Jim Webb praises Obama for ending the War in Iraq

PRN - GHN News Editor -Senator Jim Webb of Virginia  said two weeks ago something
that has gone without headlines for the most part,  that he was happy
President Obama is ending the war in Iraq.

 
Drawing down the troops and
essentially removing virtually all of them from combat, Webb spoke
eloquently about what was happening.



Television images flash across the
screen, as reporters interview the troops.  There are no serious
discussions about a war that went on longer than World War II, why it
began, what were its dilemmas and who is responsible for ending that
war.



The criticisms of unemployment and
financial woes take the front pages, along with questions again about President Obama's religion and polls saying many Americans believe he is Muslim, which overshadowed the pronouncements made by Webb that were not headlined as the end of the war was observed for Vietnam.

Sen.
Jim Webb ran against Republican incumbent George Allen in 2006 as an
opponent of the U.S. invasion of Iraq.  He said that he is pleased with
President Barack Obama's promise to complete the withdrawal of American
combat troops from that nation by the end of this month.

"I cautioned long before the invasion of Iraq that it is not in our
nation's strategic interest to become an occupying force in the region,"
Webb said in written statement yesterday. "As such, I welcome President
Obama's commitment to withdraw all combat troops from Iraq by Aug. 31.

Webb,
a Democrat who serves on the Senate Armed Services and Foreign
Relations committees, continued, "I am also heartened by the president's
stated intention for all U.S. troops to leave Iraq by the end of 2011."

Obama,
speaking in Atlanta yesterday to the national convention of the
Disabled American Veterans, said the planned withdrawal of U.S. troops
from Iraq is proceeding "as promised" and should lead to an end of
America's combat mission there by Aug. 31.

As
for the war in Afghanistan, Webb isn't saying anything, at least not at
the present time.  He has said he will not comment on Obama's troop
buildup there until the administrations reports to Congress in December.

U.S.
Rep. Robert J. Wittman, R-1st, a member of the House Armed Services
Committee, also issued a statement after Obama's remarks.

Wittman
attributed the success in Iraq to the "service and sacrifice" of
American forces as well as Gen. David Petraeus, who recommended the
surge strategy now in place there.

"While the Iraqi security situation has improved, there is still work to be done," Wittman said.

This week Americans watched the troops marching home from the war in Iraq and as fingers pointed at other things, often at the top of the news; the joy in the faces of soldiers seemed to have brought Jim Webb's message home.