Goodbye to All That

Obama to Give Major Iraq Speech

Will mark withdrawal August 31.

President Obama will give a major address August 31 to mark the end of American combat operations in Iraq. Though the time and the place haven’t been decided, a White House spokesman left open the possibility that Obama would give the speech in Baghdad. The president will talk about pulling combat troops out of the country as an important milestone, the bravery of soldiers who fought there, and future American policy in Iraq. The number of U.S. troops in Iraq slipped below 50,000 Tuesday, a week ahead of the August 31 deadline Obama had set. Violence has spiked in the past two months. Insurgents had hoped to sow unrest before the official pullout. Obama's currently vacationing in Martha's Vineyard, where reporters are questioning him about Iraq. The president rebuffed them with this comment: "We're buying shrimp, guys. Come on."