You are Part of an Impressive Team

Good afternoon, graduates, ladies and gentlemen, family and friends. Thank you Ambassador Pearson, director general of the Foreign Service, for joining us.  On behalf of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, welcome to the State Department's Ben Franklin Room, one of America's distinguished places for honoring citizens of our country and the world.

It's a pleasure to be here today as the men and women of Basic Special Agent Class 85 begin their careers in the Bureau of Diplomatic Security.  To all the graduates, I say congratulations.  You have successfully completed Special Agent training.  I know you worked long and hard to make it to this very important day.

I also want to offer a warm welcome to all the family members and friends who have joined us here today.  We thank you for all you have done to shape the lives of the fine men and women who are now part of our team.  Parents, especially, please know that this is an organization that cares deeply about your sons and daughters.

Graduates, it will take a strong support network to allow you to succeed.  Never forget that at the end of the day, your family and friends will be making sacrifices in support of your dreams. You can never thank them enough.

I recently met with the members of today's graduating class, and was impressed with the caliber of the students, and with the wide variety of experiences they have had.  They are lawyers, chemists, Marines, and marketers.  They speak Chinese, Italian, Serbo-Croation and even Wolof -- a language spoken in Senegal, Gambia and Mauritania. The wide range of experience of today's graduates can only help DS become stronger.

Graduates, from this day forward, you are part of an impressive team.  Diplomatic Security is an organization made up of more than 32,000 agents, engineers, couriers, security specialists, civil servants,and other professionals. Working together, we are a global force.  Our mission is to protect and secure American diplomacy – and to help protect our homeland from terrorists and other criminals.

Today, our country faces threats from elements around the world opposed to the United States and all we represent.  But as a member of the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, you have an opportunity to make a tremendous difference in countering those threats. Diplomatic Security protects America’s embassies, diplomats, and classified information. We investigate passport fraud cases that are often linked to international criminals and terrorists. And we provide protection in some of the world’s most politically volatile places, including Iraq, Afghanistan, and Haiti.

I'm sure that many of you joined DS to answer the call to public service. You joined because you wanted to be a federal law enforcement officer and provide for the safety and security of others.  And believe me, you will get that opportunity.   

After today's graduation, many of you will immediately go to work supporting our efforts to protect foreign ministers and top officials attending the United Nations General Assembly in New York.  Every year, we protect these dignitaries in a massive effort involving hundreds of DS special agents, security engineers, technicians, and other DS employees. 

UNGA is just the beginning. DS agents around the world do what it takes every day to ensure the United States can conduct diplomacy safely and securely. Many of our special agents have gone to great lengths in the past year – sometimes at grave risk to their own lives – to help others.  They've rescued civilians being attacked by armed mobs in Haiti, Sierra Leone and Togo.  They're on the ground at the U.S. Mission in Baghdad, Iraq, ensuring that those working there are safe and secure.

There will likely be life and death situations in the course of your career, as well. Others might very well live or die depending on your judgment, alertness, and — yes—your bravery.  Though you will face difficulties and crises, you are well prepared. Your fine training, your skill, your perseverance and your good judgment will enable you to make all the difference.

Our mission is not an easy one. The threats we face domestically and abroad are real and growing.  As you do your job every day, it is essential that you always do your best.  Vince Lombardi once said the quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence.   Every day, you should strive for nothing less than excellence.

In a few moments, you will receive your badge and credentials.  Your badge, which will cover your heart, is a badge of honor; a badge of courage; carry it proudly.  During your career as a Diplomatic Security special agent, act with integrity and ingenuity, pride and humility, patience and persistence. As you become members of this elite organization, you are called upon to uphold the highest ethical standards and traditions. You must know that from this day forward, all of your actions, on and off the job, will be evaluated from the perspective of you being a special agent in one of the pre-eminent security and law enforcement organizations in the world. 

In closing, let me wish you the best of luck.  You have received superb training and are extremely well prepared to face the many challenges that lie ahead.  While there are certainly sacrifices to be made, they will be dwarfed by the rewards and satisfaction that come with being a member of this truly elite organization.

Thank you.