Security
From NBC's Mark Murray
The vice president's office just announced that Joe Biden has arrived in Iraq. The visit comes just days after the withdrawal of U.S. troops from the country's largest cities. Here's the release:
Vice President Biden has arrived in Iraq to visit U.S. troops and to meet with Iraqi leaders, including President Jalal Talabani, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Speaker of the Council of Representatives Ayad al-Samarrai. The Vice President will reiterate the United States’ commitment to fully implement the Security Agreement and the Strategic Framework Agreement and to carry out President Obama’s plan to draw down U.S. forces. He will discuss with Iraq’s leaders the importance of achieving the political progress that is necessary to ensure the nation’s long-term stability. This is Vice President Biden’s second trip to Iraq this year and his first as Vice President.
From NBC’s Courtney Kube
The Defense Department's General Counsel is now reviewing the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy, spokesperson Bryan Whitman confirmed today.
Speaking to a group of reporters on his plane yesterday evening, Secretary Robert Gates said that when he really examined the law, he found that "it doesn't leave much to the imagination for a lot of flexibility."
Gates asked his general counsel to examine whether there is any flexibility in how the military applies the law. The secretary mused about whether the military should "take action on somebody" if the information about their sexuality comes "from somebody who may have vengeance in mind or blackmail or somebody who has been jilted."
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From NBC's Jim Miklaszewski
Pentagon and military officials report that the withdrawal of most U.S. military forces from Iraq's major cities has been completed a day ahead of tomorrow's deadline.
According to the officials, within the past 30 days, 30 U.S. military bases have either been closed down or handed over to Iraqi security forces. A total of 150 bases have been shut down or turned over to Iraqis in the past nine months.
Despite the withdrawal, many U.S. military forces will remain in the cities, embedded with Iraqi forces as advisers. They would also act as liaison officers who would be able to summon a U.S. military rapid reaction force if needed -- or also call in U.S. military air strikes. Those remaining in the cities would also include intelligence officers.
Neither the military or Pentagon could provide a specific number of U.S. forces left behind.
From NBC's Mark Murray
Pegged to the upcoming July 4 holiday, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee says it will begin airing radio ads against some targeted House Republicans -- including GOP Reps. Ken Calvert (CA), Charlie Dent (PA), and Lee Terry (NE) -- for voting against the recent war supplemental bill.
The ads will begin July 1 and will run for a week.
Here's a sample of one of the ads: "When
George Bush asked, Congressman Terry voted to fully fund our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan," a narrator says. "And last year he said, quote, 'We must give our military every resource it needs.'"
It continues, "Seems like Congressman Terry is playing politics now. Last month Congressman Terry voted AGAINST funding for those same troops... It’s a shame. Call Lee Terry. Ask him why he voted against our troops. Ask him: What changed?"
Republicans who voted against the legislation say they supported the troops, but opposed it because it contained unnecessary spending, like money for the International Monetary Fund.
From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
Don't look now, but an AP wire just crossed that shows, "At least 56 killed, 104 wounded in bombing in Baghdad's main Shiite district," per Iraqi officials.
There really are so many moving parts in the early months of this Obama presidency. They all seem to have a feeling of either all working out -- or coming off at the hinges.
The New York Times: “In his strongest comments since the crisis erupted 10 days ago, Mr. Obama used unambiguous language to assail the Iranian government during a news conference at the White House, calling himself ‘appalled and outraged by the threats, beatings and imprisonments of the past few days.’”
AP's Burns writes, "President Barack Obama described himself on Tuesday as being 'entirely consistent' in his expressions of concern about the disputed Iranian election and the government crackdown that followed street protests. But his language clearly has gotten tougher since his first statement that the suppression of dissent was 'of concern to me.'"
Video: During President Obama’s afternoon press conference Tuesday, he refuted suggestions that he is only now getting tough on Iran. Is his measured approach still the right one? Rachel Maddow is joined by former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.
Certainly, the president's rhetoric has gotten progressively tougher. But the White House would argue -- as the president did yesterday -- that his language has tracked with the situation. When Republicans first expressed outrage about what John McCain called a "fraud" election, Obama tempered his words. After all, the U.S. and the international community had no independent election monitors at polling stations in Iran. And as Obama said, he didn't want to inflame the situation and make the U.S. a "foil" or an excuse for the Iranian government to use violence against protestors. When the Iranian government threatened violence, Obama spoke out more strongly. And now that the government has acted, he has taken his toughest tone. That, the White House would argue, is consistent.
The New York Daily News' cover has a photo of an aggrieved Obama from yesterday's press conference with the headline: "Death that broke his heart." Subheadline: "Obama grieves for Iranian martyr Neda."
From NBC's Libby Leist
Filling in for injured Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a press conference with Georgia's foreign minister, Deputy Secretary of State Jim Steinberg reiterated today that the Obama administration believes "all voices should be heard" in Iran and "people should be allowed to express their opinions" about the election outcome. Steinberg dismissed Republican criticism that the administration is pulling its punches in its support for Iran's protestors.
He said this is not a partisan issue, and there are people on both sides of the aisle that agree with President Obama about ensuring this election is about Iran and not the United States.
Video: The New York Times’ David Sanger discusses whether President Barack Obama’s plan to negotiate directly with Iran’s government could be in real jeopardy due to the protests in Tehran.
Also today, Steinberg confirmed that Secretary Clinton will not travel to Trieste, Italy later this week for a meeting with G8 foreign ministers, to be focused on Afghanistan and Pakistan. Instead, the No. 3 official in the State Department,
William Burns, will attend in Clinton's place, along with special envoys
Richard Holbrooke and
George Mitchell.
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“Iran's Guardian Council, a top review panel with responsibility for overseeing the June 12 presidential election, said it had uncovered some irregularities in the polls, finding the number of votes in 50 districts exceeded the number of voters,” the Wall Street Journal says. More: “The Guardian Council announcement, made Monday on state-run media, was the first admission by authorities of voter irregularities. But a council spokesman also said the irregularities were much less wide-spread than unsuccessful opposition candidates had alleged in recent complaints.”
The New York Times: "On Sunday, the police detained five relatives of Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a former president who leads two influential councils and openly supported Mr. Moussavi’s election. The relatives, including Mr. Rafsanjani’s daughter, Faezeh Hashemi, were released after several hours. The developments, coming one day after protests here in the capital and elsewhere were crushed by police officers and militia members using guns, clubs, tear gas and water cannons, suggested that Ayatollah Khamenei was facing entrenched resistance among some members of the elite."
Video: NBC's Richard Engel explains why the Iranian government has chosen to place responsibility for the civil unrest in Tehran on the shoulders of Britain and the United States.The president, in an interview with CBS to air today, addressed the situation in Iran: "The last thing that I want to do is to have the United States be a foil for those forces inside Iran who would love nothing better than to make this an argument about the United States. We shouldn't be playing into that."
Yet Obama released a stronger statement over the weekend: "The Iranian government must understand that the world is watching. We mourn each and every innocent life that is lost. We call on the Iranian government to stop all violent and unjust actions against its own people. The universal rights to assembly and free speech must be respected, and the United States stands with all who seek to exercise those rights.
And he also said this in an interview with an English-language newspaper in Pakistan: "We respect Iran’s sovereignty, but we also are witnessing peaceful demonstrations, people expressing themselves, and I stand for that universal principle that people should have a voice in their own lives and their own destiny. And I hope that the international community recognizes that we need to stand behind peaceful protests and be opposed to violence or repression. ... What’s clear is that the Iranian people are wanting to express themselves. And it is critical, as they seek justice and they seek an opportunity to express themselves, that that’s respected and not met with violence."
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From NBC's Mark Murray
House Minority Whip Eric Cantor
has fired off another tough statement criticizing President Obama's measured response to the protests and violence after Iran's disputed presidential election.
The human tragedy continues in Iran. Around the world, people are inspired by the courage of the Iranian people fighting for free elections, using new media tools like Twitter to ensure their voices are heard by all of us. America has a moral responsibility to stand up for these brave people, to defend human rights, and to condemn the violence and abuses by the regime in Tehran.
The Administration’s position that what’s going on in Iran is a "vigorous debate" is absurd. People are being brutalized and murdered by the regime in Tehran. We have no idea exactly how many have died or have been seriously injured, since the regime has restricted journalists. In no way do these actions constitute a "vigorous debate."
In fact, Obama has spoken out about the violence in Iran, albeit carefully. As he told CNBC's John Harwood earlier this week, "When you've got 100,000 people who are out on the streets peacefully protesting, and they're having to be scattered through violence and gunshots, what that tells me is the Iranian people are not convinced of the legitimacy of the election. And my hope is that the regime responds not with violence, but with recognition that the universal principles of peaceful expression and democracy are ones that should be affirmed."
From NBC’s Mike Kosnar
Letting the cat out of the bag a bit early, Attorney General Eric Holder said today that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents will get expanded powers to engage in international drug investigations, particularly on the border with Mexico.
For several years the Department of Homeland Security has been in a turf battle with the Department of Justice over the enforcement of drug laws.
Holder, appearing before the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on oversight, revealed that a new agreement has been reached between the two departments giving so-called Title 21 authority to more ICE agents.
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