Yesterday, we Americans took a stand against the politics of personal destruction -- rebuffing the onslaught of negative advertising and dirty tricks.

Voters let themselves be heard and ordered a change in government, giving Democrats the opportunity to serve the nation and to provide the leadership that's been missing these past six years in Washington. With this opportunity comes great responsibility, and we must take the challenges ahead seriously, soberly and with clarity of purpose -- on issues like health care, the economy, education, and most of all, Iraq and national security.

It is a mistake for Democrats to celebrate rather than understand the meaning of yesterday's election.

America is looking for leadership right away, and Democrats should push forward a 3-point plan to address the crisis in Iraq and refocus our national security efforts:

1. Change the course in Iraq. Democrats must pressure George W. Bush to listen to the generals on the ground and the whole range of experts -- not just the GOP -- on how to change the course in Iraq. We must work with regional powers, promote gradual transformation and stability, and regain the 'strategic consent' for the long-term U.S. influence in the region. We must use the situation in Iraq to propel us toward this larger goal, and in doing so, we will also find the right way to wind down our deployment there.
2. Rebuilding alliances to address the real national security threats. We must bring our allies into the reconstruction of Iraq to ensure shared responsibility for the ongoing stability of Iraq itself and the region as a whole. We must provide real oversight on government contracts in Iraq; we cannot continue to allow no-bid contracts to Halliburton. And by bringing our allies together, we can finish the job in Afghanistan, and more effectively hunt down Osama Bin Laden and contain Iran and North Korea.
3. Address energy independence and global warming as national security issues. We must put a policy in place to lead us to energy independence and away from the volatile and conflict-ridden regions where, today, the "geostrategic risk premium" is adding billions of dollars to the costs imposed on the American people. Our reliance on oil also impacts global climate change. As I have stated before, global warming has serious national security risks: stretching our military resources to deal with catastrophes (like Katrina) and increasing the potential for conflicts due to the displacement of people, competition for scarce resources, and adverse effects on agriculture.

Thanks to your help, we have a real opportunity to change the course in Iraq and fix our national security policy. And it's only possible because Democrats now have the power in Congress to stand up to President Bush and make change happen. You helped us make history last night, and I can't thank you enough for what you've done.

In this election cycle, WesPAC helped 42 candidates win their races across America, including 25 candidates who flipped their seats from Republican to Democratic seats. Our WesPAC community raised over $1 million for candidates, not to mention the millions of hours of volunteer time members of the Clark community provided to campaigns in every corner of our nation. And I am most proud of the fact that at least 6 veterans were newly elected to House and Senate yesterday. What a tremendous victory for America -- and it wouldn't have been possible without the hard work that you and I and hundreds of thousands of Democrats put in over these last 24 months.

Last night the American people spoke, loud and clear. Now we have our marching orders. It's time to change course.

It's time to lead.

Sincerely,

Wes Clark