'This Week' Transcript: Secretary Hillary Clinton, Sen. John McCain

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is interviewed on 'This Week'

ByABC News
October 23, 2011, 12:22 PM

WASHINGTON, Oct. 23, 2011— -- (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMANPOUR (voice-over): This week, the reluctant warrior, President Obama scores a new success as yet another public enemy meets his fate.

GADHAFI: They love me, all my people with me. They love me all.

AMANPOUR: What the killing of Gadhafi reveals about America's role in the world now and the future of the Arab Spring.

And a promise kept.

OBAMA: After nearly nine years, America's war in Iraq will be over.

AMANPOUR: But as Iraq winds down, Afghanistan rages on. Is the U.S. making much headway on that battlefield? A question for our headliner, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Then, fight night in Vegas.

ROMNEY: Rick, again...

PERRY: You had the floor. You...

ROMNEY: I'm speaking. I'm speaking.

AMANPOUR: Is the real winner of the Romney-Perry bout President Obama? Our powerhouse roundtable with George Will, Matthew Dowd, Donna Brazile and Jake Tapper goes inside Campaign 2012.

And two fighters generally in opposite corners come together in the battle for jobs. Labor leader Richard Trumka and Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue on the strategy they share for putting America back to work.

ANNOUNCER: Live from the Newseum in Washington, "This Week" with Christiane Amanpour starts right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AMANPOUR: Good morning. Lots to get to today. But first, some news since your morning papers.

Breaking news to report: A powerful 7.2 earthquake has rocked Turkey, with its epicenter near the city of Van. A local mayor reports, there are so many dead, several buildings have collapsed. There is too much destruction, he says. Rescue workers are struggling to reach victims trapped under the rubble.

And a milestone in the Middle East this morning, the first election of the Arab Spring. The uprising began in Tunisia last December when a fruit vendor set himself on fire in protest of an oppressive regime. Today, Tunisians headed to the polls. There were 11,000 candidates from 80 political parties, and results will be announced tomorrow.

And in Libya, a day of jubilation as leaders formally declare the country liberated. The clock now starts for a constitutional assembly within eight months and parliamentary and presidential elections within a year.

Meantime, an official autopsy report confirms Moammar Gadhafi was killed by a shot to the head. The transition government has been under international pressure to explain the circumstances of Gadhafi's death. And Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in the region. I spoke with her about the changes in Libya and the administration's decision to pull all American troops from Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: Madam Secretary, thank you for joining us.

Are you in Herman Cain's famously designated "Beki-beki-beki-bekistan"?

(LAUGHTER)

CLINTON: Well, you know, there's a zero-zero-zero change I'm going to comment on Republican politics, but I am in Uzbekistan.

AMANPOUR: Let me turn to something more serious. You were actually in Libya earlier this week. And this week, we all saw the video of the bloodied and dazed Moammar Gadhafi. We saw him now lying in a freezer while Libyans take a look at him. What was your reaction to that video, your gut reaction?