Obama campaign hails Iraq record ahead of VFW speech
(CNN) – President Barack Obama's presidential campaign touted the candidate's achievement of ending U.S. involvement in Iraq in a web video Monday, hours ahead of Obama's address at the annual convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Reno, Nevada.
The video also came the same day attacks across Iraq killed at least 44 people and wounded dozens more. While overall attacks have dropped off in Iraq since the height of violence in 2006, insurgents have routinely targeted Iraqi security forces and civilians since the United States withdrew its troops in December.
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The video from Obama's campaign centers on a parade held in St. Louis in January, the first major "welcome home" ceremony to be held by a major U.S. city.
The event was held after Obama declared an end to the Iraq war in December. The video uses a clip of the president speaking at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, hailing the service of American troops as an example of what makes America great.
"As your commander in chief, and on behalf of a grateful nation, I'm proud to finally say these two words, and I know your families agree - welcome home. Welcome home," Obama told a cheering crowd.
"Welcome home," he repeated again, to enthusiastic applause. "Welcome home."
Obama used the speech in December to mark the fulfillment of a campaign pledge he made in 2008 to end the war, which began in 2003.
Conservative critics have opposed Obama's decision to end the U.S. military presence in Iraq, arguing that some American forces should remain to help the Iraqis maintain order.
In the campaign video, one Iraq veteran argues Obama "ended the war in Iraq responsibly, he did it respectfully both to the service members serving there and the people that have served there."
Another supporter says Obama has fulfilled his obligation to returning troops.
"As these wars come to an end, we have an absolute responsibility to take care of our veterans," Carl Walker, a Vietnam War veteran, says in the video. "The president has been tireless in his effort to do that. I'm extremely proud of him."
Obama last spoke to the VFW in 2009. His Republican challenger Mitt Romney will address the group on Tuesday.
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Yep Bush & Obama are real commanders in chief- Debt, a shite regime that loves Iran in power, a civil war that will bust wide open in the near future, islamic stupidity for women and any minority that rears its head??? Great job guys!
The Iraq drawdown timeline was in place before Obama became president.
We should have never invaded Iraq in the first place.
Thanks GW Bush for spending trillions and sacrificing so many good young men and woman , FOR WHAT ?
Romney / Bush
Iran , we will be looked on as liberators .2012
President Obama ended the unnecessary war in Iraq and had the courageous forsight to understahd that our valuable resources should not have been diverted there in the first place.
Thank you, President Obama.
Do right wingnuts know that is McCain was elected president, we would be in Iraq for a hundred years? It seems that our president finalized what Bush set out to do.
I am sure he is real proud of himself for making the US look like a weak, unreliable partner to the rest of the world and getting out of there while making sure that we did not get any oil to relieve US taxpayers and consumers. He won a total defeat from the jaws of victory. A complete, incompetent, inept, corrupt, union toady.
Republicans have almost ruined America. They have created class warfare, and serve only at the whim of their corporate masters. I have never seen a more incompetent, inept, group of domestic terrorists, who have made the US a laughing stock around the world.
We can't afford to keep this war going, George Dubs started something that drove our country broke. I love how you clowns blame everything on Obama when it's two wars, tax cuts, out of control spending on the RNC pre recession that drove us in a position where we are. A lot of those goons are still in office and worse yet you elect these tea party idiots. Obamas done a great Job, google 2008-2009 and take a look at what he took over.
O-B-A-M-A 2012. Period.
PS:the best president in modern day history.
Observer, so he moved the valuable resources from Iraq to Afganistan, more Soldiers have been killed there, for what?
The problem is that we shouldn't have gone into Iraq in the first place. With that being said, Iraq is a problem from the get go because of the major split (and other negative feeling between) the Sunni and Shi'ite. There was and is no way to fix that without a major effort from both sides to put aside the differences.
the last time there was a quit day in iraq was when saddam was running the show