened over the last few years, made us look weak throughout the world. there is expert -- a strong message to islamic extremists that if you, and our land and kill us, we will hunt you to the end of the earth. that also goes to show that the pakistani intelligence service had some idea where this man was living. sitting right next to the military academy, someone had to know something. i think the president for making that tough decision of not bombing the compound, rather he decided to send in troops to capture the body. that way the critics to say that this is not true, they can be proved wrong. host: more on that from "the washington post." host: new york, you are on the air, len. caller: the first thing that i thought about was richard clarke when i heard this. the next thing that i thought about was bush on vacation. that i thought about "the new york times" getting their war. and that i thought about michael hayden getting his picture taken, thinking that when we saw his face -- no enemies, no medals. we have managed to transition our military industrial complex from the cold war into a new war so that we can never give it up. host: illinois, you are next. caller: the only question that i really have is why do they only have a body? i do cannot produce a body? that is ridiculous to say that. especially if it is out of respect for islamic people. that is just a joke. they probably do not appreciate his being murdered, ludlow being buried quickly enough. also, your last guest -- let alone being marred -- let alone being buried quickly enough. also, your last guest, saying their successes are not made public, why is it that there are no cameras on any of these people? you see the video from aljazeera, it is all grainy and pixilated. what is depth -- what is that? in afghanistan you see high- definition photos coming across a people being murdered. host: we will have to leave it there. it was getting difficult to hear you. osama bin laden, killed. reported by the president last night at 11:30 eastern time. first, martin, can you tell us more about what you are hearing? what you are learning about the president's decision? caller: it has been fascinating, the last six hours to seven hours. the possible whereabouts of osama bin laden, that they had been planning this trip for months in the final order happened this week. dated -- they did not get confirmation until sunday afternoon, at which point they had a hastily called press conference. everyone is trying to piece together exactly what happened. host: what are you learning about what is going to be happening in washington today? briefing, etc., throughout the week? caller: there will be briefings. congress had been out for two weeks. we received a flood of statements. they were all on the same page, so this week. some of them explicitly praised president obama. some of them just praised intelligence forces and troops without giving obama any credit. there was a little difference between the statements. host: what are you hearing about key rings? will the american people hear from the white house at any point? caller: congress will come back today. there are sure to be some kind of hearings. more importantly, there will probably be a lot more classified in closed-door intelligence meetings do let them know more about how this unfolded. intelligence committee members started to get calls from the cia chief before the news broke to let them know that osama bin laden had been killed. it will be hard to figure out how they play this off in public hearings. the arms committee is going to be getting a lot of briefings in the near future. as of right now on capitol hill, there is nothing specifically plan. i imagine there will be a lot of tribute speeches when congress opens today. host: all right, thank you, sir. more from reaction out pakistan this morning, according to the associated press. the foreign minister says -- most of that is from the associated press. -- host: that is from the associated press. here is a quote from peter king. host: also this morning, a statement from susan collins, ranking member of the senate homeland security government affairs committee. host: we will go back to your phone calls. maryland, dennis, go ahead. caller: good morning. thank you for c-span. i am so excited and happy. i am nervous about it. i have called in to c-span before. i should not be so nervous. man, what a president that we have. already people are trying to throw a wet blankets -- trope wet blankets on this accomplishment. cutting off the head of the snake, so to speak, with the killing of this evil person. but i want to spend my short time on the air saying to america that we are all americans. for god's sake, you have got to finally realize the caliber of man that is leading this country in this time of turmoil all over the world. i mean, this man let us -- led us through the gulf spill. the accomplishments of this administration, you cannot damper down. if you have callers out there who are going to call in and find everything they can do not to give this first african american, a young president but congratulations and kudos -- president the congratulations and kudos that he deserves. host: thank you. here is a quote from michael bloomberg. in ellet's go next to sal paso, texas. your on the air. caller: i have one question only. why did they get rid of the body so quick? this man is a murderer. he was the mastermind of 9/11. i am just curious why they buried him at sea. host: according to the associated press this morning, they are reporting that one u.s. official who disclosed the burial lessees said that it would have been difficult to find a country to except the remains. that the remains were accepted in accordance with islamic customs that required speedy burial. the u.s. was conducting dna testing on osama bin laden, using facial recognition techniques to help to identify him. that was the story that was put out at 2:20 a.m. eastern time. bowing to portland, ore., go ahead. caller: -- going to portland, oregon, go ahead. caller: i would like to express my gratitude to president obama and his forthright action against bin laden. he had the chance, this had the chance, but for accomplishment. and i am grateful. i agree with that the caller from maryland. we ought to be very happy to have a president like obama. he is going to continue in office. i hope that he wins the next election. americans need a man like that leading this country. thank you. host: alice, your thoughts this morning? caller: i have never been so ashamed of you, greta, of c- span, of americans. i went to the same school as michael hayden. catholics are ashamed of him. the architect of 9/11 is coming to a conference in america next week. death to the architect of 9/11. host: those are your thoughts, alice. we are reporting the death of osama bin laden being reported yesterday. killed in a compound, the compound had a value of $1 million, according to news reports this morning. here is the front page of "the new york times" this morning. host: good morning. nina? caller: [unintelligible] i think that we are overlooking the fact [unintelligible] u.s. invaded afghanistan [unintelligible] extremist people. [unintelligible] sending their army over. what they did was basically wrong, internationally. we could have asked the pakistanis afghanistan [unintelligible] what price is paid for it? even though we have captured this criminal, we still have to walk out so that the people can continue their livelihood. [unintelligible] they are extremist groups. host: we will continue with your phone calls on today's "washington journal." we have about two hours left, and getting your reaction to the news, osama bin laden killed. here is the president last night address in the country. >> good evening. tonight, i can report to the american people and to the world that the united states has conducted an operation that killed osama bin laden, the leader of al qaeda, and a terrorist who's responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children. it was nearly 10 years ago that a bright september day was darkened by the worst attack on the american people in our history. the images of 9/11 are seared into our national memory -- hijacked planes cutting through a cloudless september sky; the twin towers collapsing to the ground; black smoke billowing up from the pentagon; the wreckage of flight 93 in shanksville, pennsylvania, where the actions of heroic citizens saved even more heartbreak and destruction. and yet we know that the worst images are those that were unseen to the world. the empty seat at the dinner table. children who were forced to grow up without their mother or their father. parents who would never know the feeling of their child's embrace. nearly 3,000 citizens taken from us, leaving a gaping hole in our hearts. on september 11, 2001, in our time of grief, the american people came together. we offered our neighbors a hand, and we offered the wounded our blood. we reaffirmed our ties to each other, and our love of community and country. on that day, no matter where we came from, what god we prayed to, or what race or ethnicity we were, we were united as one american family. we were also united in our resolve to protect our nation and to bring those who committed this vicious attack to justice. we quickly learned that the 9/11 attacks were carried out by al qaeda -- an organization headed by osama bin laden, which had openly declared war on the united states and was committed to killing innocents in our country and around the globe. and so we went to war against al qaeda to protect our citizens, our friends, and our allies. over the last 10 years, thanks to the tireless and heroic work of our military and our counterterrorism professionals, we've made great strides in that effort. we've disrupted terrorist attacks and strengthened our homeland defense. in afghanistan, we removed the taliban government, which had given bin laden and al qaeda safe haven and support. and around the globe, we worked with our friends and allies to capture or kill scores of al qaeda terrorists, including several who were a part of the 9/11 plot. yet osama bin laden avoided capture and escaped across the afghan border into pakistan. meanwhile, al qaeda continued to operate from along that border and operate through its affiliates across the world. and so shortly after taking office, i directed leon panetta, the director of the cia, to make the killing or capture of bin laden the top priority of our war against al qaeda, even as we continued our broader efforts to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat his network. then, last august, after years of painstaking work by our intelligence community, i was briefed on a possible lead to bin laden. it was far from certain, and it took many months to run this thread to ground. i met repeatedly with my national security team as we developed more information about the possibility that we had located bin laden hiding within a compound deep inside of pakistan. and finally, last week, i determined that we had enough intelligence to take action, and authorized an operation to get osama bin laden and bring him to justice. today, at my direction, the united states launched a targeted operation against that compound in abbottabad, pakistan. a small team of americans carried out the operation with extraordinary courage and capability. no americans were harmed. they took care to avoid civilian casualties. after a firefight, they killed osama bin laden and took custody of his body. for over two decades, bin laden has been al qaeda's leader and symbol, and has continued to plot attacks against our country and our friends and allies. the death of bin laden marks the most significant achievement to date in our nation's effort to defeat al qaeda. yet his death does not mark the end of our effort. there's no doubt that al qaeda will continue to pursue attacks against us. we must - and we will -- remain vigilant at home and abroad. as we do, we must also reaffirm that the united states is not - and never will be - at war with islam. i've made clear, just as president bush did shortly after 9/11, that our war is not against islam. bin laden was not a muslim leader, he was a mass murderer of muslims. indeed, al qaeda has slaughtered scores of muslims in many countries, including our own. so his demise should be welcomed by all who believe in peace and human dignity. over the years, i've repeatedly made clear that we would take action within pakistan if we knew where bin laden was. that is what we've done. but it's important to note that our counterterrorism cooperation with pakistan helped lead us to bin laden and the compound where he was hiding. indeed, bin laden had declared war against pakistan as well, and ordered attacks against the pakistani people. tonight, i called president zardari, and my team has also spoken with their pakistani counterparts. they agree that this is a good and historic day for both of our nations. and going forward, it is essential that pakistan continue to join us in the fight against al qaeda and its affiliates. the american people did not choose this fight. it came to our shores, and started with the senseless slaughter of our citizens. after nearly 10 years of service, struggle, and sacrifice, we know well the costs of war. these efforts weigh on me every time i, as commander-in-chief, have to sign a letter to a family that has lost a loved one, or look into the eyes of a service member who's been gravely wounded. so americans understand the costs of war. yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when our people have been killed. we will be relentless in defense of our citizens and our friends and allies. we will be true to the values that make us who we are. and on nights like this one, we can say to those families who have lost loved ones to al qaeda's terror-- justice has been done. tonight, we give thanks to the countless intelligence and counterterrorism professionals who've worked tirelessly to achieve this outcome. the american people do not see their work, nor know their names. but tonight, they feel the satisfaction of their work and the result of their pursuit of justice. we give thanks for the men who carried out this operation, for they exemplify the professionalism, patriotism, and unparalleled courage of those who serve our country. and they are part of a generation that has borne the heaviest share of the burden since that september day. finally, let me say to the families who lost loved ones on 9/11 that we have never forgotten your loss, nor wavered in our commitment to see that we do whatever it takes to prevent another attack on our shores. and tonight, let us think back to the sense of unity that prevailed on 9/11. i know that it has, at times, frayed. yet today's achievement is a testament to the greatness of our country and the determination of the american people. the cause of securing our country is not complete. but tonight, we are once again reminded that america can do whatever we set our mind to. that is the story of our history, whether it's the pursuit of prosperity for our people, or the struggle for equality for all our citizens, our commitment to stand up for our values abroad, and our sacrifices to make the world a safer place. let us remember that we can do these things not just because of wealth or power, but because of who we are -- one nation, under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. thank you. may god bless you. and may god bless the united states of america. host: president obama last night around 11:40 p.m. eastern time addressing the nation, letting the americans know that u.s. forces have killed osama bin laden. that is our topic this morning. we're getting your thoughts and opinions. we're joined right now at the table by michael sawyer, the former cia bin laden unit chief from 1969 -- 1996 to 1999 and served as an adviser after the september 11 attacks, 2004. the need begin with your reaction when you heard the news. guest: i was delighted. he was a direct threat to the united states. a very were the enemy with a said. this meant defied the united states for 16 years -- a very were the enemy. -- a worthy enemy. host: what do you think the state will be looking for? guest: the agency will be looking at the immediate right reaction. there have been some public statements pledging revenge. we also face the problem at 9/11, they now have good organizations in yemen, somalia, and iraq, and in north africa. this is a much bigger problem than it was backed 9/11 -- at 9/11. they will be looking at individual muslims who are anchored by this action and will try to take revenge against american tourists or businessmen or ex-patriots. host: what are your concerns? guest: most of that americans do not give the idea that this is over. it is important -- i don't mean to the great we have done. this is more than a one-man problem. the president and mr. bush always say we're not at war with islam, there is a significant part of the islamic world that is at war with us and that will continue and probably be reinvigorated by the death of osama bin laden. host: who could replace osama bin laden? guest: initially, his deputy, al-zawahiri. i do not think al-zawahiri will be the permanent commander. he is an abrasive man in the stock get away with the saudis very well. the talk about a libyan who has been a prominent -- prominent in the religious discussions of al qaeda. the al qaeda command in the european peninsula is a very senior person, former secretary to osama bin laden. those are two candidates. al qaeda puts an enormous amount of time in planning succession. this is not something they wanted to happen, but it is something that will prepare for for a long time. host: how do we know that? guest: bin laden has said this will be a generational war. we have seen them -- we killed a number twos and number threes all over the world. this sometimes try to rub our nose in front of them by putting their circling -- curriculum on the internet. they do plan for succession. host: what do we know about how he was killed? guest: it appears he was killed in a firefight. it was a c.i.a.-led operation. they gave him a chance to surrender. he refused and was shot and killed. he died exactly the way he wanted to. he preferred death to capture. much of the muslim world will see him as a holy warrior who died in fighting in got past path -- god's path. host: why the burial at sea? guest: if they buried him at land, it might have been seen as a shrine. they are opposed to that. i think to be on the safe side, they buried him at sea. host: you with the former unit chief of the bin laden unit at the cia. he started it -- you started it. why? guest: we could not go after hezbollah because so much of the money was in religious institutions. the white house did not want to go after them. we went after osama bin laden the cost after the war with the soviets, in his name and began to turn up all over the world. in yemen, in chechnya, in east pakistan, and east africa. not that he was in command of all those places, but he had provided money, training, false documents, rhetoric on tape that was used. and so we set up a unit to decide whether or not he was indeed a threat or just another saudi spendthrift. it turns out he was a very hands-on military commander. host: what kind of reaction did you get from your superiors when you did this? guest: the request came down from the white house to go after bin laden or al qaeda. when they decided on al qaeda, i was directed to form the unit. the order came from above. we set up in late 1995 and had some extraordinary successes. some of my officers were extraordinary performers. they gave mr. clinton 10 different chance it to kill them between may of 1998 and may of 1999. i have lived in fear that the would-be broker justice in the sense that, when you do not do something when you have the opportunity, it does not always come around again. host: juneau like president clinton did not except that -- do you know why president clinton did not accept that? guest: the prince's father was about to buy aircraft. the white house decided it was more important to sell those planes than it was to kill osama bin laden, even with a couple of dead princess. there were afraid the agency would be accused of the assassination. there were always afraid of the media. the europeans would think we were cowboys. mr. bush acted the same way in many instances. host: why did it take so long? guest: the decision to put the light footprints into afghanistan by mr. rumsfeld. afghanistan has the highest mountains in the earth. we have 100,000 troops in afghanistan. one in three or shooters. they're supposed to keep mr. karzai in power and rebuild the economy, build a transportation and communications infrastructure from scratch, defeat the taliban, and in his spare time, go after bin laden. host: let's go to phone calls. stephen in college park, maryland. caller: there is one sensible, just, -- they should have desecrates his remains. feed it to -- a pig farm lagoon to show the followers would means -- and who is the boss. we're not doing that. it is unfortunate. host: that is your opinion. what about stoking the fire? this is what's osama bin laden -- this is what osama bin laden wanted. guest: to desecrate the body would have made us feel good, but it would have invoked great anger in the muslim world. host: lancaster, california. tony, you are next. caller: i have a question for those who question the burial at sea. where do they think you want -- he should have been buried? in the united states? host: that was part of a report that said it would have been difficult in finding a country to except his remains. guest: the saudis would not taken back. i thought it was an unusual decision to bury him at csea. as i think about it, i think now it was a good idea. now people will say, they buried him at sea and he really is not dead. host: the suspect there will be pictures coming forward? guest: i think they may have to release pictures to satisfy people in the united states. i don't think it's a good idea. a lot depends on how he looks, in a sense. when a man dies, if he looks composed and calm in his death, it is a tradition in the muslim world that he was truly fighting in god's way. if he is shot and messed up, maybe it would be good to use the pictures because it might be not seen as fighting in god's way. it does not advance the game at all. it kind of satisfies a lot of people to see the actual evidence. host: let's go next to mississippi. good morning. caller: am i on? you are doing a great job, greta. to the lady who dressed you down this morning, i do not agree with her at all. i thank god for c-span. i am an avid viewer of c-span. i have been up all night, have not slept a wink. i am glad he is gone. he can no longer be a threat. i don't think the story is over. i think there probably will be retaliation from his people. but i just want to commend the special forces and our president for a job well done. host: we heard from a phone call this morning, we talk to chairman joseph lieberman and we talk to a former cia director, general hayden about the special ops team that wins in. guest: there were officers that went in and landed on top of the building. they cornered osama bin laden and several other people. his adult son. nobody wanted to surrender. they all ended up dead. it strikes me given the time in which it took to develop this operation that the seals probably work very well practiced and it did appear to quaff as clockwork. host: what do you make -- one newspaper said leon panetta and others watched it in real time from the cia. guest: that would not be surprising given cameras and other things. we watch things live on the ground in afghanistan from the creditors. -- creditors -- predators. host: next to philadelphia. you are on the air. caller: i think it is strange that they have not showed the body. it is cut the thing that gets reelected. i did not see how all the sudden -- this happens when people want to see his birth certificate -- it is like a smokescreen. host: who was osama bin laden? guest: 1 of 54 children of wealthy saudi contractor. they remain the sort of -- of the middle east. he grew up in the religious manner, one of the many brothers who did not go to school outside saudi arabia. he was educated in religion but also economics and management. he worked first father's company as first a laborer and an informant and a construction engineer. he specialized in talk construction and the construction of mosques and other buildings. he fought against the soviets and remained there most of the next decade. and came to sadudan back to afghanistan and has been there ever since. host: what we know about his wealth? guest: his own wealth was limited to about $40 million from his share of the family fortune. he probably still was receiving his annual share of the fortune over the past 16, 18 years. he drew money from many sources, some from the taliban, some from moscow contributions. -- mosque contributions. men who solicited contributions from new jihad been in the 19 80's continue to support him. there would always be a surge after he attacked the united states -- men who solicited contributions from the mujahedin. host: he is a prolific fundraisers. guest: terrifically prolific. after he attacked the united states, that flow of the nations began to come back to him. host: what were the efforts to freeze his assets? guest: we try to freeze his assets that were in western banks. outside of that, we cannot do much about that. we froze very little of this money over time. host: this statement was put out by george bush. there is a quotation in "the washington post." "the fight against terror goes on." host: florida, brenda, your next. -- you're next. caller: i just have a question. i grew up near emmett till airforce base all my life. mcdill air force base. would be a terrorist target? guest: everything in the united states, what our military facility or civilian facility, has to be considered a target. being one place rather than another is not much of a safety measure. i don't think they will be going up against a hard targets anytime soon, like a u.s. military base. they are more likely to go after a civilian facility or perhaps assassinating someone. host: joe from indiana, you are next. caller: i am not sure if this is how i feel when i see people celebrate industry, like in washington and new york and boston. it almost reminds me when the terrorists in the countries that hit us are out in the streets during our flags. maybe i'm looking at it different. i think this could be feeling fire for future terrorism. i don't know, maybe i am looking at this wrong. guest: i think you're exactly correct is a natural reaction to be out and cheering. i think it will be interpreted by the enemy as unnecessary. at the end of the day, that is just the way it is. i don't think we should have tried to prevent people from celebrating. i fear more the american people thinking that killing bin laden ends it all. we have a long road to climb before this one is over. host: a crowd gathered outside the white house last night after hearing that osama bin laden had been killed. seattle, washington. caller: i think a former operative was killed. i think 9/11 was an inside job. look at the 9/11 timeline 3 it is online. that is what i think. i think -- host: that is your opinion. we have got some phone calls about it this morning. guest: osama bin laden and al qaeda attacked us on 9/11 because we fail to calm in 1998 and 1999. the idea that the cia and the u.s. government would attack their own people is a ludicrous idea. that is held tightly by a number of people. host: patricia from tennessee. caller: i wanted to say thank you. i have the most respect for anyone who serves our country. thank you for the future -- for the freedom. hold your heads high. give thanks to all the men and women. if ec summit in a uniform or sticker, shake their hands and say thank you. without them, we would not be able to voice our opinion -- if you see someone in a uniform or sticker, shake their hands and say thank you. guest: i think that is a good sentiment. the people who serve us to deserve our thanks to this. they are understaffed, under resource, and they have done a remarkable work. host: reaction from the associated press wire. speak to the relationship osama bin laden that with saudi arabia. guest: as in most things in saudi arabia, things are opaque. there are members of his family that still support him. he was at daggers drawn with the saudis. he they have cracked down on his organization. they probably should be prepared for violence in their country as a result of osama bin laden being killed. his followers will want to take revenge not only against -- against u.s. and foreign presence on the arabian peninsula. host: is that separate from the protest we are seeing in these countries in the middle east? guest: it will be separate in saudi arabia. most process or local. in saudi arabia, the government is not like very much. -- most protests are local. one of the thing that make u saddamn-islamic -- one of th-- what impact you think this will have on the situation in libya? providinglibya, we're air support for people who osama bin laden fought bin against the soviets. that is a mixed situation. in egypt, we see the islamists have a desire to gain power there. his death will be applauded by many to satisfy the west. the cyrillic or quietly, people will regret his -- but secretly or quietly, people will regret his passing. host: this is the news out of the middle east. "libyans attacked indices this morning." this is from "the baltimore sun." they refuse to sign a deal to step aside. you have syria it carries out mass arrests of protest. donald in massachusetts, your next -- you are next. caller: the right wing extremists are still fighting the war and will not give credit to president obama. after all, he is a black man. guest: i think that is nonsense. president obama deserves credit for killing osama bin laden. he tried to tear down guantanamo. this has provided a very valuable intelligence to help facilitate bin laden's killing. i don't think it has anything to do with obama being a black. host: what about the role of pakistan? guest: i did not have any questions. they have interests that are different from ours. the best thing about killing osama bin laden is that we have depended on others to do our dirty work. the pakistani were never going to do wit. we stepped up and did and that is a good sign. if we're going to win this world, we're going to left to do it ourselves. there will not be a proxy who steps in and does it. host: what does this mean for intelligence? guest: i think we will continue to collect intelligence. their interests are different than ours. they are fighting a civil war in their own country, pakistan, which emanated from their support for our effort in afghanistan. host: illinois. you're next. caller: i have a response to the question about the subject about osama's people not being happy with the way he was buried at sea. they wanted something more respectful for him. i was thinking about all the beheadings that they offered our people and our american citizens all over the world. i don't see much dignity in that. i think that is pretty equal. guest: we live in a pretty politically correct world. the u.s. government wanted to treat him according to islamic law by bearing him within 24 hours and they decided to do it at sea. it will not be appreciated in world but i don't think it matters. caller: good morning. thank you for your program. i just wanted to say it is always a tragedy of monumental proportions when there are no good ways to come to -- the taking of life is always a bittersweet -- i happen to be a minister. taking a life is always a bittersweet solution, no matter whose life it is. i have nothing but praise and admiration for the brave men and women who collaborated to bring this to as good an end as possible, who went right into the middle of a neighborhood with no hurt or harm and just did the job they needed to do as far as bringing him back to trial -- we're going to be in enough danger because he has been removed. people should not whine about that. that was inescapable. the destruction of having him -- the distraction and defense of going into a lot -- are you just going to try him for the 3000 people that he killed a ground zero? that is a disrespect -- that is ridiculous. it was a wise decision to bury him and t sea. it will forever prevent them from memorializing him. host: there was, but u.s. officials not wanting a trial. they were relieved in many ways that he was killed and not captured alive. guest: i hope we learned the lesson with saidddam. we did not want osama bin laden in new york and speaking to the muslim world. that would have been nonsense. i think they should be relieved. they did give him a chance to surrender. he much preferred death to capture. host: where did to learn that detail? guest: i heard it on the news this morning. he was going to resist and they shot him. host: do we know how he resisted? guest: i do not know. he always had a rifle with him. he may have fired back. host: we have a tweet. guest: that is the way the u.s. government works. i think there were rightfully worried about putting u.s. servicemen and ca people into pakistan without a means of rescuing them if things went terribly wrong. i think in this case probably meetings were a good thing. it is surprising it did not leak. there was enough discipline in the government to have five meetings without a leak, which is extraordinary. host: describe how these meetings come together. guest: generally some of his cabinet members and the head of the intelligence community, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, the cia, very senior people. host: i want to go back to the idea of having a trial. how you try someone for being a mastermind? guest: he is responsible for ordering the 9/11 attacks and the must be some law that covers that. i am not sure this is a law and order issue. the further we can get away from trials, the better we are. host: matt in kansas. caller: i wanted to speak -- i've followed some of your programs here run c-span. i appreciate the opportunity to hear from someone who was at a close relationship with this particular situation as you have. and so i know that in the past you have expressed frustration over the years towards a different administration for their ability to act decisively and at times when we had information and the possibility to eliminate osama bin laden as a threat. those opportunities were not for whatever variety of reasons taken advantage of. and so having heard the news this morning about the death has been taken, i am wondering if you are encouraged by the actions taken by the obama administration, and whether or not you think that this approach of having a very thorough intelligence along with a very decisive and special forces approach to addressing this problem through intelligence and special forces, if that is something that encourages you? guest: i am glad the president took advantage of this opportunity. we have been at the process of trying to capture or kill them one at a time since june or july of 1995. there are now way more insurgent fighters, al qaeda it in the field then the work in 1995. this is not a process we can win by killing people or capturing them one at a time. we have to probably apply the military force more severely where we can. we have to go to the heart of their motivation. what our government does in the muslim world. our foreign policy is the main recruiter for al qaeda and it remains what was in 1995, so there is no difference. i am glad they took the opportunity to do this. in itself, going after one person at a time will only lose this war for america. host: what about your criticism of doing this one at a time. are we out manned? guest: they are much bigger than we give them credit for. the president said he was a gangster and mass murder. there are two sides to every coin. he was very respected in the muslim world. the president -- none of our presidents have been willing to admit that, but it is troop 3 the number of people -- al qaeda's main base in 9/11 was in afghanistan. now they a part of afghanistan, a big slice of pakistan, yemen, somalia, iraq, parts of gaza, and north africa. they are an enormous -- there are an enormous number of people out there besides al qaeda who are attacking us. it doesn't make sense to think you can take out that many people one at a time. host: what are their resources? guest: they have better and indifferent. pbs sometimes with equipment that was current in the korean war -- the use walkie-talkies that our national security agency does not -- or they buy off the shelf very sophisticated in cryptic equipment -- encrypted equipment. they are interested in the tools of weapons, electronics, communications. they are very anti-of western -- anti-western for things like women's rights. caller: i have a question and comment. when the towers went out and i heard the name bin laden, i did an internet search to find out who he was. i came across a congressional expense record and i noticed that the cia was paying bin laden between $26 million and $30 million a month and providing him with stinger missiles. i have not seen accountability to how much money was paid to bin laden. do you believe that full record should be openly disclosed to show how much money was paid to bin laden by the u.s. government? guest: there is not been a single cent paid to bin laden by the united states. he would not meet with us. if you read a document, you're reading a fabrication. host: green bay, wisconsin, michael. caller: my question was -- i am concerned with making sure the muslim world is going to view his burial. is there anything you are aware of that a burial at sea is against any muslim traditions? guest: i do not know the first thing about that. you fight a war and you have to offend someone per the president made a wise decision in what he did and will have to live with the consequences, if there are any. host: administration officials said they did carry out the burial and it was a speedy burial. guest: the custom is within 24 hours, and they did do that. this is a matter of a little moment, if you will. it is probably -- it would have been better if the saudis would have taken him and buried him at home. host: do you perceive this as something people get stuck on? guest: i think it is a detail that does not require more than the talk we have given it this morning. host: indiana. caller: i thank our troops, i thank everybody out in taking care of this problem and eliminating our enemy. host: we will go on to tennessee. george, what are your thoughts? caller: do you think there is any chance the president did not know that the burial would have been at sea? guest: that is a good question. it could well a been that the military decided to do it that way or the agency decided. on this issue, mr. obama seemed to to be very much needy -- knee-deep in the details. it surprised me when it happened but on reflection, it probably was not a bad idea. caller: sean in new york. good morning. caller: i wanted to congratulate obama. i am not a big supporter of him, but he did accomplish one thing so far that he said he was going to do, and that is to get bin laden. number two, i think that the united states needs to stop trying to save face by not showing pictures and -- of him being killed. they were sitting there celebrating industries. one shouldn't way -- why shouldn't we in dc? i just think that we're always worried about what other people are going to think. this guy committed mass murder. he got what he deserved. everybody should be in the streets. i think -- guest: the president gets the credit. that is fair enough part i think they will be forced to put the pictures out because the conspiracy people will say, he really is not dead. he is now living with the trilateral commission or some other conspiracy-minded organization in the world. we will probably see those pictures before too long. host: the fbi website now has bin laden as deceased. these are the most wanted terrorists. if you could tell us who you think are the most wanted terrorists, or about them. host: i think al-zawahiri is probably next on his less, bin laden's deputy. another is being trained bin laden to be's success or or al- zawahiri's successor. another contender is a man who is very -- he's to be bin laden's secretary. the next generation of al qaeda will be better educated, more computer-savvy, and more vicious and militant than bin laden's generation. the americans will be sorry when my father is killed because of the successes are much poorer vicious-- that is a passage from a book. host: here is the headline from a cuban newspaper this morning with a picture of osama bin laden. caller: i am finding the burial at sea a bit questionable. i never did believe that an airplane could not a building much less two buildings. i am concerned about and wondering, are you aware to the degree to which our government has been saturated with dual national is rallies in jewish people -- is rallies - - israelis. host: let's talk about the evidence. we have heard above the government being involved in the september 11 attacks. what evidence points to the airplanes and going into that building? it is obvious. guest: i saw it on television and i saw the results of it. most of the people who say that it could not have happened because of the airplanes are engineers or other people who are experts. you never say never about anything. if you could argue with what you saw on television on the 11th of september, then he should go argue with someone who tends to believe the same things as you do, because it didn't happen that way. we didn't have enough intelligence at that time. there were all members of al qaeda. after the fact, their last wills and testaments, some of them have been released. there is no ground battle to assume that it wasn't al qaeda. -- we knew that there were thinking about using airliners againsts, specifically wi cia headquarters in langley. host: detroit, you're up next. caller: i have a couple of comments. this guy has had plenty of times to spew the corporate talking points. the first thing i wanted to speak of is that i have personal experience with the system and how the operate. they killed an iman in detroit in the kim on the news stations and we knew them personally. and then you looked at the indictment -- this was on the tv. i don't see the muslim terrorists that are evading -- invading other countries and these bases. we have military bases all over the world. we invaded countries just like germany did. we had the 9/11. we start invaded all these people. if somebody -- if they're going to come here and do something, let them come here. i don't think they will do anything. host: bishop, that is your opinion. caller: i was wondering, why do we allow -- to continue business with these people. if we know the different people, we're watching them. we're not killing them. we're just watching a pair why are we allowing these people to continue hosting them? guest: that is a point that escape me over the course of my career. we somehow assume that everybody's foreign policy is the same with ours, so we are patients with them. the pakistani scum their interests are different than ours for the saudis have different interests than ours -- the pakistanis have a different interests than ours. that is not the way the world works. perhaps we need to do some waking up and maybe some growing up. if we don't take care of ourselves, there's a lot out there who will do it for us. host: i want to thank you for spending time with us and entering our phone calls. guest: i just finished a biography of osama bin laden. it was published by oxford in february. it is called "osama bin laden" and where the movement will go after he is gone. host: thank you for helping us try to understand the spirit we will keep taking your phone calls this morning. there is an hour left in "washington journal." joining us from the phone is matthew with the associated press. let's begin with the news of the state department of travel warnings abroad for americans. what is going on here? guest: late last night, shortly after the announcement, there was a world wide travel letter. it divides americans about the enhanced potential for anti- americans violence around the world but particularly in places where there have been -- where these kinds of counterterrorism exercises have prompted violence against u.s. interests in the past. the state department has said the embassies in islamabad along with the consulates in karachi and in pakistan are closed today. they are concerned about violent protests and demonstrations throughout pakistan. those four diplomatic missions are closed today. host: what are you hearing about the role of the state department in the killing of osama bin laden and the role of secretary of state hillary clinton? guest: secretary clinton was involved as part of the president's national security team from the very beginning on this after the intelligence became known. the state department did not play any direct role that i am aware of. this was entirely a military and special forces cia operation. people high up in the chain of command were aware of what was going on and were making preparations to deal with what they fear might be the aftermath. host: hillary clinton will be giving a statement this morning. guest: that is correct. we expect her to speak in about 20 minutes in the state department. we have not been told exactly what she will speak about. i think it is pretty obvious that bin laden it will bin -- it will be about bin laden and the ramifications going for. the war on terrorism continues and so does the u.s. effort to combat extremist ideologies throughout the world. the worke continues despite bin laden's death. host: what are your questions? guest: we will be asking what kind of intelligence they have about potential reprisal attacks. there is a concern about that. the warning went out west side. we will be asking what this means with our relationship with pakistan. this has been a subject that a lot of people have been talking about since the news came out yesterday and even before. this guy he had been doing for so for some years. he was not touched. i think it will raise more troubling questions about pakistan's commitment to the u.s. and to its commitment to the war on terrorism. it is not the pakistani government, then some elements within the country. host: what has ever clinton said? guest: last may, shoe is on a trip to pakistan and pointedly -- she was on a trip to pakistan and pointedly put out there if the u.s. thought pakistani officials knew more than they were saying about where osama bin laden were, in fact, how could they not know where he is, and that caused quite a stir at the time. i'm almost positive it was shortly before the exact location of this compound outside islamabad was discovered by the americans. but certainly, there have been suspicions for quite some time. they were voiced in the u.s. by secretary clinton when she was there last year. host: what was the reaction? >> it was quite an angry response she got from pakistani journalists and others. at the time, the big issue were these drone strikes which continue despite the pakistani opposition. she was not a very popular woman in pakistan at the time she made those comments and immediately afterward. it turns out she knew what she was talking about. if not, it was a specific location the u.s. had definite intelligence he was hiding in pakistan. whether or not the pakistani government knew about it, we still do not know. that is a big question and one that will be asked, i think, for the days, weeks, and months to come. host: what are the ramifications of this news? >> in some ways, it is a huge relief. some people will take part in the fact the leader of this group that caused so much damage is killed. but in many other ways, the work has to go on. this is -- this does not and al qaeda as an organization or and the anti-american sentiment or radical islam. it is a boost, it least in the short term, as something the american military and administration can be proud of. but the threat from these radical ideologies continues. i think we are seeing that in the warnings the state department put out and the department of homeland security and others. this just is turning one page, but there is a lot more of the chapter to come. host: what has been the reaction from our allies and those that consider as an enemy? >> thus far, the reaction i have seen has been congratulations offered to president obama and the administration from u.s. allies around the world. also, interestingly, from yemen, where the most active and organized al qaeda franchise is now operating. of course, we all know the president of human has been under huge pressure-bank of yemen has been under huge pressure to step down and the power within a month. his government has praised it. the only negative reaction i am aware of thus far has come from the palestinian militant group hamas. i have not seen any other negative reaction. i suspect we will see from osama bin ally -- osama bin laden's allies. host: i know you need to get to the state department briefing. i will let you go. thank you. that will be taking place at 9:30 a.m. eastern time and we will be covering it here on c- span. go to c-span.org for more information. we will monitor that as well for any news that comes out of the state department briefing. we will be back after this real break with more of your phone calls and comments on the news osama bin laden killed. >> leon panetta this morning sent this message to agency employees. today, we have rid the world of the most infamous terrorist of our time. a u.s. strike team stormed a compound in pakistan and killed osama bin laden. thankfully, no americans were lost. every effort was taken to avoid civilian casualties. my deepest thanks and congratulations go out to the officers of our counter- terrorism center and office of south asia analysis for their outstanding expertise, amazing creativity, an excellent tradecraft. more reaction to the death of osama bin laden. earlier today, a statement released by john boehner said this is great news for the security of the american people and a victory in our continued fight against al qaeda and radical extremism around the world. i also want to commend president obama and his team as well as president bush for all of their efforts to bring osama bin laden to justice. this from senate majority leader harry reid, "osama bin laden is dead. killed in a targeted operation authorized the president obama. this is the most significant victory in our fight against al qaeda and terrorism, but that fight is not over." the head of the house hamas security peter king speaking earlier on today said -- house, as a critic peter king speaking earlier on today. congressman king went on to say that there will be round the clock government surveillance to determine if al qaeda is planning or organizing any retaliatory attacks. those are some of the latest headlines. >> the private sector and the government coming together to push innovation makes all the sense in the world. >> tonight, peter cleveland on the obama administration pause efforts to improve american innovation assisting u.s. technology industry. on c-span2. >> congratulations to this year's winners. you can win the -- review the winning videos online and continue the conversation at our facebook and twitter pages. the thing is the u.s. constitution. select any portion and create a video about why it is important to you. "washington journal" continues. host: we are back taking your phone calls about the news osama bin laden killed. we of about 45 minutes left in our program today, wanting to get your opinion on this. just to let you know, the state department will be briefing with the secretary at about 9:20 eastern time, in about 10 minutes. we will be covering it. we will let you know more. .et's go to new york our next caller. go ahead. caller: thank you very much. i've a few comments. for the past decade, the democrats and republicans, the united work party, because they are one party, have been killing people throughout the middle east, yemen, pakistan, afghanistan, iraq. just for total lies. i am hopeful the american people can get together and bring this regime down and try and convict and hopefully hang president bush, president obama for their crimes against humanity. host: those are his opinion in jonestown, new york. let's go to the new york times to give you background it a lengthy piece about osama bin laden saying -- under the turning point, for osama bin laden, for the u.s., the turning point came in 1989 with the defeat of the soviets in afghanistan. for the u.s., which had supported the afghan resistance with billions of dollars in arms and ammunition, that if the mark the beginning of the end of the cold war and the birth of the new world order. is as osama bin laden as a part of the resistance with money, construction of grumman and housing saw the return to the summit doesn't affirmation of muslim power and an opportunity to recruit islamic political power and topple the total governments through jihad or holy war saying out, it can ever structure for his dream. then they'd included a web of businesses, some legitimate and some less so to obtain a move to obtain the chemicals and weapons he needed. he treated treading cams for his foot soldiers, and the office to spread his word, etc. it's as long before september 11, evidentiary trowels said officials considered him responsible in part for the killing of american soldiers in somalia and saudi arabia. the first attack on the world trade center in 1983, the bombing of the towers of saudi arabia, and a foiled plot to hijack a dozen jets and crashed a plane into cia headquarters and to president bill clinton. we're getting your thoughts on osama bin laden killed. let's go to tony in massachusetts. caller: i want to thank our president obama because i voted for him. by the same token, we have to say there is a lot of people in the country talking about the constitution and how we have a right to question our government, foreign and domestic, protect ourselves against enemies foreign and domestic. you just had a gentleman on your program talking how he set up a program he can chase everybody's money, but nobody can chase the people's money, where wall street took this money and went somewhere, ok? are we headed through a one world order where all the nations are consolidating their power and riches so they can control the masses? i am not trying to be a conspiracy theory, but there ain't nobody who is gone to jail in this country. we don't know where our money is going at. host: 10 a, washington. -and teaneck, washington. caller: i am calling to say it is good he is no longer in power. this is a call. where does peace start? it seems like everybody is celebrating the death of this man. i am a christian woman. i feel bad for this man. he does not know the right way to do things. it is terrible. how are we ever going to solve world peace if it does not start right in our own country, our own state, our own home? host: reaction from senator dick durbin. he treats those who believe osama bin laden and is the work were invincible, will awaken to a new reality. arkansas. richard, your next. caller: good morning. i just have one thing to say. many people are giving president obama credit for going and getting osama bin laden. what we're forgetting is to give the credit to the servicemen and women that stand for and five presidential time frames and the servicemen and women that put their lives on the line and went there and put the body armor on. and put themselves in harm's way. president obama, i mean, yes, he is our commander in chief, but keep in mind, the servicemen and women in the families that put themselves in harm's way to get this guy. host: more from the washington post, reporting the 50-year-old son of a billionaire saudi arabia contractor was wanted by the u.s. not only for the september 11 hijackings, but also at all, is bombings of u.s. embassies in tanzania and kenya in 1998, which killed to under 23 civilians and wounded more than 5000 people. the u.s. government had offered a $25 million reward for information leading to his capture or death. about drone attacks going on in afghanistan and pakistan, the washington post says this -- the total of the drone strikes eroded morale among militant networks contriving to the agency's effort to assemble a network of informants independent of pakistan's intelligence services. as the network group, it then intelligence into an elaborate operation used to identify new targets for the drones. the cia has carried out 23 drone strikes this year including one the day after pakistan's intelligence chief visited the agency's headquarters to demand changes in the relationship. another strike came one day after pakistan released a cia security operatives who had been jailed after fatally shooting two pakistani men in the city of lahore. the scud in north carolina. what are your thoughts, osama bin laden killed? caller: i want to draw attention to the fact when president obama was campaigning for president, he was actually driving the policy toward president bush and dick cheney because if anyone can remember, he was saying that they should use drones. whenever he would speak during the debate, whenever he would say, he would -- they would go and do whatever he said. the continuity they're giving bush credit for action was driven by president obama. he said he would get him, and he did. he used intelligence rather than the cowboy bullied type rhetoric that we saw in the previous administration. his emphasis has always been on diplomacy and intelligence. in this case, it has worked. i am glad it did. host: dave, champagne, eleanor. caller: i went to point out how inappropriate it was to sell michael's book for him read it is just like david letterman or anyone who has a guy on selling a book. host: i ask him about his book because it is a biography about osama bin laden. we will go to robert in utah. caller: [unintelligible] president obama, he said he was going to do it. he went out and got him read at the same time, i have one question, the fact that the reward for him and all. what happens to that reward now that they have taken him out? [unintelligible] take every ward and distribute it among the survivors. host: florida. caller: i think a good headline for the day, "when obama gets osama." john boehner and donald trump, they want to see the death certificate because they do not see it. thank you. host: according to the new york times, people close to the family, osama bin laden was born in 1957, the seventh son and 17th child among 50 or more of his father's children read it goes on to say, according to family friends, his rise began when the father offered to build a palace for kingston and the 1950's for far less in the lowest bid. but the 1960's, he had ingratiated themselves so will the saudi royal family that the king decree of construction projects be awarded to the bin laden the older died and a plane crash. each sibling inherited land his name means young lion. let's go to missouri. caller: how are you doing this morning? hello? host: we are listening. go ahead. weler: i'm glad we got him only slaughtered millions of people. maybe we can go after the real perpetrators. what do you think? host: what do you think? caller: i think we never will. host: next caller. caller: what will happen to all of osama bin laden's money? will it be frozen or what? if his kids are dead, who will continue with the money? host: i am not sure of that question will be asked at today's briefing. the story continuing to unfold this morning. hillary clinton will be before reporters momentarily. she will talk about the news, we presume, and to a trek into the picture inside the state department this morning. -- and we can see the picture inside the state department this morning. next caller. caller: can you answer the next question for me? before he was buried at sea, was there an autopsy to determine whether or not it was actually our bullet from the americans or if it was a suicide pact there with them? host: there is no information about that this morning. the stories are coming from reuters, deanna was tested, used official -- dna was used, facial id official. next caller. caller: i am calling first of all to get these people talking about president bush this and president bush that. president bush is the person that dropped the ball. the man simply dropped the ball. it should have never taken us this long to get this man. this guy came in the opposite of our president and got the job done. he said he was going to get the job done, and he got it done if president bush would have focused his attention, we would not be at this point we are now today. host: texas. caller: i am so glad we got osama bin laden. but they've dumped his body in the ocean, so where's the proof he is actually dead for us american people that grew dealing with this as young americans? we feel like we need the prove. we will never be able to get that proof. host: do you want to see pictures? caller: yes, some kind of proof. i was hoping they would bring his body. host: why the mistrust? caller: it is not mistrust, just as american people, we hold the burden of proof and our justice system, even to this day. the burden of proof to find out of that person is guilty or not, if this person is alive or not. i want to know or the burden of proof is in this case? host: out of cairo -- next to los angeles. go ahead, robert. i'm sorry, is as robert? i think it is out of las vegas. are you there? you're on the air. caller: i want to congratulate the people, the men and women of the service, especially the navy seals for during the work well done. also, keeping peace in the world and finally, he was captured and killed. that's it. host: we will go to albany, oregon. caller: hello. i am a little disappointed with c-span. it seems like you've been turning off the comments from people that disagree with the government's line about what happened. you ask about why do people doubt this? well, the cia is involved. it is not a very trustworthy organization to us americans. host: why do you feel that way? caller: it is a secret organization, for one thing. the government seems to run a lot of secret organizations that we as americans do not really consent to. it does not feel good. i have to agree with the christian lady. it does not feel good to have killed someone. taken prisoner, what ever. but it is not something to celebrate. how do we know he has not been dead for years? host: what would help, if there's more transparency? caller: absolutely. but the many other secret organizations. the various organizations in the u.s., we just do not have a government we can trust because of these secret organizations. host: atweet -- go ahead, marcus. caller: speaking to the former mayor of new york city would be interesting, wooden it? host: ready guiliani? caller: yes. host: why is that? caller: [unintelligible] host: we have had him on the network before. go to c-span.org for past interviews. we will go to north carolina. the topic this morning, osama bin laden killed. what are your thoughts? caller: just because osama bin laden has been killed does not mean there's going to be less attacks. i was watching c-span last night around 3:00 in the morning and there was a guy with his shirt off and a bad light in his hand celebrating. i think that just makes us as americans with very disgusting to the rest of the world. there's not one to be a stop of terrorist attacks. you cannot fight a war on terror. more will come after this is gone. host: next, george, wichita falls, texas. what are your thoughts? you're on the air. caller: i am just glad they caught him and it proves one thing. when you mess with people, you get the horns. host: any other thoughts? caller: well done, u.s. military. well done, president obama. host: arkansas. caller: hello? good morning. i would like to say i am in agreement with the young lady that spoke before. they buried him out to sea. how do we now? you know, why does obama have the right to burial according to islamic law? what about our people that died in 9/11? they did not get a burial according -- they were exploded. i don't understand why he had the right to that kind of a burial. host: ok, all right. ohio. caller: i have a couple of comments. first, lena from sweden is so concerned about how we did wrong, then why isn't she living in her area of the country or he slaughtered all of these people? why is she in sweden? i imagine she did it to save her family from being slaughtered. second of all, i want to praise mr. obama for resolving this problem the best he could at the time he could. with everything else started, he didn't finish it. third, i think the american people should be thankful this man is gone, but he is the tip of the iceberg. we have a long way to go. i think we should offer our prayers to god, hoping that peace comes to us and our country is safe from further attacks. i want to thank you for giving us the opportunity for giving us the opportunity to express our opinions in america. thank you for that. host: we will keep taking your phone calls, getting your thoughts on the news osama bin laden killed. just a you know, we are waiting on secretary state hillary clinton to go before the cameras here this morning. there is the shot out of the state department's. we will bring that to you as soon as we see her. arizona. go ahead. caller: i just want to make a comment, everybody is talking about the way he was buried at sea. we could have lowered ourselves like others and decapitated him, drove him through the streets. humiliated. this man, for everything he did to our country, it is fairly respectable what we give him great at that point, it was honored by the muslims, within 24 hours, but we could have brought his body back and had him taxidermy and hung on the president's wall. we did not lower ourselves. host: this is what was said in tweet -- let's go to west virginia. caller: for all the people you're going to deify osama bin laden after this, i said, it is such a good guy, what in he spent all his millions building hospitals and getting doctors and medicines and irrigate the land and things like that to help his community instead of causing destruction and all the stuff he did? host: los angeles, robert, good morning. caller: i just want to remind everyone that this is a victory for team obama. and team navy. i want to remind everyone that president bush, when he was asked about osama bin laden and a serious way, his response was -- well, i don't think about him very much. that is what i think people should keep in mind. host: garden city, kansas. what do you think this morning? caller: when i heard about this last night, i was so excited and glad about and. but then i said, doesn't that sound bad? he has been murdered. i don't believe and murder. like us said, i am a christian. i know there are times in the bible that god punished people and stuff like that. so i have to look at stuff like that that, in no, -- you have to be accountable for your actions. i do want to say thank you to our president because for one thing, he has tried to do his best according to the burial thing and doing it according to how they want it done. host: youngstown, ohio. your opinion? caller: i just want to say the man before the woman that just came on, i agree with him when he says we did not stoop down to the standards of how they treat people. we buried him as he would have won it. that is the way it should have been. justice say this is someone who still and middle school during the september 11 attacks. i am grateful we have captured this man. not captured him, but killed him but not killed him, but that he is gone and the construction move on. -- that we can start to move on. i do know he is gone for it with him gone, i believe we can start to move on and deal with other things host:. westchester, new york. caller: i just want people in america to know i am proud to be american. 9/11, that attack was in my own home, my neighborhood, my back yard. that is where i am from. osama bin laden, i am happy in a way that someone attack our country has died. i just wish he wasn't killed. we as human beings need to educate ourselves. there should be more peace. new york is my home. host: sarah palin -- new mexico. caller: i want to say thank you to president barack obama for initiating this plan. yes, we finally did get him and do the right thing, bury him within 24 hours. hopefully, the muslims will not think so bad of us for a least doing the right thing for him in that area. it will not stop terrorist acts from coming on. however, possibly, it will slow down in some areas. thank you mr. president and navy seals. host: go ahead, marked caller: -- mark. caller: where is the evidence that osama bin laden committed 911? also, what about libya? donna, what are your thoughts? caller: first of all, thank you to president obama because he is doing his job. the people of the united states have to understand one thing. you live by the sword, you die by the sword. this man did some serious damage and the couple lot of people. i am i glad they killed him, but i am glad that justice has been served. host: john, texas. good morning. you're on the air. caller: how are you doing? host: go ahead. caller: i have a couple of things. they said osama bin laden died at age 54, correct? host: i think that is what the paper said this morning. caller: 5 plus four is nine, this year is 11 rig that is 9/11 right there. harp. another thing, the blue bean project id if you search these, you'll find a lot of answers. host: the headline from the denver "post." secretary of state clinton this morning. >> osama bin laden is dead. justice has been done. today, i want to say a few words about what this means for our efforts going forward. first, i went off my thoughts and prayers to thousands of families whose loved ones were killed and osama bin laden's campaign of terror and violence from the embassy bombings in africa to the strike on the uss cole to the attacks of september 11, 2001. and so many more these were not just attacks against americans, although, we suffered grievous losses. these were attacks against the whole world. in london and madrid, this symbol and many other places. innocent people, most of them muslims were targeted in markets and mosques in subway stations and airplanes. each attack motivated by violent ideology that holds no value for human life or regard for human dignity. i know that nothing can make up for the loss of the victims or fill the voids they left, but i hope their families confined some comfort in the fact that justice has been served. second, i wanted to and the president and honoring the courage and commitment of the brave men and women who serve our country and have worked tirelessly and relentlessly for more than a decade to track down and bring osama bin laden, this terrorist, to justice. from our troops and intelligence experts to our diplomats and our law enforcement officials, this has been a broad, deep, very impressive effort. here at the state department, we have worked to forge a worldwide anti terror network. we of drawn together the effort and energy of friends, partners, and allies on every continent. our partnership, including our close cooperation with pakistan, have helped put unprecedented pressure on al qaeda and its leadership. continued cooperation will be just as important in the days ahead because even as we mark this milestone, we should not forget that the battle to stop al qaeda and its syndicate of terror will not end with the death of osama bin laden. indeed, we must take this opportunity to renew our resolve and redouble our efforts. in afghanistan, we will continue taking the fight to al qaeda and the taliban allies while working to support the afghan people as they build a stronger government and began to take responsibility for their own security. we are implementing the strategy for transition approved by nato at the summit in lisbon. we're supporting afghan-led political process that seeks to isolate al qaeda and end the insurgency. our message to the taliban remains the same pigment but today, it may have even greater resonance. you cannot wait us out. you cannot defeat us. you can make the choice to abandoned al qaeda and participate in a peaceful, political process. in pakistan, we're committed to supporting the people and governments as they defend their own democracy from a violent extremism. indeed, as the president said, osama bin laden has also declared war on pakistan. he had ordered the killings of many innocent pakistani men, women, and children. in recent years, the cooperation between our government, military, and law enforcement agencies increased pressure on al qaeda and the taliban. and this progress must continue. we are committed to our partnership. history will record that osama bin laden's death came at a time of great movement toward freedom and democracy, at a time when the people across the middle east and north africa are rejecting the extremist narrative is and charting a path of peaceful progress based on universal rights and aspirations. there is no better review to al qaeda and its heinous ideology. all over the world, we will press forward, bolstering our partnerships, strengthening our networks, investing in a positive vision of peace and progress and relentlessly pursuing the murderers who target innocent people. the fight continues and we will never waver. now, i know there are some who doubted this day would ever come. who questioned our resolve and our reach. but let us remind ourselves, this is america. we rise to the challenge, we persevere, and we get the job done. i am reminded especially today of the heroism and humanity that marked the difficult days after 9/11. in new york where i was a senator, our community was devastated. but we pulled through. 10 years later, that american spirit remains as powerful as ever and it will continue to prevail. so this is a day, not only for americans, but also for people all over the world, who look to a more peaceful and secure future. yes, with continued vigilance. but more so with growing hope and renewed faith in what is possible. thank you all very much. host: heathery clinton going before the cameras this morning at the state department, not taking questions from reporters about the news last night that u.s. forces killed osama bin laden. we have been talking to you this morning here on "washington journal" getting your opinion about this news that we're hearing. we will continue to do that. joining us on the fun, republican congressman from california third district, a member of the house hall led to carry committee. let me begin with your reaction, congressman, what did you-and what was your reaction and how did you find out? >> a great day for americans and freedom loving people everywhere. it shows the resolve of the american people, the american government read when president bush said almost 10 years ago that we will hunt you down and we will either kill you or capture you, that commitment was carried through by president obama and certainly by our intelligence community and our armed forces, particularly special forces. the message is clear, we will not waver. we will continue. one thing _, the importance of the actionable intelligence. that is not always understood or properly supported around the country. i hope this will remind people of how important this is. host: why is it important in your opinion? >> based on the reports we have now, it appears we had intelligence four years ago with the carrier's related to osama bin laden. in a few years later, even more information. more recently, we were able to connect the dots and act on this. that shows continuity of intelligence and also shows our ability to check on intelligence sources around the world and then put it to gather and analyze it. that is one of the things necessary both internationally and within our own country. that is why i say is we're dealing with the patriot act and provisions about to expire unless we act in the congress, it is a tremendous reminder of why we need these tools in this fight. this is a great victory for america, but it is not the end of the battle. this is an important element of it, but -- and a great morale booster and for other people and other countries to have cooperated with us, but if anybody believes this means we will get out of afghanistan any time soon or call off our efforts, that is just wrong. this is evidence of the successes we can have. it requires continued support. host: i understand your on your way back to washington and are at the airport and that is why we hear noise in the background rid what does this mean for congress? >> we had to be serious about what we're doing. we have to understand this is going to continue, that is, it is not in imminent effort we have to have. we have the obligation to remind the people, educate the american people, to bring the american people along to the fact we need to support all of these tools. this just does that happen overnight or by accident it does not happen without tremendous sacrifice. many men and women both in the intelligence community and the armed services. with the best intelligence and the world, the best air force -- services in the world. they need our support. host: if i can ask you quickly, what are your questions going forward? >> my question, are we going to have the support of the congress and the kinds of things? second, doesn't make any sense with respect to the need for guantanamo and the need for us to use our resources to gain information from the assets we have? i would hope this would be a shot in the arm for the effort to keep guantanamo open, the effort to understand there is a difference between military court and civilian court. and when you deal with illegal or unlawful enemy combatants, there's a reason why you have them treated in military courts. you need to get the information in terms of interrogations without miranda warnings and all of the things we have an hour civilian criminal setting. it does not mean they do not receive proper protections, but it does mean there is a different world involved in these sorts of things. hopefully, this will allow us to raise that issue again, allow us to discuss it on an adult basis and understand how important these issues are to the culmination of efforts such as we saw yesterday. host: republican congressman joining us from the airport. we appreciate your time. let's go to ohio and get your take on this. caller: i do not believe osama bin laden is dead, like so many other callers. it just does not ring true. host: jacksonville, florida. caller: i would like to say that for those that are calling in saying they need proof and what proof of osama bin laden been dead, what do they think we're supposed to do? are we supposed to take the body and put it on tv? we're not gloating like they do. that would only bring more destruction to the united states. we're not going to sit here and places body as they would do every time they would kill one of our u.s. men or the military or whomever over there. you know, they would post it and say there were responsible for it. for those same things about obama, he is the person that is in position. under him, there were able to go out and get this guy. we do give praise to our men and women in service over there. for those against obama, he is still the commander in chief. up under him, the situation was carried out and carried out well. host: jane, los angeles, welcome. caller: i am glad that osama bin laden is dead, but look at the reason we were attacked on 9/11. when we listen to neocons, i am glad that ron paul is running. we do not need the patriot act. we need to address the foreign policy and the middle east, support for israel. host: that is james, los angeles. wanda, u.s. virgin islands. are you with us? i think i pushed the wrong button. are you there? go ahead. caller: i am very happy that we're getting rid of this trash. as long as the u.s. is in control, doing what it has to do, defending its people, we're going to continue to support it. host: here is the pittsburgh is that -- we will go to kansas city. caller: what should be brought up, this was a victory on the president obama is intelligence agencies. the bush demonstration handpicked leaders could not find osama bin laden for eight years. what is troubling, why couldn't satellite imaging have spotted osama bin laden's large compound, even while the was being built? satellite imaging can focus on your backyard fence from outer space. these people who are questioning obama's burial at sea of osama bin laden, why aren't the questions being asked about the failures of the bush administration to find the compound in eight years? caller: a lot of my friends asking, why couldn't they bring him back just to show proof, like it's about hossein? we all think it is a ruse for the president's re-election. host: there have been reports from reuters and ap this morning that keeping with islamic tradition, there was a speedy burial within 24 hours, that osama bin laden was buried at sea and that associated press reported one official said there was trouble in finding a country that would take osama bin laden's remains. those are the stories from the associated press and reuters. you can read more online. let's go to st. louis, missouri. go ahead, dave. caller: i think the united states as generally good job of catching a criminal and getting rid of him. the people who have called in that seem to be reticent about the united states going after obama osama bin laden -- or osama bin laden, most of these people seem to have forgotten the world trade center going down. the thousands of people that were killed because of this guy and his mean, evil tricks, i do not think there's anything to exonerate him at all. host: ok, member of the intelligence committee joining us on the phone. congressman, what was your reaction when you heard the news? >> i thought it was fantastic news. this has been a long, tough hunt. i was so gratified the victims of 9/11 finally had a measure of justice. i think removing the symbolic head of al qaeda, the spiritual leader of al qaeda, is an important achievement. i am thrilled on behalf of our armed forces, and the intelligence community. host: what questions to you have? >> fundamentally, the size of the compound, its structure, its proximity to islamabad. i would be interested to know how long we have been observing this compound, whether we know of others like it. it does seem to have a neon sign on it as something is happening here. it would be interesting to find out what we knew and what the pakistani government knew. host: so what happens now? what types of hearings? what will be the focus? >> i think this is part of a continuing trend of the decreasing importance of the central al qaeda and increasing significance of its franchisees. osama bin laden had long ceased to be operational head of the organization. i think this will accelerate that trend. we will focus on others in the arabian peninsula that are really more operational now. i do not want to diminish in any way the tremendous significance of this. i think will be psychologically a tremendous blow to al qaeda and a tremendous boon to our troops in afghanistan and elsewhere. it is remarkable achievement to find a single person as big as this >> is but having flown over the area many times and visited those of -- defined as a person as big as this one. having flown over the area and the times and visited those areas, millions of miles were he could have been hiding and found them i think is remarkable. intelligenceg with committee member. we've heard since 9/11 that "he is hiding out in a cave." what do you make finding out he was in this compound valued at $1 million about an hour outside of islamabad? >> i do not find that surprising u.s. and pakistan. i think there's a lot of thought he might be hiding in plain sight, but more -- but elsewhere. the fact she was in this huge compound, purposefully dark, byrne is trash, not emitting any signals, it just assuming these things been reported are correct, but if that is true, by in ae of it being dark place where just about everybody uses electronic communications, that seems to stand out. it is like the reverse of the neon light. i will be interested to know a little about what we know about this compound, but more likely, what did the pakistanis know about this compound? host: congressman, can you tell me how you found out the news crushed rocks my wife turned on the radio and i heard the news. and many americans, could not believe it was finally here. host: have you heard from the intelligence committee about hearings or what is next for all of you? >> we had a hearing schedule for later today, which i'm assuming will continue but be a different in scope, at least, that is my hope. host: what was the hearing about today? >> we usually have a briefing on particular hot spots around the world. i would imagine and help the focus of that has changed dramatically. host: so this will be a closed- door briefing? >> yes. host: congressman, what you think this says about our relationship with afghanistan? >> while, i think it will certainly be a boon to our efforts in afghanistan, but no one should think this is going to be a game changer in terms of the taliban. i expect there will still mount their spring offensive, will still be a tough fight. but it means we have accomplished one of our objectives, which is to bring the real mastermind behind 11 to justice. i think it also means our assistance from pakistan has been very important. many people had questions about it pakistan even knew where he was, if it would share the affirmation with us. i think some of those questions seem to have been answered. host: center wife told to the news, have you heard from the intelligence agencies or officials or other members of congress, leadership, etc.? >> i have received emails from various members of the leadership. i expect i will get a more in- depth briefing when we resume this evening. host: what is the leadership telling you? >> i think everyone is thrilled with the news. and what it means to the people that lost loved ones on 9/11, what it means to the whole country, with a means to our were efforts in afghanistan. at every level, it is enormous significance. none of us think this is over by any means, but this is a moment we avoided for from his 10 years. host: congressman, thank you for your time. as we wrap up today's "washington journal," we will return to your phone calls and what you make of the news osama bin laden killed. let's go to land the, virginia. caller: i am not a big fan of osama bin laden or bunning president obama, but let's face it. the man did a good job. he deserves it. i was disappointed in his speech last night. the number of times he said "i." i directed leon panetta when i took over office to make this a party, i repeatedly met with my security council last week, i determined we have enough information, i directed we launched the target. one sentence,

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