Politics. On Point.

President Obama took time to give reporters the latest update on the situation with Iraq. Speaking from the James Brady briefing room, the president made it clear that there will be no U.S. boots on the ground given to the war-torn country where the focus is also on humanitarian and  counter-terrorism issues. "We do not have the ability to send troops to Iraq to solve this", he said. President Obama speaking to reporters on Iraq. The president stated his highest priority continues to be the safety of the U.S. and reiterated that Iraq must work together with its own base to solve the current situation, but stressed that both Iran and Iraq, "should avoid steps that might lead to a civil war." Related Iraq.  How did it come to this ?

Approaching the 10-year mark on the war in Iraq we find some harsh words, and discoveries, from those that lived it. As Congressman woman Barbara Lee said this morning on C-SPAN about the war on Iraq (which she opposed), "We bombed the heck out of them". Lee and others now want to begin the healing process of the war-torn nation just as the people and families whose lives have been destroyed by it. The people of Iraq also want to hold the US military accountable for their actions and the destruction of their land, families and nation. Watch this revealing video below as an Iraqi woman talks about the aftermath of the war and havoc it wrecked. The video also contains an interview with a former US soldier, stationed in Iraq, as she shares what her life was like living on the 'enemy' lines. Result of the Iraq war: Birth defects of children. Watch this video as victims of the Iraq war share light on the growing epidemic of babies being born with birth defe...

Our Quote of the Day (QOTD) comes from White House press secretary Jay Carney as he speaks to the press about today's visit between President Obama and Iraqi Prime Minister al-Maliki. Said Carney, "This is a momentous visit..." President Obama shakes hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. AP photo. Here's a bit more of Carney at the top of today's briefing in the James Brady briefing room at the White House. As you know, Iraqi Prime Minister al-Maliki is here to meet with the President.  You will be seeing them both fairly soon.  And if I could just note, this is a momentous visit because, as you know, the Iraq war -- a war that we've been engaged in for 8 and a half years -- is over.  And after eight and a half years of sacrifice, America's war in Iraq is coming to an end.  Since President Obama took office, nearly 150,000 U.S. troops have been removed from Iraq and hundreds of bases have been shut down.  In the next two weeks the ...

(via White House Press Office) Vice President Biden has made a suprised visit to Iraq today. While there, the Vice President will co-chair a meeting of the U.S.-Iraq Higher Coordinating Committee. He will also meet with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, President Jalal Talabani, Speaker Osama al-Nujaifi, and other political leaders. The Vice President will also participate in, and give remarks at, an event to commemorate the sacrifices and accomplishments of U.S. and Iraqi troops. Over nearly three years in office, the Administration has kept its promises on Iraq. American forces withdrew from Iraq’s cities in July 2009. The United States ended its combat mission in Iraq on August 31, 2010, and drew down to fewer than 50,000 troops from approximately 144,000 in January 2009. Throughout this period, violence in Iraq has remained at its lowest level since 2003. On October 21st, President Obama and Prime Minister Maliki agreed that it was in the best interests of both the United S...