John O. Brennan quotes

Jihad is holy struggle, a legitimate tenet of Islam meaning to purify oneself or one's community. (John O. Brennan)
Unfortunately, in war, there are casualties, including among the civilian population. View quote
John O. Brennan
The risk of just one terrorist with just one nuclear weapon is a risk we simply cannot afford to take. View quote
John O. Brennan
We need to make sure that leaks of classified information, of national security secrets, needs to be rigorously pursued and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. View quote
John O. Brennan
I go to bed at night worrying that I didn't do enough that day to make sure I protect the American people. View quote
John O. Brennan
How you define a problem shapes how you address it. View quote
John O. Brennan
I will not, nor will I ever, publicly divulge sensitive intelligence sources and methods. For when that happens, our national security is endangered and lives can be lost. View quote
John O. Brennan
Al-Qa'ida is the antithesis of the peace, tolerance and humanity that is at the heart of Islam. View quote
John O. Brennan
The preservation of our national security and the laws that define us as the United States of America demand that we understand the intersection of the two - indeed, how they reinforce one another. View quote
John O. Brennan
When we uphold the rule of law, our counterterrorism tools are more likely to withstand the scrutiny of our courts, our allies, and the American people. View quote
John O. Brennan
We will use all lawful tools at our disposal, and that includes authorities under the renewed PATRIOT Act. We firmly believe that our intelligence gathering tools must enable us to collect the information we need to protect the American people. (John O. Brennan)
Why should a great and powerful nation like the United States allow its relationship with more than a billion Muslims around the world to be defined by the narrow hatred and nihilistic actions of an exceptionally small minority of Muslims? View quote
John O. Brennan
We are in this business, whether it be intelligence or the government, to protect freedom, democracy and liberty, not to violate that. View quote
John O. Brennan
A lot of things look good on an academic's blackboard in terms of the actions that need to be taken. It's almost like a football coach, when you draw the X's and O's: Every play that is chalked on that board goes for a touchdown. Well, there are a lot of yards to be made between the line of scrimmage and the touchdown. View quote
John O. Brennan
I'm neither Republican nor Democrat. I've worked for the past five administrations. View quote
John O. Brennan
The men and women of the CIA are a national treasure. View quote
John O. Brennan
We are a nation of laws, and we will always act within the bounds of the law. View quote
John O. Brennan
Where terrorists offer injustice, disorder and destruction, the United States and its allies stand for freedom, fairness, equality, hope, and opportunity. View quote
John O. Brennan
By the time President Obama took office, Guantánamo was viewed internationally as a symbol of a counterterrorism approach that flouted our laws and strayed from our values, undercutting the perceived legitimacy - and therefore the effectiveness - of our efforts. View quote
John O. Brennan
I want to be very clear - whenever it is possible to capture a suspected terrorist, it is the unqualified preference of the Administration to take custody of that individual so we can obtain information that is vital to the safety and security of the American people. View quote
John O. Brennan
We know from the material that was recovered from the bin Laden compound that bin Laden was looking at the 10th anniversary of 9/11 as an opportunity to strike yet again at the U.S. homeland. (John O. Brennan)
In full accordance with the law - and in order to prevent terrorist attacks on the United States and to save American lives - the United States government conducts targeted strikes against specific al-Qa'ida terrorists, sometimes using remotely piloted aircraft, often referred to publicly as drones. View quote
John O. Brennan
As a matter of international law, the United States is in an armed conflict with al-Qaida, the Taliban, and associated forces, in response to the 9/11 attacks, and we may also use force consistent with our inherent right of national self-defense. View quote
John O. Brennan
To me, terrorists should not be able to hide behind their passports and their citizenship, and that includes U.S. citizens, whether they are overseas or whether they are here in the United States. What we need to do is to apply the appropriate tool and the appropriate response. View quote
John O. Brennan
As far as the allegations of the CIA hacking into Senate computers, nothing could be further from the truth, ... We wouldn't do that. I mean, that's just beyond the, you know, the scope of reason in terms of what we do. View quote
John O. Brennan