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As the U.S. military departs Iraq, the CIA is looking at secret counterterrorism and intelligence programs run inside that country for years by the Joint Special Operations Command. The programs involve everything from the deployment of remote sensors that scan the wireless spectrum of terrorist safe havens to stealth U.S.-Iraqi counterterrorism commando teams. National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor said “As we complete the drawdown, we will continue to have discussions about how to meet their security needs in a manner that meets our mutual interests,” he said. “Possibilities could include training, exchange programs, tactical exercises, and regular coordination. The...

POTUS Obama throws out a gesture to his partisans by announcing the withdrawal of all US troops in Iraq by year's end. The Kurds will dig in and do fine. Baghdad is now under the boot of Tehran. POTUS aims to get the US troops out of Afghanistan also, but 2014 if he is still in office. The US exit from the Middle East creates the vacuum that Riyadh will battle Tehran to fill. Reports arrive that Maliki blocked a transitionary force, because he bows to the Tehran stooge Sadr. The battle lines in the ummah are drawn sharply. Tehran-Baghdad-Damascus-Beirut...

Law: American heroes are arraigned for allegedly punching a terrorist in wartime. What happens to Tiger Woods isn't vital to our country's future. What happens to Matthew McCabe, Julio Huertas and Jonathan Keefe is. People are more likely to recognize the names of Tiger's alleged bimbo eruptions than the names of these three Navy SEALs we sent into battle. They are not household names in a nation consumed with Climate Gate, the public option and the antics of billionaire athletes. An administration consumed with apologies has said the architect of 9/11's massacre, Khalid Sheik Mohammed, must be given all the...

War On Terror: As Khalid Sheikh Mohammed receives the benefits of U.S. justice, three Navy SEALs face court-martial for allegedly punching a captured terrorist who hanged Americans from a bridge in Fallujah. Apparently our efforts to impress the world about the marvels of our criminal justice system require us to give foreign terrorists such as Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the man who invented the manned cruise missiles that flew into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and plowed into a Pennsylvania field on its way to the Capitol Building, the full rights and protections of the American citizens he conspired...

Navy SEALs have secretly captured one of the most wanted terrorists in Iraq — the alleged mastermind of the murder and mutilation of four Blackwater USA security guards in Fallujah in 2004. And for their trouble, three of the SEALs, members of the Navy's elite commando unit, are now facing criminal charges, sources told FoxNews.com. The three have refused non-judicial punishment — called an admiral's mast — and requested a trial by court-martial. Ahmed Hashim Abed, whom the military code-named "Objective Amber," told investigators he was punched by his captors — and he had the bloody lip to prove it....

So says MacsMind (via Flopping Aces via Minority Report via Jeff Emanuel at RedState). MacsMind's post is in response to an all-too-predictable gusher delivered by Democratic operative disguised as Associated Press reporter Jennifer Loven on April 7 (bold is mine): Cheered wildly by U.S. troops, President Barack Obama flew unannounced into Iraq on Tuesday and promptly declared it was time for Iraqis to "take responsibility for their country" after America's commitment of six years and thousands of lives. "You have given Iraq the opportunity to stand on its own as a democratic country," the president said as he made a...

Isn’t it just a pain in the neck when there’s an alternative media that prevents strict message control by a staged-photo-op of an administration and its willing mouthpieces in the MSM? President Obama stands awkwardly in front of hand-selected US troopsIt’s painless for us, of course; rather, that pain is being felt in the necks of those who want to insist that a bow to a Saudi king isn’t a bow, that an omnibus spending bill with 9,000 earmarks is the beginning of earmark and fiscal reform, that indecisively waiting four days while an American ship’s Captain is held hostage...

So the White House decided it was going to "stage" its own surprise visit to Iraq. Here's how the mainstream press reported it: Cheered wildly by U.S. troops, President Barack Obama flew unannounced into Iraq on Tuesday and promptly declared it was time for Iraqis to "take responsibility for their country" after America's commitment of six years and thousands of lives. What a startling change in attitude. From zero to hero. But not so fast. If you're wondering how the man who consistently opposed our troops in Iraq and their mission could be greeted so heartily, you're not the only...

WASHINGTON, April 12, 2009 – The U.S. is on track to meet the terms of a timeline of withdrawal from Iraq, the top American commander in Iraq said today. Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Army Gen. Raymond T. Odierno said he believes the U.S. is prepared to fulfill a deal requiring U.S. forces to leave major Iraqi cities by June 30 and all combat troops to depart the country by the end of 2011. “We continue to work with the government of Iraq so they can meet that timeline so that they are able to maintain stability after...

“Cheered wildly by U.S. troops,” begins Jennifer Democratic Operative Loven’s AP report on Obama’s surprise visit to Iraq on Tuesday. Quite a contrast to the silent treatment Marines gave Obama at his Camp LeJeune speech in late February. Just how did Obama manage to fix that little problem? According to a sergeant in Iraq : *****We were pre-screened, asked by officials “Who voted for Obama?”, and then those who raised their hands were shuffled to the front of the receiving line. They even handed out digital cameras and asked them to hold them up. [Via Macsmind.]**** As supporting evidence for...

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama went for the defining television shot in Iraq and got it — pictures of hundreds of U.S. troops cheering wildly as he told them it was time for the Iraqis to take charge of their own future. The war zone photo opportunity produced a stunning show of appreciation for Obama from military men and women who have made great sacrifices, many serving repeated tours in a highly unpopular war.

Overjoyed troops swarm Obama as he makes first presidential visit to Baghdad The last time his predecessor visited Iraq, he had a pair of shoes thrown at him. But all that Barack Obama was in danger of being hit by yesterday were digital cameras as delighted U.S. troops swooped in to greet their commander in chief. One even hugged Mr Obama, who was making a surprise first visit to the country as President. Huge cheers: U.S. President Barack Obama was swarmed by his own troops as they greeted him joyfully at Camp Victory in Baghdad this afternoon\\ Mr Obama received...

Cheered wildly by U.S. troops, President Barack Obama flew unannounced into Iraq on Tuesday and promptly declared it was time for Iraqis to "take responsibility for their country" after America's commitment of six years and thousands of lives. "You have given Iraq the opportunity to stand on its own as a democratic country," the president said as he made a brief inspection of a war he opposed as candidate and now vows to end as commander in chief. "That is an extraordinary achievement." total of 4,265 U.S. troops have lost their lives in Iraq since March 2003, and Obama said...

After bashing the Iraq War from Great Britain to Turkey Barack Obama further insulted the troops today by telling them that now was the time to start transferring sovereignty to the Iraqis. Iraqi Aswat Aliraq News reported: “The coming 18 months may pose a danger to Iraq, and the time has come to transfer ‘sovereignty’ to Iraqis to run their own affairs,” Obama said. What was completely missed by Obama was that 13 of 18 provinces are already completely under Iraqi control.

Surprise!

President Barack Obama made an unannounced visit to Iraq Tuesday During the campaign season, Obama visited Iraq on a multistop overseas trip. That trip also included stops in Afghanistan, Jordan, Israel, Germany, France and the United Kingdom. Obama's visit to Iraq was a surprise stop at the end of his first overseas trip as president. Turkey was the last scheduled stop on the president's tour abroad. There, he held a joint news conference with Turkish President Abdullah Gul and addressed the Turkish parliament. The stop marked Obama's first presidential visit to a Muslim country.

President Barack Obama tacked an unannounced trip to Baghdad Tuesday, saying a trip to Iraq was critical because progress in a country rocked by a new round of bombings lies "in political solutions." The side trip will include a visit with U.S. troops, a meeting with Commanding Gen. Raymond Odierno at Camp Victory outside the city and calls to Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and President Jalal Talabani. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters Iraq was chosen over Afghanistan in part because of its proximity to Istanbul but also because troops in the war Mr. Obama hopes to end...

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WASHINGTON (AFP) — Prospects for veteran US diplomat Christopher Hill's Senate confirmation as US ambassador to Iraq brightened Tuesday as one of his vocal critics pledged not to block the nomination. "There are better choices out there. But at the end of the day we need an ambassador and, you know, he has many talents," Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told reporters after "a good meeting" with Hill last week. "My concern is that this is a very important position. It would be better (to) have somebody who's knowledgeable in the area, knows the players, but we'll see," he said. "I...