ARLINGTON, VA - NOVEMBER 29: Israeli Minister of Defense Ehud Barak speaks to the media after Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta presented him with the US Medal for Distinguished Public Service during a news conference at the Pentagon, on November 29, 2012 in Arlington, Virginia. Barak announced earlier this week that he was withdrawing from elections to be held in January and leaving political life. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)