Since most Americans don't read Arabic and don't follow the Iraqi press outlets, the news that CENTCOM Commander Gen Lloyd Austin visited Iraq last week and, with a delegation which includes US Ambassador to Iraq Stephen Beecroft, met with Deputy Prime Minister Saleh al-Mutlaq could have completely escaped their attention were it not for a Wednesday post at The Common Ills asking "Why is Gen Lloyd Austin in Iraq today?"
Although Alsumaria reported on it, it was apparently a hush-hush visit.
By day's end, DoD, CENTCOM and the US Embassy in Baghdad had all remained silent about the visit -- on their home pages, on their Facebook pages and on their Twitter feeds.
The visit, they wanted the American people to believe, just did not happen.
It really is something the lengths the administration will go to in order to deceive the American public. It really is something how the US press will rush to assist the White House with that goal.
What was being discussed in the meet-up? Iraq's security and the best way the US military could 'help.' The Strategic Framework Agreement, first signed in 2008, and the Memorandum of Understanding allowing US forces back into Iraq were the topics.
Whos-it-says-whats-it?
Oh, yeah, the MoU.
Another thing the press 'forgot' to report on. Readers of The Common Ills are aware of that because TCI actually covered it -- and did so repeatedly. Such as in the April 30th Iraq snapshot:
December 6, 2012, the Memorandum of Understanding For Defense Cooperation Between the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Iraq and the Department Defense of the United States of America was signed. We covered it in the December 10th and December 11th snapshots -- lots of luck finding coverage elsewhere including in media outlets -- apparently there was some unstated agreement that everyone would look the other way. It was similar to the silence that greeted Tim Arango's September 25th New York Times report which noted, "Iraq and the United States are negotiating an agreement that could result in the return of small units of American soldiers to Iraq on training missions. At the request of the Iraqi government, according to [US] General [Robert L.] Caslen, a unit of Army Special Operations soldiers was recently deployed to Iraq to advise on counterterrorism and help with intelligence."
Other than TCI? Well the press wasn't interested in it back in December and hasn't been since; however, US Congressional Research Service report from last month, Kenneth Katzman's "Iraq: Politics, Governance, and Human Rights," does discuss it.
Where is the MSM? CNN, The New York Times, et al?
Where is the beggar media of Amy Goodman and Danny Schechter and the rest of the lazy bums who hang out on street corners begging for your money so they don't have to go out and get a real job?
They're all silent.
In silent service to the government?
