End of Iraq War, President Obama's Weekly Update

[BDBoop]

Weekly Address: The End of Combat Operations in Iraq | The White House

 

[Morality Games]

The war is ending with less fanfare than previously seemed possible.

 

[ScottD]

The war is ending with less fanfare than previously seemed possible.

We are too busy being angry at the Mosque to care.

 

[BDBoop]

That, and too many are too busy finding fault with the POTUS regardless of what he does - so I think he's just doing his job without looking for or expecting any thanks.

 

[Conservative]

That, and too many are too busy finding fault with the POTUS regardless of what he does - so I think he's just doing his job without looking for or expecting any thanks.

Now that is funny, thanks for the laugh on a Sunday morning. It really is sad that so many people buy the rhetoric from this empty suit and ignore actual history and results. Candidate Obama was against the surge that created the situation that allowed the U.S. to leave Iraq and it was General Petraeus that initiated this program back in 2007 that set the sights on a withdrawal date that Obama is implementing. Thank you, President Bush, for the win in Iraq! Think our empty suit President will give due credit?

Now Petraeus is back to save us in Afghanistan as Obama fired his hand picked choice to win the war there. Again, President Bush's choice comes to the rescue. Why do liberals ignore actual history and results when it comes to this campaigner in chief?

 

[Sadie]

Conservative:

You are correct. The SOFA agreement was established under GWB's administration, not under Obama's. Our troops have been withdrawn from several cities already since the summer of 2009 as the timeline called for. Obama DID vote against the surge and is now praising it - of course any politician can change his/her mind but O will take credit for anything good that GWB established and use GWB as a whipping boy for his own failures.

Nobody expects O to turn things around over night, but let's stop the childish "it's all GWB's fault" to cover his own flaws. He only comes across as tripping over his own feet when he does that.

 

[Jetboogieman]

Conservative:

You are correct. The SOFA agreement was established under GWB's administration, not under Obama's. Our troops have been withdrawn from several cities already since the summer of 2009 as the timeline called for. Obama DID vote against the surge and is now praising it - of course any politician can change his/her mind but O will take credit for anything good that GWB established and use GWB as a whipping boy for his own failures.

Nobody expects O to turn things around over night, but let's stop the childish "it's all GWB's fault" to cover his own flaws. He only comes across as tripping over his own feet when he does that.

Can someone please show me where Obama is taking credit for this or the surge...

Oh you can't? Good. Maybe that's because Obama isn't a war mongering chest thumping dip ****.

 

[Wiseone]

Now that is funny, thanks for the laugh on a Sunday morning. It really is sad that so many people buy the rhetoric from this empty suit and ignore actual history and results. Candidate Obama was against the surge that created the situation that allowed the U.S. to leave Iraq and it was General Petraeus that initiated this program back in 2007 that set the sights on a withdrawal date that Obama is implementing. Thank you, President Bush, for the win in Iraq! Think our empty suit President will give due credit?

Now Petraeus is back to save us in Afghanistan as Obama fired his hand picked choice to win the war there. Again, President Bush's choice comes to the rescue. Why do liberals ignore actual history and results when it comes to this campaigner in chief?

He should give credit where credit is due, but perhaps without the partisan snobbery. Lets not also forget the several year it took the US, with Bush as President, to figure out how to even make progress in Iraq and Afghanistan. A lot of mistakes were made and a lot of Bush plans regarding the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were clearly wrong, just like Obama's statements against the surge proved to be wrong.

In the end however all one can truly say is that no one is perfect, give credit where credit is due, and for the situation in Iraq Obama was presented, he certainly has handled it well for as long as he has been President even if it was a simpler matter than it was a few years ago.

 

[Conservative]

Can someone please show me where Obama is taking credit for this or the surge...

Oh you can't? Good. Maybe that's because Obama isn't a war mongering chest thumping dip ****.

Obama isn't taking credit for the surge nor is he giving credit for the surge. His supporters are giving him credit for pulling troops out of Iraq and he hasn't corrected them. The act of omission.

 

[Jetboogieman]

Obama isn't taking credit for the surge nor is he giving credit for the surge. His supporters are giving him credit for pulling troops out of Iraq and he hasn't corrected them. The act of omission.

HE IS the one pulling them out... He could have rescinded on that promise but he didn't. I think that's what it's more about....

 

[Conservative]

He should give credit where credit is due, but perhaps without the partisan snobbery. Lets not also forget the several year it took the US, with Bush as President, to figure out how to even make progress in Iraq and Afghanistan. A lot of mistakes were made and a lot of Bush plans regarding the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were clearly wrong, just like Obama's statements against the surge proved to be wrong.

In the end however all one can truly say is that no one is perfect, give credit where credit is due, and for the situation in Iraq Obama was presented, he certainly has handled it well for as long as he has been President even if it was a simpler matter than it was a few years ago.

What has he done well in Iraq, he was left with one task the political solution and he has failed. Iraq has been won militarily but Obama has failed to influence the formation of a govt. So you tell me what Obama has actually accomplished in Iraq?

 

[Conservative]

HE IS the one pulling them out... He could have rescinded on that promise but he didn't. I think that's what it's more about....

He wanted to pull out as a Senator after opposing the surge. I give the guy credit for seeing that political ramifications of pulling out right after taking office and turning victory into defeat.

 

[MaggieD]

That, and too many are too busy finding fault with the POTUS regardless of what he does - so I think he's just doing his job without looking for or expecting any thanks.

You're right. He's just doing his job. I hope he did it right. Leaving noncombat troops is misnomer in a war zone. I hope we don't lose too many soldiers in these noncombat positions.

First US soldier killed in Iraq since withdrawal of combat troops
Attack comes amid growing concern that security will deteriorate further after spate of bombings and shootingsSunday, 22
An American soldier was killed by a rocket strike near Basra today, in the first US fatality since the last combat troops left Iraq. The announcement came amid growing concern that the withdrawal of combat forces will allow security in Iraq to further deteriorate. The past three months have seen a spate of bombings and shootings in the centre and north of the country .

 

[Wiseone]

What has he done well in Iraq, he was left with one task the political solution and he has failed. Iraq has been won militarily but Obama has failed to influence the formation of a govt. So you tell me what Obama has actually accomplished in Iraq?

The Iraqi government has been formed for years now, well before Obama was in office, where have you been? Or am I missing your point?

As for the long term political solution, he is following for the most part the Bush plan he inherited, and there's nothing wrong with it because its a good plan. It was also pretty much set in stone because the Iraqi and US gov'ts agreed to this pullout date and this troop level while Bush was President. But since its a good plan and has obviously shown progress, neither the Iraqi or US governments seek to change it, which can be credited to Obama. He looked at the situation, and changed his mind on his original campaign promise to have the troops out by 2009, and instead went back to the Bush plan. He made a decision, he happened to decide upon a pre-existing plan rather than make up his own, but regardless he made a decision. That is a decision he will be credited with, for better or worse.

But so far it has worked well so, so far he gets positive marks. Now if it turns out, as some people are saying, that Iraq will return to the violence of the past after more of the remaining troops leave than we will examine this decision by Obama again and perhaps re-judge it.

And don't get wrong, the lion's share of the credit for success goes to Gates, Pretraeus, even Bush for ultimately deciding upon the surge and the way those extra troops were used. However to them and others so goes much of the blame too, the post invasion Iraq was a god awful mess and it was so specifically because we had no idea how to control that situation.

So for what Obama has done, which isn't much in comparison to so many others, he deserves the credit and blame for what has happened and what will happen since he took office.

 

[Conservative]

The Iraqi government has been formed for years now, well before Obama was in office, where have you been? Or am I missing your point?

As for the long term political solution, he is following for the most part the Bush plan he inherited, and there's nothing wrong with it because its a good plan. It was also pretty much set in stone because the Iraqi and US gov'ts agreed to this pullout date and this troop level while Bush was President. But since its a good plan and has obviously shown progress, neither the Iraqi or US governments seek to change it, which can be credited to Obama. He looked at the situation, and changed his mind on his original campaign promise to have the troops out by 2009, and instead went back to the Bush plan. He made a decision, he happened to decide upon a pre-existing plan rather than make up his own, but regardless he made a decision. That is a decision he will be credited with, for better or worse.

But so far it has worked well so, so far he gets positive marks. Now if it turns out, as some people are saying, that Iraq will return to the violence of the past after more of the remaining troops leave than we will examine this decision by Obama again and perhaps re-judge it.

And don't get wrong, the lion's share of the credit for success goes to Gates, Pretraeus, even Bush for ultimately deciding upon the surge and the way those extra troops were used. However to them and others so goes much of the blame too, the post invasion Iraq was a god awful mess and it was so specifically because we had no idea how to control that situation.

So for what Obama has done, which isn't much in comparison to so many others, he deserves the credit and blame for what has happened and what will happen since he took office.

Uh, obviousyly you are missing the point, the elections were held in March and no unified govt. has been formed.

I disagree, Obama has done a lot, massive expansion of govt, added to the unemployment roles, added trillions to the debt, headed us into a double dip recession, is taking over 1/7 of the U.S. economy with Obamacare and just this past week said he is "more confident than ever that the economy is headed in the right direction". Apparently to his supporters that is success?

 

[apdst]

Can someone please show me where Obama is taking credit for this or the surge...

Oh you can't? Good. Maybe that's because Obama isn't a war mongering chest thumping dip ****.

Obama didn't say, "I ended the war in Iraq just like I promised to do when I was running for president"?

Oh yeah, he's taking credit for this.

 

[apdst]

The Iraqi government has been formed for years now, well before Obama was in office, where have you been? Or am I missing your point?

As for the long term political solution, he is following for the most part the Bush plan he inherited, and there's nothing wrong with it because its a good plan. It was also pretty much set in stone because the Iraqi and US gov'ts agreed to this pullout date and this troop level while Bush was President. But since its a good plan and has obviously shown progress, neither the Iraqi or US governments seek to change it, which can be credited to Obama. He looked at the situation, and changed his mind on his original campaign promise to have the troops out by 2009, and instead went back to the Bush plan. He made a decision, he happened to decide upon a pre-existing plan rather than make up his own, but regardless he made a decision. That is a decision he will be credited with, for better or worse.

But so far it has worked well so, so far he gets positive marks. Now if it turns out, as some people are saying, that Iraq will return to the violence of the past after more of the remaining troops leave than we will examine this decision by Obama again and perhaps re-judge it.

And don't get wrong, the lion's share of the credit for success goes to Gates, Pretraeus, even Bush for ultimately deciding upon the surge and the way those extra troops were used. However to them and others so goes much of the blame too, the post invasion Iraq was a god awful mess and it was so specifically because we had no idea how to control that situation.

So for what Obama has done, which isn't much in comparison to so many others, he deserves the credit and blame for what has happened and what will happen since he took office.

No, you'll blame Bush and claim that Obama inherited a jacked up exit plan.

 

[BDBoop]

HE IS the one pulling them out... He could have rescinded on that promise but he didn't. I think that's what it's more about....

That's exactly what it's about. No matter what he does he's going to be wrong, soooo; I just consider the source and move on.

 

[apdst]

That's exactly what it's about. No matter what he does he's going to be wrong, soooo; I just consider the source and move on.

It was a bad idea to up-n-leave, when Bush inacted this plan. Sorry, but it's not all about Obama.

 

[BDBoop]

It was a bad idea to up-n-leave, when Bush inacted this plan. Sorry, but it's not all about Obama.

Sure it is!!! You can't have it both ways, starshine. Whenever we say he inherited, you say he needs to STAND UP and OWN HIS OWN. Okay, that's what he's doing. Ta.

 

[The Prof]

for a week, from the vineyard, the president (between hours of golf interrupted by 15 minute meetings with mayor bloomberg and that highly publicized conference call with his economic team which produced nothing) has been trumpeting his next move

(obama's economic team---romer, geithner and summers---now there's an image straight outta sennett)

when he gets back to work next week, he's been telling us for days, his big step is gonna be his tuesday nite address to the nation on the topic of iraq, george w what's-his-name's war

Details About President Obama's Iraq Address Next Week - Political Punch

where you guys been, don't you watch tv, don't you surf?

fine, barry, that's great, but what exactly do you intend to say?

you see, you have to understand inside the president's perplexed pate---heading into november, exactly what triumphs can he trumpet?

he's thinking politically, of course, naturally, heading into an election and all

that means, HEADLINES, what cluster of HEADLINES can he claim as HIS?

to him, he has two bigguns---the auto industry and this, iraq

fine, that makes some sense, even if his candidates are all screaming at him to do something about THE ECONOMY

Several House Democratic sources said they are furious with the White House for keeping the debate over a New York mosque in play for two weeks — and then announcing Obama will use a prime-time address next week to discuss Iraq, not the economy. By the calculations of House Democrats, this means that by Labor Day they will have spent nearly nine weeks this summer beating back negative or unhelpful story lines instigated, in part or in total, by the White House.

Dems privately fear House prospects worsening - Jim VandeHei and Alex Isenstadt and Mike Allen - POLITICO.com

good, so the big prime time pre-empting presser, tuesday!

just what can the president say?

he promised he'd pull out, he's pulling out---ok

but that will leave him a half hour unfilled---hardly good show biz

the instant he says "iraq," even his SUPPORTERS kneejerk---obama dissed the surge

just look what his OPPONENTS have the potential to do with this, look at the opportunity he presents us

RealClearPolitics - Video - Boehner Ad Highlights Democratic Criticism Of The "Surge" In Iraq

will this president, who has most unleaderly-like blamed his predecessor several times a day for everything from oil spills to afghanistan, actually credit what's-his-name for perhaps, here, doing something right?

remember, this is THE MAN, barack hussein obama, who voted the equivalent of "present" when the senate overwhelmingly (72 to 25) denounced that characteristically cruel BETRAY US ad bought by moveon in the ny times

What Obama's Senate votes reveal - Politics - Decision '08 - Barack Obama News - msnbc.com

two years later, after stanley mcchrystal told the whole world that OBAMA'S WAR, his ESCALATION of afghanistan, is a loser, the craven coward in the capital called the commander he castigated to come rescue him

in front of everyone! everyone saw!

THIS is the character of THE MAN

so what can obama say about w's war?

everything's fine, everything's gonna be good?

he better not, as has been noted powerfully above, the boys in baghdad have been roadblocked for months

Biden leaves Iraq with no plan to end deadlock | Reuters)

and grammas and little girls are still being blown to bits weekly

My Way News - 43 dead in string of attacks in Iraq

At least 36 dead as car bombs rock Baghdad hotels | Reuters

no, he can't say all is well over there (but he will)

indeed, in between holes at the vineyard's club the prez proclaimed his pullout "unstoppable"

White House: Iraq attacks won't affect pullout timeline - Carol E. Lee - POLITICO.com

that is, we're outta there no matter what happens, civilian violence, political collapse, even, he implies, some kind of civil war

even if shiite iran makes the mendacious move shiite iran will surely make

on wednesday, outside nancy's, the presidential putz was pestered by reporters---mr president, did you hear about the 40 innocents slaughtered in baghdad today?

hey, fellas, c'mon, the large lobed but tone deaf loser replied, we're trying to buy some shrimp, here

Vacationing President to Press: "We're Buying Shrimp, Guys. Come On." - Political Punch

finally, there's the credibility of the pullout itself, the 50,000 troops left behind

Combat brigades in Iraq under different name - Army News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Army Times

so here we have a pretty full view of where we stand today---ACCORDING TO THE MSM

and barry blithely bounces into tuesday

he thinks this story is a winner for him---hey, we said we'd pull out, we're pulling out

but barry doesn't often see two moves ahead

he really should talk about cars, instead---but then everyone would start asking about the volt

check mate

 

[jujuman13]

Conservative:

You are correct. The SOFA agreement was established under GWB's administration, not under Obama's. Our troops have been withdrawn from several cities already since the summer of 2009 as the timeline called for. Obama DID vote against the surge and is now praising it - of course any politician can change his/her mind but O will take credit for anything good that GWB established and use GWB as a whipping boy for his own failures.

Nobody expects O to turn things around over night, but let's stop the childish "it's all GWB's fault" to cover his own flaws. He only comes across as tripping over his own feet when he does that.

I would have said 'comes across as tripping over his own tongue'.

 

[Wiseone]

Uh, obviousyly you are missing the point, the elections were held in March and no unified govt. has been formed.

I disagree, Obama has done a lot, massive expansion of govt, added to the unemployment roles, added trillions to the debt, headed us into a double dip recession, is taking over 1/7 of the U.S. economy with Obamacare and just this past week said he is "more confident than ever that the economy is headed in the right direction". Apparently to his supporters that is success?

Well I'm talking strictly about Iraq. As for the Iraqi deadlock, what do you exactly expect Obama to do? Iraq has a fully independant government now, I'm sure the State Dept and others are working with the Iraqis still today as we have been in the past, but in the end its Iraq's decision regarding its gov't.

No, you'll blame Bush and claim that Obama inherited a jacked up exit plan.

No, I'll do exactly what I said I would do. I am apolitical to the fullest meaning of the word, there is no partisan in me. Now Obama, as President, made a decision and he will have the credit or blame depending on how that decision pans out, the same with ANY President. If I said Obama only inherited a 'jacked up exit plan' than not only would I be biased but I would also be ignoring the fact that he's President and has the power to change those plans.

 

[Conservative]

Wiseone;1058951526]Well I'm talking strictly about Iraq. As for the Iraqi deadlock, what do you exactly expect Obama to do? Iraq has a fully independant government now, I'm sure the State Dept and others are working with the Iraqis still today as we have been in the past, but in the end its Iraq's decision regarding its gov't.

Results matter, not rhetoric. The election was in March and still no coalition govt. formed. What is the state dept. doing? That is a good question. We won the war but unfortunately may lose the peace. Obama's effort never was in Iraq and it shows with the diplomatic effort or the apparent effort evidenced by the results or lack of them. Obama wants out of Iraq so the hell with the peace, IMO

No, I'll do exactly what I said I would do. I am apolitical to the fullest meaning of the word, there is no partisan in me. Now Obama, as President, made a decision and he will have the credit or blame depending on how that decision pans out, the same with ANY President. If I said Obama only inherited a 'jacked up exit plan' than not only would I be biased but I would also be ignoring the fact that he's President and has the power to change those plans.

Fair enough however I am not apolitical, I am a conservative and have no use for the Obama agenda either in Iraq or Afghanistan. He doesn't seem to understand foreign affairs at all and appears very naive at best in how the world views the U.S. Why anyone would apologize to the dictators of the world who control the media in their countries is beyond me. there is one thing the world respects, strength, not the apology tour.

 

[Crunch]

Can someone please show me where Obama is taking credit for this or the surge...

Oh you can't? Good. Maybe that's because Obama isn't a war mongering chest thumping dip ****.

"As a candidate for this office, I pledged I would end this war. As president, that is what I am doing," Obama said.

Obama talks about Iraq in weekly address – This Just In - CNN.com Blogs

The I's have it.