CNN

Mike Syracuse, NY., The masses of troops need chem suits, armored vehicles and other personnel protection measures far more than they need a few new fighter jets.

I would love it if Barry would just stay in Iraq, or Turkey, or Englad. basically anywhere but America. He has been apologizing for me and everyone for the last several days so he might as well just stay over there. Can we impeach this guy already and get a true liberal in the Oval. This guy is giving democrats a bad name . . .

Ex-military in Texas, if little georgie had kept his eyes on the prize in Afghanistan (you remember OBL, don't you?), American troops would have been finished and out of there years ago. And even if they weren't, that's where the terrorists who attacked us are training. It's better to eradicate an entire colony of aggressive africanized bees than to try to deal with them after they've left the nest to stir up trouble. That, combined with the carpet bombing of his best friends the Saudis – who BTW are the one funding the terrorists – would have put a stop to this fiasco in short order. President Obama inherited this disaster from little georgie. If anyone thought for a minute that he could turn things around in a matter of weeks, I've got more bad news for you; the tooth fairy, the easter bunny and santa clause aren't real.

It is sad to see that no matter what President Obama does,some people will never give him credit.A lot of these naysayers are mostly illiterate and backward people who need to go back to school to learn how the world works.regarding the North Korea situation,America has to respect the opinions of other countries by doing things legally and following due process.North Korea is not going anywhere until the UN has come to a decision (thats why it was set up anyway) and America would be foolish to try to go it alone this time when they can hardly handle,talk less of finish what they started in Iraq and Afghanistan,and later turned around to beg other countries to join.This time,the President knows that America is just 5% of the whole world and it is always wiser and more moral to seek the opinion of others before jumping into a situation like North Korea is presenting.Most of these idiotic naysayers are just empty drums filled with undeserved pride.
"It is the greatest General who wins over his enemy without firing a shot" ....Sun Tsu.This is exactly what President Obama is doing.Kudos.

Fact is the surge worked the way is was intended. Bush negotiated the exit strategy with the Iraqi goverment. The troops have to be out by the end of 2011. Obama isn't doing anything differerent in Iraq.

@ Dutch

Most of th epeople here pretending to be upset at him not pulling all troops out immediately are GOPers jsut trying to stir up resentment and criticism of Obama. You can tell when they start using GOP talking points in the midst of pretending to be an anti-war hippy. Best left ignored.

George:

"Lets be honest. Right now the republicans, the extreme right wing puts party ahead of country. Many good republicans in the middle pray that Barack does well for all of us. "

RE: Lets be honest. Right now the democrats, the extreme left wing puts party ahead of country. Many good democrats in the middle pray that Barack does well for all of us. "

C'mon now. Do you REALLY believe ANY party, Democrat or Republican DON'T put party politics ahead of Nation?
Both parties have lost their identities over the past year.

Nancy Pelosi wasted SO MUCH time in congress last year as speaker by creating and scheduling wasteful and ponderous "resolutions" denouncing Pres. Bush and the War in Iraq rather than scheduling other issues such as infrasctructure, economy, etc. And yes, there are others in the Repub. side of the aisle too.

What a smart move!

Though no big surprise, I still feel surprised to read the news. This young generation Prez is full of smart surprises.

Freed_From_W April 7th, 2009 10:18 am ET

I'll take the current plan, seeing as it's much better than the "100 years of war" that McCain and the GOP want, but 35,000-50,000 troops is still an occupation
______________________________________________________

wow, you guys are STILL misquoting him. He said that we could be there for 100 years. Didn't say we would be at war. We've been in Germany for what, 75 years? Not at war. Been in South Korea for more than 50 years. You think you're gonna see ALL troops out of the middle east...ever? I doubt it.

Obama is following George Bush's plan for withdrawal in Iraq – no more no less. But the war in Afghanistan is now Obama's War as he escalates there. And Obama will also own the war in Pakistan, and in Iran, and in North Korea. Let's have no more "I inherited this" nonsense. Time to step up Mr President and get us out of Afghanistan, Heroin Capital of the MidEast, and home to the most corrupt government on the planet.

Dean in Florida,

If I recall President Obama and the democrats wanted a timeline to begin with and the GOP and Bush were adamant about saying that it was declaring defeat. Ah poor short memory repugs and their distorted views.

Actually, President Bush signed an agreement that was put forth by the Iraqis. He had little choice.

Wow...America agrees with his plan according to a CNN Poll.

Well...unfortunately....there is no Obama plan. The withdrawal of troops and the timeline given was negotiated by President Bush.

But....CNN will not report that of course with their crack team of "journalists"

Obama should get a frequent flyer pass to Afghanistan as US troops will be dyiung there for the next decade or longer.

Sounds like he is pretty much following the Bush plan. Not an original thought in his head except for taxing us more.

JJ: He isn't ending the war....we will still have 35-50,000 troops over there. (If he doesn't waiver on that promise too). He is taking the troops coming home from Iraq and sending them to Afghanistan. Oh wow - big difference - not. Try having 3 family members being sent to Afghanistan this year with minimal support systems greeting them when they get there. I say enough. Bring them home. Let that whole area just take care of themselves....bring our soldiers home. Lord knows there are very few people in this country who deserve the sacrifice our troops make. God bless our troops.

this poll shows it is APPROVED of Obama's job?.... truth spoke that CNN has been on Obama's shadow ever since he running for president. So, CNN did not show any real truth that Obama has been done wrongly. Every other media showed that as long there is TRUTH in America.

Oh, i forget that Obama is D, never been telling truth that he going to let FULL government control... I have to remind myself to not vote for him.

Good plan. Seven years overdue.

The President is going in the right direction. As long as the solution is war the goal can never be peace. The world deserves better than we have received from our elected officials in the area of peace and reconciliation.

People who really want to know why war is always proposed should follow the money trail of who benefits during times of war. Does Halliburton sound familar

Obama claims that he respects our military people. Yeah, right. This is another example of Obama lying to the American people and our service women and men. Obama wanted our veterans to pay for their own medical care for war related injuries instead of the VA picking up the tab. That doesn't sound like a president who cares about our soldiers. Sounds to me like he DOESN'T CARE about them. What is Obama thinking... that the it is an injured soldier's fault they were wounded in combat and that the government doesn't have to pay for their health care? And then Obama has the nerve to cut our military spending when we are engaged in two wars and much of our military equipment is worn out from these wars. Yeah... he really is making America safer and cares about our military. What a joke!

This is the same plan Bush approved. Amazing, and now Obama is getting praise.

While we are at it, I think he adn the Dems owe McCain an apology for blasting him for the 100 years comment. Looks like Obama is keeping 35k-50k troops in Iraq without a withdrawl schedule.

America is now in favor of the Bush/McCain plan. God forbid it gets reported that way.

@ Same Old White House

I understand why your upset, but we can't pull out of Iraq haphazardly. There needs to be a gradual draw down in forces before all boots are off the ground. That is the safe and responsible way of doing it. As the President has said in the past, " we must be careful of pulling out of Iraq, as careless as we were going in." Be patient.

It's funny how President Obama was critized by many including McCain on not going to Iraq and he went and was critized. Now as President he goes to Iraq in an unannounced stop and he is critized for his going there. Sounds like a "DAMMED IF YOU DO AND DAMMED IF YOU DON'T".

I think the critical people are being so critical for reasons other than his going or not going to Iraq. I noticed that nothing was said when Former President Bush went on an unannounced visit to Iraq.

Mike Syracuse, NY: Cutting the F-22 is actually a smart thing. It is an expensive, pig of a plane that is no more effective than the F-35 that is ramping up production. The government can buy 3 F-35s for the price of 1 F-22. It's called cutting unecessary spending.

To Same Old White House: Your vote counts, I voted for him too
to end the war, he is doing that. This takes time you just cant
say end the war and you be out of it in 48 hrs. Reminder this was Bush war 7 years of it...........

The president campaigned on ending the war and taking the troops out. He did not and the war is not over. False promises yet again that never made sense to begin with.

While he's pulling troops out of Iraq, more or less in line with Bush's timeframe, let's remember he's sending more troops to another useless war in Afghanistan.

For all those that keep spouting this was Bush's plan... This has been Obama's plan for a couple years now. Bush decided to go along with this plan a couple months before leaving office. Bush was criticized by fellow Republicans because his plan sounded too much like what Obama was proposing. Get a clue, and come again.

Reading some of the comments posted here make me sick to my stomach. There is so much hate amongst Americans it isn't even funny. This article is simply stating that the President stopped in Iraq. I think it is a wonderful thing when the Commander in Chief stops to visit with the troops that are in harms way regardless of why, justifiable or not, they are there. Maybe if we all threw our support behind our government regardless of party, maybe America can be a "united states" country instead of the division that has been going on.......................................

Well Sniffit

I’ll give you a good reason for the war in Iraq and I won’t even bring up the WMD’s.

You ever heard of the invasion of Kuwait? Did you just happen to forget about that mess?

In addition, I’ll point out Saddam lost that war and was subject to any terms we spelled out. The problem with that is he would not give into the terms he signed off on. In fact, he had his military fire on our pilots for years and we just look the other way.

How many years of sections, did we impose on him and have him throw out inspectors like trash.

He did everything in his power to provoke a war with us. Sorry to tell you but if you keep pushing someone long enough they will hit you in the face.

Don’t try to place blame on Bush for it put the blame on Saddam that is where it should be. Moreover, I want to point out how many Kurds did Saddam have killed there in Iraq? Do those people being murdered bother you at all?

Bush signed the SOFA in 2008.... this is a done deal.
ALL us troops will be out by the end of 2011... That's already law!

Nice spin though... good to see so many Americans approve of Bush's plan... I'm betting they wouldn't have if they would have known it wasn't Obama... but then again... the majority of Americans are uninformed and just tow the neighborhood line. Sad really

It reads......."The new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey also showed 63 percent of Americans oppose the War in Iraq while 35 percent approve. The poll, conducted between April 3-5, interviewed 1,023 adult Americans and carries a margin of error of plus or minus three points." 1000 people polled – wow now that's really showing what america thinks, huh? LOL. polls are polls and the results depends on who is taking the poll. CNN folks are going to poll in favor of Obama because CNN largely pulls liberal readers. Fox News would poll the other way because Fox largely pulls conservative readers. Either way. 1000 people does not represent America or what it thinks. Come on CNN, what a laugh.

I can't wait to hear what you Obama supporters are going to say WHEN the next "terrorist" attack on the U.S. comes. When a defense mind like his, it's only a matter of time, and probably sooner than later. Get ready folks!!

Mike Syracuse, NY wrote:

Gee isn't leaving 35-50,000 troops there 'indefinitely' a lot like what McCain recommended? Funny how he won't commit to a timetable for pulling those troops out saying it depends on conditions…just like McCain. Not saying I disagree with the strategy, but it's McCain's strategy, not Obama's. I'm way more worried about the announced gutting of key defense programs like F-22. How do you support our troops while at the same time not giving them the tools they need?
----------------------------

LOL Sounds like a question you might have wanted to ask your beloved President Bush eh?

Barack will be treated with respect in Iraq. A good unit of measure will be how many shoes he gets thrown at him. My best guess is zero.
This trip has lit the candle op hope throughout the world, and only the jealous will say it hasn't. Lets be honest. Right now the republicans, the extreme right wing puts party ahead of country. Many good republicans in the middle pray that Barack does well for all of us.
Newt Gingrich says we should have shot down the North Korean missle with a lazer. Has anyone not told Newt, we don't have a lazer system in place yet? DUHHHHH.
Newt criticized Barack for saying he wants a world without nukes, and
guess what??? I have a video of Ronals Reagan saying the same thing. Newt thought that was fine.
Right wing, please fly away and let the rest of us try to patch America.

Dutch/Bad Newz, you tell that to the families of every soldier that comes back in a coffin. From here on out the blood is on the democrats for not ending the war. I voted for him to end the war not wait another two years. Another campaign lie. I will vote 3rd party in 12.

Gee, it's amazing that the exact same plan was such a horrible idea under Bush is suddenly such a great idea under Obama. You dumbocrats are laughable.

It is easy to fight a war if you are not the one doing the fighting. The war in Iraq will never be over. We will always have troops there.

Some day someone will have to explain why we went to war because it was not for WMD's.

What a bunch of Bull ! He is doing exactly what Bush would have done anyway.

Nice job. The only problem is that this is not Obama's plan. The Bush administration developed this timetable.

Beth – "Yes, the he can now start withdrawing troops, thanks to the surge that he voted AGAINST"

What?

Hi you guys, the president is doing a great job. Wait a minute, somedody saying that Bush started the plan of withdrawing the troops from Iraq? You jokers, do you have any sense, why did he start the war in the first place? Can you rewind your unchanged minds and ask yourselves why Americans are hurting? Do you know that the past 8 years the cost of running Iraq war was never in books for your people to know the truth ;; 10billion dollars a month? Leave the president alone to deal with this mess and keep your little comments to yourselves. Americans will give him more time to see how things works. We all know reps don't support him and that is ok. most and I mean most not minority Americans support the president so far. This is a guy who takes time to digest something before he vomits it out. he chooses his words and that is the type of president we need.
Good job mr president.

As a Veteran that has served two tours in Iraq, I approve of the president's plan to get us out of there. Many of feel that if McCain had been elected, we wouldn't have gotten out of there for a very long time.

Reading comments below it appears that the problem with the obvious black OR white thinking pattern of the Republican part of our nation seems to be that as a democrat Obama just HAS to do the complete opposite of what Repulicans would have proposed.

If he does so, he is: a socialist who makes the country less safe

If he doesn't, he is: drawing fire for reaping the "fruits" of the Republican policy and ideas

Seems like the Right has too much froth in front of their mouths to see clearly.

It was quite a coinicidence about the the timing of the Bush administration starting to come around about removing troops. from Iraq. They had been saying no way and that such talk was spineless, cowardly and a sign of surrender. McCain inferred that several times during the campaign. Then just as Sen. Obama went to Iraq last summer during his campaign trip, the leader of Iraq supported almost exactly what Sen. Obama was proposing. He agreed with Mr. Obama's plans openly which must have been a huge embarassment for the Bush administration and Sen. McCain. Anyway, thank goodness Pres. Obama won the election and there already seems to be a feeling of more peace and stability in the world. It's about time.

It's past time for America to lead and stop fighting wars that result in death and destruction without honor. There can be no peace in the world without diplomacy and that's why Obama gets respect from foreign countries which is long needed.

now we need to elect a republican in 2012 to clean up the BIG MESS that the democrats are making............obama is so full of himself, he needs to think of the American People first............

Objective, Bush did do that, after Obama suggested he would do it. Still, the man is stickig to his guns.

Ummm, McCain was pushing for more troops in Iraq.

@ Slider, who said "I'll give the slow-witted ones a hint: it isn't because we were supposed to find WMD, or that this is "Bush's War"."

Well, isn't this the epitome of crazy? So your justification for Iraq being a necessary, righteous war is that some secret reason only beknownst to you and those "in the know" exists, but you fully admit that the ones that were publicly given to convince the American public and Congress to support the war were big fat lies? Let's here it for rational thought!

Here's a hint for you: taking down dictators who refuse to kowtow to our demands, while propping up others who do (Musharef), is hypocritical and horrible foreign policy that only serves to weaken the trust other nations have or could have in us. Moreover, fighting a war in order to secure control over another country's natural resources is immoral at the basest of levels. Lastly, Iraq was not a massive harbor for terrorists until we moved in, at whic point that phenomenon grew immensely, and the FACTS and EVIDENCE show that our involvement in Iraq and the ancillary action we took, such as opening Gitmo, have had the paradoxical effect of increasing terrorist recruitment, destroying countless Iraqi families and angering an entire generation of Iraqi boys/men...with the Bushtard and Cheneybot taking their rightful places as poster children for that recruitment.

Great job Mr. President.

If every great idea Obama has is really something W or McCain thought of first, then why don't you like Obama more?

For those of you who say President Obama needs to listen to military–HE IS. Neither the far left 19% or the 11% far right in this poll are dealing with reality. He is assessing each situation with a lot of input from a lot of knowledgeable people and adjusting accordingly. His mission overseas began the change of tone and began building relationships. Through strong relationships things can get done, but it takes time. President Bush could not or would not build relationships and it cost us dearly. The polls show most Americans realize how complicated our world is and "one size does not fit all." I, for one, am thrilled to see intelligence and thoughtfulness back in the White House-the world seems to think so too.

300,000,000 Americans and they polled just over 1,000. Nice.

mike

The Iraq War has cost the American people a staggering amount of dollars, but more importantly the staggering cost of life. I know loss of life is apart of war, but I as an American can never get used to the idea. I am glad we are making steps towards getting out of Iraq. We have been there far too long, and it looks like there was no real reason for us to be there in the first place. It is time for the Iraqi people to act like adults and stand on their own two feet and live like human beings. I believe America has sacrificed more than enough. It is time to give our men and women in our Armed Forces some much needed rest, Afghanistan awaits them. Thank you, Mr. President for doing a great job.

You mean the plan McCain campaigned on not Obama???

@ Charles Atlanta,

How is this bringing closure to 9/11? Are you liberals really that narrow minded?

We can not get out of Iraq fast enough.
Now, let's take the same apporach in Afghanistan. For the past 1500 years no one has been able to wage a successful military campaign there. Does anyone remember what happened in the 80's to the Russians?

Well I disagree only because it isn't happening fast enough.
Iraq has been a disaster from day one and the sooner we put it behind us the better.

Why does Obama keep saying "I'm not naive"? That is making his being naive even worse by then lying about it. Please stop saying that, just say your piece and get off the stage quickly.

I am a proud Republican, and I to agreed that we should have invaded Iraq. I also agree with getting the troops out of Iraq. But one thing you all need to remember, this was not just about WMD's, whih by the way were found in the form of toxic gases buried underground, but thes was also about freeing the Iraqi people from a horrible dictator, which we did very quickly! Plus, don't get all proud thinking Obama has set a date for the troops to be out of Iraq, that is the media blinding you with worthless lies. Bush and the Iraqi Government decided that 2010 would be a good time to get out, Obama just set the final date, so once again, there was already a course of action in place, Obama just finished the lightwork. Bush and his adminastration did a good job in Iraq. I have 3 family members in the military that agree and a Brother that works there as a contractor that agrees as well. Stop depending on the media to make up your mind. Get the facts first!

Of course Americans do. We discussed it for a year and a half.

I'll wait for the party of NO ideas to make up a new history to match their made up present. You guys ought to work in Hollywood. The creativity is unmatched.

Great Job President Obama.

Don't listen to these crazy republicans, they are out of touch anyways.

Do you get the feeling that Obama sees the presidency as a steppingstone?

Bush already signed an agreement to withdraw our presence from Iraq by 2011... just to put things in perspective.

Mr. President...you are amazing. You are the best!!

Yes. The remaining 30% are all Limbaugh's followers. We have to put a closure on 9/11. Guess what, Bush blew up the chance to close the war on Afghanistan and we ended up with two wars and cost trillions of dollars.

it is time to let the iraqis rule themselves and get our boys home

enough is enough, let the iraqis try, it will never be perfect, they need to walk and then run, but if they don't try themselves, they won't move in the direction of their own country, but instead continue the occupation mindset

Funny that "his" plan is actually identical to the one Bush had put forth, yet Obama is given credit for "ending" the war, when it was already winding down when he took office.

Ridiculous!

Yes, he can now start thinking about withdrawing troops, thanks to the surge that he voted AGAINST.

I am absolutely amazed that there are people here criticizing the President's stop in Iraq. Regardless of your opinions of his policies, there is no way anyone could possibly twist this stop in Iraq into a negative thing. What could POSSIBLY be wrong with the Commander in Chief visiting the troops and military commanders on the ground, seeing the conditions first hand, and meeting with the Iraqi Prime Minister? The morale boost to the troops who serve the Commander in Chief with no questions asked alone makes the trip worthwhile!

Yes, the he can now start withdrawing troops, thanks to the surge that he voted AGAINST

Gee isn't leaving 35-50,000 troops there 'indefinitely' a lot like what McCain recommended? Funny how he won't commit to a timetable for pulling those troops out saying it depends on conditions...just like McCain. Not saying I disagree with the strategy, but it's McCain's strategy, not Obama's. I'm way more worried about the announced gutting of key defense programs like F-22. How do you support our troops while at the same time not giving them the tools they need?

It's sad that the majority of Americans want to remove our troops in Iraq when the overwhelming majority of Americans cannot even be bothered with learning why we are in there in the first place.

I'll give the slow-witted ones a hint: it isn't because we were supposed to find WMD, or that this is "Bush's War".

I think President Obama is doing a great job considering he's cleaning up after 8 years of failed policies and the bad blood they created.

What we need is intelligent planning and execution, not 'bring it on' grandstanding that only serves to create more terrorists. Obama is bringing America back to its place in the world.

BHO's lack of experience and common sense continues on display for the world to see. Well, at least he showed North Korea who's boss. And, Iran is worried now also.

But not to worry folks, BHO is cutting back on the defence budget for new wepon systems. Peace, love, and joy will soon settle over the world, all thanks to BHO.

My support for you President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama is unwavering .
You are the light and we love you .

This will definitely push the haters over the edge!! GO BARACK!!

Lets' see...70% support can't be that bad. I for one supports him 100% so too are millions who believe he is doing the right thing.

Good heavens we now have a President that is going to get us all out of that mess and hopefully Afghanistan. Bring everybody back home and TAKE CARE OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE FOR A CHANGE Jim Hall Kansas City Missouri.

After Bush's Folly in Iraq, I find it hard to believe that 11% of those polled still want us to stay there indefinitely.

Another campaign promise kept!

Keep up the great work President Obama!

cut and run baby the american way lets Europe handle it

Hoorah! God speed, Mr. President.

Yes the war was virtually over thanks to Bush , BHO is just cleaning up after a great success in Iraq.

We support you 100% Mr. President.

Unlike most people here, I don't care what Americans think. I do care however about what the military commanders on the ground think. And that is what Obama should be doing....listening to them, not the American people. If you listen to the American people you increase the risk of being right back over there.

Also, don't get so excited yet. Those soldiers aren't being brought home. They're being brought back to the bases to retrain for deployment to Afghanistan. We're simply moving the theater of operation, not ending a war. And if you think we had casualties in Iraq, wait until you are fighting in the mountains of Afghanistan. Hello Vietnam the Sequel.

Our President is getting it done... he's isn't setting back waiting for things to happen, he's setting the course.
He's an excellent President (no matter what the naysayers and the media say).

My support of President Obama is unwavering. He is doing the job we hired him to handle. Under circumstances we can only begin to imagine, President Obama is making the decisions of a true American leader.

Please support President Obama's budget so we can clean up the other mess from the previous administration.

I'll take the current plan, seeing as it's much better than the "100 years of war" that McCain and the GOP want, but 35,000-50,000 troops is still an occupation.

Stay safe everyone. Good to see you care about our troops and their (our) future where Iraq is concerned

Well, it is about time he paid attention to our American troops! He has been over there tooting his own horn about how everyone should love the US and he hasn't bothered to show any love to our men and women serving us over in Iraq, so it is about time! Will he give a campaign speech to these guys trying to explain why Gates is cutting the defense spending budget? He had better, because that is a grave mistake and shows how this administration thinks that our military don't deserve the very best in defense. Come home, Obama, quit campaigning and start governing, not just overtaking.

What Obama has shown on his tour is that his foreign policy is as flawed as his domestic policy. He threatened North Korea, saying violations will be punished, then did nothing but offer the US to reduce its nuclear stockpile.

The overwhelming success of Obama's presidency belongs to America's enemies, who will be strengthened over the next four years.

But at least Obama was reminded that China still has a veto in the UN security counsel and that Austrian is not a language.

Let us remember that 90% of us supported President Bush's invasion of Iraq in the beginning. I did too. Colin Powell's speech before the UN convinced me that we needed to do something about the WMDs in Iraq, which ultimately were found not to exist. If you are 30 or older, you probably supported it too. (If you are in your 20s, you were just a kid in 2002 and you are not responsible.)

The next time an Administration tries to stampede us into a war, let's all remember how much better off we would be now if we had had a good debate about our Iraq policy.

The 19 percent must be McCain, Chaney/Bush followers......which you can see is almost NONE........whats this tell the Republicans? Even if it tells them they need to make some drastic changes in their party, do you think they will? NO.......

The President campaigned on ending the war and that's what he is doing. Carry on Mr. President.