Obama Announces End of Combat Ops in Iraq : Video

President Barack Obama addressed the nation from the Oval Office Tuesday evening, announcing the formal end of combat operations in Iraq. The announcement comes more than seven years after the initial invasion, initiated by the George W. Bush administration, based upon the suspicion of Saddam Hussein’s possession of weapons of mass destruction.

For America’s servicemen and women, Obama offered gratitude on behalf of the nation and lamented the extensive loss of blood and treasure.

From the president’s Aug. 31 remarks (read the full transcript):

[...]

Ending this war is not only in Iraq’s interest — it’s in our own. The United States has paid a huge price to put the future of Iraq in the hands of its people. We have sent our young men and women to make enormous sacrifices in Iraq, and spent vast resources abroad at a time of tight budgets at home. We’ve persevered because of a belief we share with the Iraqi people — a belief that out of the ashes of war, a new beginning could be born in this cradle of civilization. Through this remarkable chapter in the history of the United States and Iraq, we have met our responsibility. Now, it’s time to turn the page…

50,000 troops remain in Iraq, serving in an advisory and training capacity.

Obama Oval Office image via whitehouse.gov

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Colin H.

3:52AM PDT on Oct 24, 2010

Noted and signed!!

send a green star

Walter G.

5:32AM PDT on Sep 4, 2010

Bush beat him to it, I wonder how many times he'll have to come back and re-state it.

Brian E.

9:43PM PDT on Sep 3, 2010

We Paid a huge Price like a Trillion dollars on a country
that had nothing to do with 911 and we in Reality have nothing to show for it but talk , and were leaving 50,000
behind at what cost . And No One Mentions the 210,000
Private Contractors . How about the dead soldiers and the
possibly near 1 million innocents ! . There isn't an Iraque in the General Public who will till you their lives are Better !.
Also Obama Just Shifted the War to Afghanistan ! . Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan couldn't beat the Afghans the Russians with 250,000 crack troops and they Border the Afghans Couldn't either ! , It Bankrupted them . Another VietNam or Worse ! . Hell were already Bankrupt why not go all the way ! . B
And for all who can't count that High ,
1 million seconds = just in to 12 days
1 billion seconds = 33 years
1 Trillion seconds = 33,000 thousand years
And were in the Hole For 14 Trillion ! .

Wild T.

10:20AM PDT on Sep 3, 2010

We seem to have a contradiction in terms here. Calling our paternalistic elite system of nationalistic corporate/wealthy media manipulating a democracy. A system based on secret actions for secret reasons explained by deceptive and misleading terms. Whiel there realtiy seems to be Might makes Right... and we pay taxes and participate in meaningless elections and allow ourselves to be used as military cannon fodder but are nto to worry our pretty little heads about the details... just keep buying and consuming snd following the movie stars and public scandals that prove to us that people who do the wrong things always get in trouble...like having too much sex and enjoying life too freely...

Janice P.

8:26AM PDT on Sep 3, 2010

One last comment. Thank you, Toby G., for the honest disclosure. These issues MUST be addressed forthrightly by our government. The people have the right to know what is being done in our name (even if it is done under the banner of a private concern) and with our tax dollars. WE must DEMAND this information. And, we must demand change. We are not little children whose parents can be trusted to act in our best interests. We are CITIZENS. Have we forgotten that?

8:21AM PDT on Sep 3, 2010

8:09AM PDT on Sep 3, 2010

I am so proud of our membership. Most of the comments on this article were spot on. All of you said exactly what I would have written, in particular Marilyn L., Jim Steve, Jamie Clemons, Rosemary G., and Sheila N.

The only comment I have left is, as Colin Powell forewarned, "You break it, you buy it". We broke it, and, I am afraid, we will be paying a very high price for it for a very, very long time to come, either surreptitiously and covertly or outright, or both.

Our fate was sealed with a war started on the basis of lies and in an attack on a sovereign stabilized, albeit brutal, country, which had absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with 9/11. A situation begun on falsehoods will continue in falsity until the truthseekers demand an end to it from their government. Appeasement by wordsmiths, statisticians, and slights of hand will only allow the falsehoods to continue and will expand our debt and prolong the anguish of many.

Furthermore, I agree with the sentiments of Sheila N. and Tony I, when they pointed to the thousands of military bases we have all over the world. It is impossible to believe that none of those nations are capable of defending their own territory.

On the other hand, if all of those service members were discharged and came home, what would that do to our already TRUE unemployment level? There are no jobs now for the unemployed civilians or veterans. America, what have we allowed to be done to us?

Erasmo j.

6:49AM PDT on Sep 3, 2010

yeah, right, just like he announced he was going to close the Guantanamo prison where they torture and kill people. This is B.S.

11:00PM PDT on Sep 2, 2010

Who wrote this? He did a really good job reading it.

6:32PM PDT on Sep 2, 2010

I do believe Obama did us an injustice by being so nice and not stating the obvious. This was an illegal war started by Dubya and his cronies under non-existant weapons of mass destruction. But then, it's all just one party anyway. We need to demonstrate for positive change. MLK was a Socialist and said that a guaranteed annual income was the only way to protect the poor. And he was right.