I think there is a critical mass of the Iraqi society recognizing that the lawlessness that's taken hold in Iraq is bad for anyone who cares about Iraqi society and a new democratic government emerging there. I think they recognize they're being held hostage.

When a reporter is held hostage, their whole society is held hostage, and that recognition is the most encouraging sign we can hold onto right now.

Every single minute I think about this story, my mind turns to her family and the extraordinary risks she took to do her job over there.

Oh, it's nothing to do with Iraq. It is evil ideology. They are against our society. They are against our democracy. They are against our freedoms.

The law is extremely restrictive in constraining the development of civil society in Iraq; it vests excessive, unwarranted authority in government officials to control the establishment, operation and termination of non-governmental organizations. While there are worse examples out there, this is one of the most restrictive laws we've seen recently.

Just about everybody who is deployed to Iraq is affected in some way.