One Last Visit

President Bush makes surprise appearance in Iraq and Afghanistan

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Just after 5:30 a.m. in Afghanistan on Monday, more than 1,000 U.S. soldiers stationed there wiped their sleepy eyes to see President George W. Bush standing before them. The early wake-up call was just one of the stops on President Bush's surprise two-day visit to Iraq and Afghanistan.

This journey is a farewell tour for the outgoing President. Bush took the opportunity to say a final thank-you to the troops in Afghanistan for their dedication and hard work.

"You know, [I'm often asked], 'What are you going to miss?' I'll miss the airplane, of course," Bush joked. "But I'm mainly going to miss being the Commander in Chief of such an outstanding group of men and women."

The President then flew to the capital city of Kabul, where he met briefly with Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai. In his opening remarks before reporters, Bush reaffirmed his support for the young democratic government.

"It's in our interest that Afghanistan's democracy flourish," he said. "It's in America's interest that we forever deny safe haven to people who still want to kill our citizens," Bush said, referring to the Taliban.

The Taliban is an Islamic group that took over Afghanistan and established a Muslim government there from late 1996 until the end of 2001. Taliban militants, with the help of the terrorist organization Al Qaeda are trying to regain power over the current democratic government in Afghanistan.

For security reasons, the President's trip was kept secret. Bush's public schedule for Sunday said that he would be attending a holiday dinner at the White House. Instead, Bush boarded Air Force One under cover of night and flew to Iraq, where the whirlwind trip began.

(Map: Jim McMahon)

Bush's farewell visit to Iraq's capital city of Baghdad was a way to emphasize the recent drop in violence. The President also highlighted the most recent U.S.-Iraq security agreement, which paves the way for U.S. troops to leave Iraq by the end of 2011.

"The war is not over," Bush said during a joint press conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki. "[But] it is decisively on its way to being won."

The President's message of progress in Iraq was interrupted when an angry Iraqi journalist hurled two shoes at the President. Bush quickly ducked both size 10's as Secret Service officers grabbed the protester and removed him from the room.

In Iraqi culture, throwing shoes at someone is a sign of great disgust. Most journalists in the room apologized to the President after the incident.

Bush thanked the reporters and continued with the press conference. "This doesn't represent the Iraqi people," he said. "But that's what happens in free societies."

President Bush will return to Washington, D.C., late Monday. He and First Lady Laura Bush will be hosting a series of holiday parties at the White House this week.

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