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When it comes to the U.S. presence in Iraq, there’s been a lingering question as to how many American servicemen and women would remain in the country in 2012. Even as U.S. combat troops returned home, there was an expectation among many that thousands of American servicemen and women would continue to serve in Iraq to assist the country with special operations and training.
That’s not going to happen. This afternoon, President Obama announced that all U.S. forces will be entirely out of Iraq by the end of this year.
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In his remarks in the White House briefing room, the president noted that, as a candidate, he “pledged to bring the war in Iraq to a responsible end.” It’s a commitment he’s been able to keep.
“I can report that as promised, the rest of our troops in Iraq will come home by the end of the year,” Obama said. “After nearly nine years, America’s war in Iraq will be over.
“Over the next two months our troops in Iraq, tens of thousands of them, will pack up their gear, and board convoys for the journey home. The last American soldier will cross the border out of Iraq with their heads held high, proud of their success, and knowing that the American people stand united in our support for our troops. That is how America’s military efforts in Iraq will end… Today I can say that troops in Iraq will definitely be home for the holidays.”
Perhaps realizing what’s on the minds of American voters, the president added he intends to “enlist our veterans in the greatest challenge that we face as a nation: creating opportunity and jobs in this country. After a decade of war, the nation that we need to build — and the nation that we will build, is our own. An America that sees its economic strength restored, just as we restored our leadership around the world.”
It looks another check mark on the president’s “promises made, promises kept” list.
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chi res on October 21, 2011 1:39 PM:
How long before we hear the first "Well, it's about time!"
Burr Deming on October 21, 2011 1:44 PM:
Amazingly, President Obama's success in getting out of Iraq was more than half of the total Republican deficit plan. The one that would also end Medicare. I'm not making this up. So perhaps the GOP should take credit for getting out of Iraq?
Jurgan on October 21, 2011 1:46 PM:
Here's a test of the so-called "professional left." Not long ago, Glenn Greenwald was insisting that Obama was going to leave thousands of troops in Iraq after the end of the year. I'm sure others have said similar things. Now, if they want to wait a few months, on a "see it to believe it" premise, that's fine. But if it comes through, these people need to admit they were wrong and that President Obama kept this promise. This is where I lose patience with Obama's liberal critics. There's nothing wrong with holding a president to account, regardless of party, but it seems most of these left-wing critics are only interested in criticizing Obama for failing their purity tests, regardless of the larger context and regardless of whether it has any positive impact on the debate. We'll see what happens.
fostert on October 21, 2011 1:47 PM:
It obviously can't be All troops, but this is good enough. There is an embassy to guard, and that will take at least 100 troops. I guess it could be private security, but that would cost more. Nice to see it wind down.
c u n d gulag on October 21, 2011 1:49 PM:
By this time, after everthing from saving the auto industry, to saving the economy, to killing those pirates, to the beginnings of national health care, to killing bin Laden, to the ouster of Mubarak, to the death of Qadaffi (and, now that the MFer's dead, can we come up with some consensus on how to spell his name?), the heads of Conservatives probably look like those alarm bells ringing in those classic cartoons.
I'm glad.
And, yes, chalk up another one in the "Promises Kept" category.
Barack Hussein Obama - the anti George Walker Bush!
Memekiller on October 21, 2011 1:49 PM:
Let me be the first to congratulate the French on their victory...
Josef K on October 21, 2011 1:52 PM:
Good news, yes. I just hope official Washington has learned something from this debacle.
Probably all the wrong lessons, but I've so little hope there in the first place.
Burr Deming on October 21, 2011 1:53 PM:
Awesome
Memekiller: "Let me be the first to congratulate the French on their victory..."
Did I mention awesome?
Bartender on October 21, 2011 1:57 PM:
Now if Obama can only pull the Republicans out of Congress by years end we'll be able to move the country forward!
TCinLA on October 21, 2011 1:58 PM:
And the only reason this is happening is because the Iraqis told him to go jump in the lake, after he spent the past six months trying to convince them they needed 10,000 "trainers" and "protectors" (USAF units still in-country, etc.), and said they would enforce the agreement Bush made. "So get out already!" was their response, and left with no alternative, and unable to change the rules at this late date, the Good Emperor has seen fit to follow the agreement.
Ah yes, it's a bright day that will see the last of the Imperial Wehrmacht drag its ass out of Poland, er, I mean Iraq, but don't give the Good Emperor any points on this one. He only did it with a political gun pointed between his eyes.
bdop4 on October 21, 2011 1:59 PM:
This is truly great news and I'll be watching for the follow through.
When it happens, I will be the first to admit that I was wrong and congratulate President Obama for delivering on this promise.
rikyrah on October 21, 2011 2:02 PM:
can I just go YEAH!!!
can't wait to hear the GOP's whining and bitching about this.
JohnN on October 21, 2011 2:10 PM:
People should read media from outside the US or media written by people who know the region.
Obama didn't bravely "keep his promise" he got booted out by the Iraqi parliament and administration who refused to give our forces legal immunity for whatever crimes they might committee (or be accused of committing). Our government wanted to stay in Iraq. See for example:
http://www.juancole.com/2011/10/this-is-the-way-the-iraq-war-ends-with-bangs-and-wimpers.html
martin on October 21, 2011 2:13 PM:
Would it be tacky to suggest Obama send a picture of the last soldier to be killed in Iraq to George W Bush as a reminder? W can put it next to Sadaam's gun and the Most Wanted Deck of Cards.
bastard
Davis X. Machina on October 21, 2011 2:16 PM:
There must be no more oil there.
T2 on October 21, 2011 2:17 PM:
The GOP will be lining up later today to shake their heads and intone that stopping the war without consulting the Generals on the Ground will result in Iraq being blown up.....oh wait, we already blew it up.
Somewhere, eating a pizza, Herman Cain is saying "where is Iraq, Erak, Orac...well, whatever you call it. I can't know everything".
And somewhere Cheney and his daughter are saying "I told you we would win quickly...didn't even take 10 years"
Stevio on October 21, 2011 2:18 PM:
Great news. Unfortunately we will be leaving a hundred billion dollars worth of forts, equipment , and bullets. They get them for free because it'll cost too much to transport the shit back to the good ol' USA.. No lease, pay-out. Free.
Two thoughts:
1. Why not ship it all over to Afghanistan? Stuff is always getting blown-up over there, and we can always use the bullets anyway eh? The forts? Let the Iraqis buy them or burn them down or at very least blow them up with some of the ordinance being left there.
2. The most nauseating thing about #1 is that by leaving it there new shit will have to be ordered for billions more.
FUBAR
puravida on October 21, 2011 2:19 PM:
Obama just won reelection.
Holmes on October 21, 2011 2:21 PM:
First off, I think we need to distinguish between what the Pentagon wanted and what Obama wanted. As we saw with the Afghanistan deliberations during Obama's first year, the Pentagon is more than willing to burn the President if it suits their goals.
Obviously, some in the Pentagon wanted to stay. Perhaps Obama was willing to go along, or even wanted to keep troops there, but it could just as easily be a case of Obama using the Iraqis' refusal to give us immunity as a pretext for achieving his goal of getting all the troops out quickly.
c u n d gulag on October 21, 2011 2:25 PM:
Now, let's GTFO of Afghanistan!
Hedda Peraz on October 21, 2011 2:35 PM:
Well, about time!
Those brave troops are needed on the Tex/Mex border.
Why, just this morning I found a wetback raiding my garbage can.
T2 on October 21, 2011 2:37 PM:
Kills Gaddafi, ends Iraq war and here's what Obama has to show for it:
President Obama's approval rating sunk to a new low for the 11th quarter of his presidency, according to Gallup's daily polling of public opinion over the course of his presidency.
jjm on October 21, 2011 2:39 PM:
Obama has rewritten the book in the Middle East and N. Africa and has done so in a way that will lead to better outcomes for both the short and long term futures. We should be most grateful as a nation for his intelligent leadership.
Now, give Afghanistan the heave ho, along with the increasingly asinine looking GOP, and we're good to go forward once again.
Unabogie on October 21, 2011 2:39 PM:
I love some of the commenters above.
Obama secretly wanted to stay, so he's only leaving in order to fool you into thinking he's doing what he wants, when in fact he wants to do the opposite.
Jon Stewart made fun of the GOP for being incapable of giving credit where credit is due. The same can be said of Obama's "base"
Josef K on October 21, 2011 2:44 PM:
I won't argue what exactly prompted this last withdrawl; whether it was the Iraqi Parliament refusing the President or the latter's own position or whatnot. Doubtless there will be plenty of tell-alls published in the future on that one.
The fact remains President Obama is effectively ending this fiasco of a pointless occupation in a region that really doesn't like us. Hopefully it'll also lead to a reduction in tensions with other national powers in the region (like Iran).
Pity it didn't happen sooner.
Mnemosyne on October 21, 2011 2:46 PM:
And the only reason this is happening is because the Iraqis told him to go jump in the lake, after he spent the past six months trying to convince them they needed 10,000 "trainers" and "protectors" (USAF units still in-country, etc.), and said they would enforce the agreement Bush made.
You have an extremely simplistic view of the politics in Iraq if you think it was the US's sole idea for them to possibly stay. There have been factions within the Iraqi government who have been wanting the US to stay since before the SOFA was signed, and the battle was primarily between those groups within Iraq, not between the US and Iraq.
I'm not quite sure how you can look at the laughable proposal by the US that we would stay if our troops were all made immune from prosecution and think we weren't stacking the deck in favor of Iraq's "go home now!" crowd, but I realize Obama can do nothing right for you. Even if he does do something you want, he must have done it by accident.
ada on October 21, 2011 2:49 PM:
I think this was one of the best, simple, short and precise speech by Obama.
anyway, Holmes (commenting above) is right. Let' not oversimplify things.
It's also true that the it's ultimately Nuri el Maliki-lead Iraqi government that decided not to renew the contract with US troops. Please do not forget that we are talking about now democratic (enough) iraqi people's will. it's their solvent country.
America did get rid of Hussein which was good but caused a civil war there, but we didn't ditch them and now they have a functioning army and police (though there are reports of tortures) and a somewhat functioning parliament where voters turnouts are greater than that of Americans.
sure, Baghdad is much worse than it was under Hussein economically, but Northern Kurds are doing much better. We should be proud of that, at least.
Also, If you want to be respectable, we should give a credit to "surge" of 2007-8 by Robert Gates which Bush approved when Obama opposed at the time.
Not every single thin Bush ever did was all wrong (though still too many mistakes and too few successes)
Now we can move on. hope and change!
sick-n-effn-tired. on October 21, 2011 2:50 PM:
Still leaves me with the same question .
5000 + American Soldiers killed
10's of thousands of Iraqis Killed
For What?
Watch for Muqtada al-Sadr to become the chief power broker very shortly .
It ain't never going to be a secular democracy , never
Anonymous on October 21, 2011 2:54 PM:
"Amazingly, President Obama's success in getting out of Iraq was more than half of the total Republican deficit plan. The one that would also end Medicare. I'm not making this up. So perhaps the GOP should take credit for getting out of Iraq?"
Actually, shortly after Obama announced he would withdraw all of our troops from Iraq, McConnell and Boehner announced they were authoring a bill requiring us to remain there for 10 more years.
Anonymous on October 21, 2011 2:58 PM:
"Still leaves me with the same question .
5000 + American Soldiers killed
10's of thousands of Iraqis Killed
For What?"
For what, you ask?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTMVOzPPtiw
Holmes on October 21, 2011 3:15 PM:
Willard is attacking Obama for leaving Iraq.
acefranze on October 21, 2011 3:18 PM:
Fox News has not commented on this story yet.
JohnN on October 21, 2011 3:33 PM:
Obama secretly wanted to stay, so he ... etc.
He was pretty open about wanting 50k to remain at one point. It was pretty open (to those who read non-US media) that there was significant pressure on Iraq to let us stay.
Of course there are many factions involved, and maybe GWB would have overthrown the current Iraq government to stay, so credit Obama with not being that, but celebrating this great achievement is too much like claiming Gorbachev wanted to end the Soviet Union. And I give Gorby credit for not standing in the way with troops.
I turn the question back on you "Obama all the way" people - since he never said (as far as I know) that we should totally leave (significantly draw down, yes, he said that), what is your evidence that this was his actual intention?
chi res on October 21, 2011 3:39 PM:
you "Obama all the way" people
You got somebody better? Let's hear it. Otherwise, just STFU with that snide-ass shit. You people are making me fucking tired.
OldUncleDave on October 21, 2011 3:50 PM:
I'll believe it when I see it.
I believed this one. My bad.
“I would not have the Justice Department prosecuting and raiding medical marijuana users. It’s not a good use of our resources.” — Candidate Obama, August 21, 2007, Nashua, New Hampshire.
TCinLA on October 21, 2011 4:19 PM:
Hey, "Chi Res" - why don't YOU shut the hell up, you snotnosed little shitbird??? Or at least go out and buy yourself an IQ, since you're obviously one of the hairless bipeds on this planet lacking frontal lobes and opposable thumbs.
Ken on October 21, 2011 4:34 PM:
Anonymous @ 2:54 PM: Actually, shortly after Obama announced he would withdraw all of our troops from Iraq, McConnell and Boehner announced they were authoring a bill requiring us to remain there for 10 more years.
Could they pull a Guantanamo? That is, refuse to provide funds for the withdrawal, presumably while providing the (much larger) amount needed to support them in Iraq?
yellowdog on October 21, 2011 4:42 PM:
All credit here to the men and women who have served or are now serving in Iraq. They deserve praise, and a generous, stand-up "Welcome Home!" Whatever one thinks of the mission, or the way it started or the way it ended, the country owes a debt of gratitude to those who wore the uniform, and to the families and communities they left behind.
June on October 21, 2011 5:10 PM:
Remember this one?:
RUMSFELD: ""It is unknowable how long that conflict [the war in Iraq] will last. It could last six days, six weeks. I doubt six months." -in Feb. 2003"
(More) Stupid Quotes About Iraq.
25 Mind-Numbingly Stupid Official Statements About Iraq
http://politicalhumor.about.com/od/stupidquotes/a/iraqquotes.htm
---------------
Fast-forward to today, a promise kept:
Pres. Obama: “After nearly nine years, America’s war in Iraq will be over,” Mr. Obama declared in the White House briefing room shortly before 1 p.m. “Over the next two months, our troops in Iraq, tens of thousands of them, will pack up their gear and board convoys for the journey home.” Those soldiers, numbering nearly 50,000, will be joining approximately 100,000 others who have already been withdrawn.
GOBAMA.
bdop4 on October 21, 2011 6:37 PM:
After further review, it appears that we are not withdrawing, but instead are being evicted by the Iraqi people.
In light of what has (or more importantly hasn't) been reported, this scenario makes more sense me. It seemed like the stories I had been reading concerned military leaders talking about us remaining there for some time, and then this announcement came out of left field.
The result, however, is still the right one.
Doug on October 21, 2011 8:23 PM:
Let me guess TCinLA, you're not used to having someone address you in a like manner, are you? "Snotnosed little shitbird", indeed! Project much?
All one ever hears from you is cant and jargon. You've got the liturgy memorized and heaven help anyone who doesn't sing along! In a minor key, of course; can't be drowning out the soloist, now can we?
By the way, there wasn't one remark in your second post that supported with, you know, facts, your remarks in your first post. You might actually have had an effective refutation of Chi res' remarks had you done so. That's right, that would have required you thinking outside of YOUR box, wouldn't it? Never mind...
Squeaky McCrinkle on October 21, 2011 8:56 PM:
After all the disagreement above it looks like I'll have to learn the truth when David Gregory asks John McCain about it on Sunday.
JohnN on October 22, 2011 2:22 AM:
Thanks, Doug.
Squeaky - yea, I forgot about that. But true.