I want to thank other members of my administration who are here for this very important occasion to end what has been a very important dialogue. Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz is with us; Andrew Natsios, who runs USAID; Paula Dobriansky, of the Department of State. I want to thank you for going to Afghanistan recently with Joyce Rumsfeld, Secretary Rumsfeld's better half, who also went to Afghanistan recently to spread the word that America will stay the course; that when we say something we mean it and that we say we're going to -- (applause.)
I just named a distinguished American to be a U.S. delegate to the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women, my sister, Dorothy. Thank you for being here, Doro. (Applause.) And I took the recommendation of Vice President Cheney for another member of the same delegation. He suggested that America would be well served by his eldest daughter, Liz. And he's right. Good to see you, Liz. (Applause.)
I want to thank Rend Al-Rahim, who is with us today. Rend, thank you for coming. She's the senior Iraqi representative to the United States. That is a forerunner to ambassadorial status, I guess. Certainly I'm not speaking for what is going to be the sovereign government of Iraq. She's good at what she does, I'm telling you. (Applause.)
There's a lot of ambassadors who are here. I want to thank you all for coming. It's good to see you. I appreciate you taking time to be here. This is an important conference. The message of the United States, about freedom and liberty in the Middle East, is a serious message. And I thank the governments for being here to listen and to help us advance this vital cause for what's good for the world. And so thanks for coming. There's a lot of countries represented here, particularly Middle Eastern countries.
As I told you, Joyce went to -- and Paula went to Afghanistan. There are other members of the U.S. Afghan Women's Council that went to Kabul. I want to thank you all for going. I hear it's -- one of the travelers, Karen Hughes, reported back, and Margaret did, as well -- Margaret Spellings, who is my Domestic Policy Advisor. They said it's unbelievable what's taking place there. The country is transitioning from despair to hope. And it's easy to see now. It's changing, and changing for the better. The people of Afghanistan have just got to know that we'll stand with them for however long it takes to be free.
I appreciate the Iraqi women who attended the Commission on the Status of Women in New York this week. I want to thank you all for coming. I appreciate you being here.
I want to thank my friend, Dr. Raja Khuzai, who's with us today. This is the third time we have met. The first time we met, she walked into the Oval Office -- let's see, was it the first time? It was the first time. The door opened up. She said, "My liberator," and burst out in tears -- (laughter) -- and so did I. (Applause.)
Dr. Khuzai also was there to have Thanksgiving dinner with our troops. And it turned out to be me, as well. Of course, I didn't tell her I was coming. (Laughter.) But I appreciate that, and now she's here again. I want to thank you, Doctor, for your hard work on the writing of the basic law for your people. You have stood fast, you have stood strong. Like me, you've got liberty etched in your heart, and you're not going to yield. And you are doing a great job and we're proud to have you back. Thanks for coming. (Applause.)