the balance we strike between interest of security and our value of privacy. in some cases i believe we compromised our basic values by using torture to interrogate our enemies and detaining individuals in a way that ran counter to the rule of law. so after i took office we stepped up the war against al qaeda but we also sought to change its course. we relentlessly targeted al qaeda s leadership. we ended the war in iraq and brought nearly 150,000 troops home. we pursued a new strategy in afghanistan and increased our training of afghan forces. we unequivocally ban editor chur, civilian courts, worked to align our policies with the rule of law, and expanded our consultations with congress. today osama bin laden is dead, and so are most of his top