Obama’s Weekly Address: Marking the Anniversary of the End of the Iraq War
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SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images(FORT BLISS, Texas) — Two years after he ended the combat mission in Iraq, President Obama is touting his plan to bring troops home from Afghanistan, saying it’s time to “do some nation-building here at home.”
In his weekly address, the president congratulated troops for a “job well done” in Iraq but noted “there is still difficult work ahead of us in Afghanistan.”
“We’ve broken the Taliban’s momentum in Afghanistan, and begun the transition to an Afghan lead. Next month, the last of the troops I ordered as part of the surge against the Taliban will come home, and by 2014, the transition to Afghan lead will be complete,” he said in remarks taped at Fort Bliss in Texas, where Obama addressed troops Friday.
The focus on Afghanistan comes after the Obama campaign criticized newly-minted GOP nominee Mitt Romney for failing to mention the men and women serving there in his speech at the GOP convention.
“As long as we have a single American in harm’s way, we will continue to do everything in our power to keep them safe and help them succeed. That means giving them a clear mission and the equipment they need on the front lines,” Obama said. “But it also means taking care of our veterans and their families. Because no one who fights for this country should have to fight for a job or a roof over their head when they come home.”
The president highlighted his administration’s efforts to boost veteran services and support military families, saying “it’s time to build a nation that lives up to the ideals that so many Americans have fought for — a nation where they can realize the dream they sacrificed to protect.”
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