By now everyone knows that Our Dear Supreme Leader made a visit to the troops in Iraq (a war zone?)…..anyway with everything that has been going on maybe you, my reader, have forgotten what it was all about…luckily I enjoy catching you up……

If President Trump’s Twitter feed seemed uncharacteristically quiet on Wednesday, now we know why. The president made a surprise trip to Iraq to visit US troops, his first visit to a combat zone, reports the New York Times. First lady Melania Trump accompanied him as he spoke to service members at Al Asad Air Base near Baghdad. Trump was expected to make a second stop as well. Details:

• Defiant: The president struck a defiant tone in his remarks to the troops, notes the AP. “We’re no longer the suckers, folks,” he said. “We’re respected again as a nation.”
• Staying put: Trump said he had no plans to withdraw the approximately 5,000 US troops stationed in Iraq, and he defended his controversial decision to withdraw troops from Syria. “I think a lot of people are going to come around to my way of thinking,” he told reporters, per Reuters. Besides, he said, the US could always deploy the troops in Iraq to fight ISIS if necessary. “In fact, we could use this as the base if we wanted to do something in Syria.”

• Official reason: “President Trump and the First Lady traveled to Iraq late on Christmas night to visit with our troops and Senior Military leadership to thank them for their service, their success, and their sacrifice and to wish them a Merry Christmas,” White House press secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted.
• Long awaited: Trump had been under increasing pressure to visit troops abroad, notes Politico. Barack Obama and George W. Bush, for instance, visited Iraq and Afghanistan multiple times. Earlier this year, Trump had said he didn’t think making such a trip was “overly necessary.”
• Tumultuous times: The visit, of course, comes on the heels of the resignation of defense chief James Mattis over the Syria decision, making this the “biggest week of turmoil the Pentagon has faced during his presidency,” per the Washington Post. Trump said Wednesday that acting chief Patrick Shanahan “could be there for a long time.”

As a news junky I watched his speech from Iraq….it was a damn campaign speech and all about him…..how sad hopefully the troops saw this as well.

I bring this up now because of the report that is coming out of Iraq…..

It seems that there were conditions to Trump’s visit….and they were broken by Trump…….

US President Donald Trump’s visit to Iraq did not abide by conditions set by the Iraqi government, the prime minister confirmed to reporters on Sunday.

Trump’s team told Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi about the impending visit on Wednesday morning, at which time they were given two conditions.

“First, he shall land on Iraqi land and be given an Iraqi reception like any other foreign official,” said Abdul-Mahdi. “Second, there shall be an agenda with specific matters and a short meeting.”

The US delegation initially agreed to the terms, but later backed out.

http://www.rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iraq/301220182

The demand is for 5200 US troops be withdrawn….almost immediately…….

Iraqi MPs have condemned the surprise visit of US President Donald Trump to American troops stationed in the country, calling for them to leave.

MPs from the two largest parliamentarian blocs condemned Trump’s visit, which was not arranged with the Iraqi government, considering it a “violation of Iraq’s sovereignty”. They also set a date to discuss the evacuation of US troops from Iraq, Arab48 reported yesterday.

Saleh Al-Saadi, head of one of these blocs, said that “Trump has to know his limits. The American occupation of Iraq has ended,” adding: “Trump infiltrated Iraq as if it is one of the American states.

https://theantimedia.com/iraqi-politicians-demand-withdrawal-us-troops/

This whole “visit” thing was mishandled and the president did nothing to give the troops hope that they were foremost in the mind of their commander in chief……NOTHING!