WASINGTON, DC – FEBRUARY 29: (AFP-OUT) U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta makes remarks prior to U.S. President Barack Obama speaking at a dinner on February 29, 2012 in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C. The Obama’s are hosting a dinner to honor the Armed Forces who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn and to honor their families. (Photo by Ron Sachs-Pool/Getty Images)