one baghdad-born interpreter told me patriquin was in love with iraq. of he was addicted to the culture, he was obsessed by it. he loved the food, the people, he loved everything about iraq, and another baghdad-born interpreter told me iraqis can like you, but they loved him for a lot of reasons. he had a magical personality and a trustful face. his presence was noted immediately. iraqis loved to talk to men with a moustache x he had a moustache, a suntan, dark skin, and a big, muscular body. he looked like an arab. besides that, his heart was connecting to these people. for the average american soldier, iraqis can be hard to sit down and talk to, but they could telepath rick enjoyed eating with his hands, and he didn't fake it. he gave iraqis the most honorable and honest picture of the american people and the american military in particular. they thought he was the true american heart. and this iraqi-born interpreter concluded, my god, there is no one in the world who could have formed a closer connection with the iraqi people than travis did. they adore

george bush is the father of the free iraq. i want to meet with george bush and american soldiers would sort of leave the room laughing, fat chance. he is going to meet george bush and guess what happens in september, 2007, there's a great picture of this, he sits down with george bush has almost an apartment on the conference table in america a few days later satar was killed as was patriquin, but she only achieved that dream that became very, very outspoken in the u.s. and he didn't care who wanted to come after them. come after me i'm ready. i'm a fighter. >> how did they prove to one another. >> i'm giving you observations from people in the room, the translators, such an extent in speculating, but he appeared to be a number of potential allies to patch patriquin. they hit it off in the first few meetings and they were in my book. they are skeptical of americans coming and making promises. they had done that before and things blow up and the americans rotated out in the six months to get in a cast of characters coming in so

he has served as interim prime minister of iraq. leader of one of the main iraqi political parties. alawi is part of the shia community, but he is a rare secular figure in iraqi politics. he joins me now from baghdad. pleasure to have you on. >> thank you. >> let me start with a question that is not directly related to iraq. when you were prime minister, you had to deal with iran and so you have some sense of that government. do you understand what is happening in iran right now? do you feel that there is a real danger of some kind of confrontation with the united states? would they shut down the straits of hormuz? >> i don't think they'll go that far. however, they are using this as rhetoric, but iran needs to change its attitude. it needs to change its performance in the region, i think. they should be less threatening. they should reconsider their policies. otherwise, what iran is doing can lead also to greater risk in the region. >> tell me about iran's influence in iraq. there are many people who believe that the iranian regime

is iran playi ining an increasi role in the politics of iraq? >> definitely, we can see this very clearly. we have seen it after the elections immediately when iran used its influence and dictated what kind of government there should be in iraq. they put a red line against me and against the iraqis. and unfortunately the united states went along with what iran desired. and we want this interference in iraq's affairs is going to lead the country, iraq, to a larger and more significant problems in the future. and this is what's happening now. >> how is the domestic situation in iraq going to end up? the prime minister is trying to arrest the vice president. the vice president has fled to the kurdish areas. how will things resolve? >> well, let me tell you, frankly, there are the los lot problems now. the whole situation is very tense. sectarianism is coming back in force in this country. i think iraq is passing through the most dangerous phase throughithrough i its history now. and i have warned in the very early days, in fact, years ago that secta

and it may be the way for some of us to leave iraq which is some semblance of our departure. but remember 2006 lookedno like hell honors was openingwday up and nothing but a civilp war 11 restrictive slaughter. the weakening happens prepayou former insurgents on behalf of the coalition and to give enough breathing room for things not to fall apart. it turned to the course. >> talk about the sydneyo awakening, but with aawak feeling parcheesi awakening? does he have strong feelings or was he pro-american in? >> to say he did businesss with the americans.di a gangster, of vagabondt vagabond, killer perhaps, this ideology wasal spendable. for members of his family were killed. says a lot of this was in tours tribal feuding. the terms of the archive data, a coalitioni, but heq had a better reason and is very skilled to tellr americans what they wanted to hear. george bush's the father of a free iraq. america is soldiers would leave.o he was a country bumpkin. guess what happened?at he sits down with george bush has a quote partner a few-- later satr was killed as wasdr says patri

think of iraq. and so it will be very hard to to have one address that foreigners can call haven't emerged he is there. that they will speak with one voice that are willing to give up their very seat in the united nations and the i.m.f. and they will speak in voice it is at the moment inconceivable. that britain will give up their rights but also france is not even thinking of giving that up. germany will become too powerful there's simply too much that prevents europe from becoming one political union if you want german chancellor angela merkel she said that political union is already taking shape is it though and what is she basic that statement on well from where we are we are making progress in the in the sense of suggestions of because these are suggestions or plans to have stricter rules and to enforce those rules and her view and her reality that is working moving towards a political union but my critique is that what is lacking and what they're really needed for political union is also in se

is pull troops out of iraq but still less thousands of contractors behind president obama said it was draw all day for u.s. forces in afghanistan which is due in twenty fourteen but winding down the decade of inconclusive wars in iraq and afghanistan won't necessarily mean less wars but rather wars of a different shape shape that was outlined to us this morning in the u.s. is already fighting this new kind of warfare on multiple fronts in different countries with the use of air force with the use of drones levy is one example the whole country was destroyed mainly from air pakistan is another example not not a successful one though people in pakistan are infuriated by u.s. rights which end up killing many civilians and as it happened recently their own pakistani soldiers over washington said the strike was a tragic mistake the u.s. will have to do a lot of damage control work to help the pakistani leadership overcome the humiliation so although the u.s. administration looks at the old strategy of ground wars is passe and irrelevant in this day and age yet it's not clear what result th

for direct military conflict and that in this case is even more dangerous than it was in the case of iraq. thoughts to from here girl lump of a political science professor from paris west university told me that by isolating iran western leaders are trying to improve their political standing in things ignoring the economic dangers that it spells. from an economic point of view it is not wise but you know prim and political point of view this is grandstanding and political. coming from leaders who are facing elections obama in the us and obama has to care very tough on iran because it is accused by the republicans are being soft on iran and so cozy who is quite discredited in crans is trying to score a success so trying to bash iran something good for political reasons for this readers on the domestic stage it can only of course if oil prices continue to raise it would be very bad for the entire global economy i think the sanctions are likely to affect european countries as well and in fact i read that mario drag is asking for a delay for it to live because he ran owes it to live lot of mo

for direct military conflict and that in this case is even more dangerous than it was in the case of iraq john reese political activist national stop war coalition thanks for being on the line from london for us who we touched on it just know that talking about the diplomatic side of it iran's president reiterated his support for a step by step plan proposed by russia and india resolving the nuclear stalemate the comments by mahmoud ahmadinejad obaid in a phone conversation with dmitri medvedev his russian counterpart under the plan no new unilateral sanctions would be applied to iran instead it would respond to questions on its nuclear program one by one the suggestion is then for each point clear the another set of existing sanctions on to rand would be eased or lifted altogether this proposal's not brand new it first made it in washington in july last year but so far it hasn't much support in the west we go to your opinions about it what do you think about it head to our forums of our website r.t. dot com to get involved this is just some of what you've been telling us some of the view

negative do you guys know what iran is oh yes yes yes what's the capital of iraq here's. the president. the president who just died but the capital of the capital yes i do but if you're asking me i can't tell you that either top secret come on i don't know is calling me. snow libya or. anything he gets a. little something if the president of iraq iran iraq all right you know his name but a jet a giraffe or something when it comes to picking a future for the you want to see what comes next may be tough without the knowledge of what has gone on in the past and even the very present it is this it should not be one. of the top secret. troubles a bit later very said. the adventure to a small over the world read to russian white sea for diving and kite surfing. headlines in two minutes. the litmus tests. period. he. says. he wants to go to moscow autopsy doris' u.s. president barack obama signs of pale imposing new tough sanctions on iraq targeting the central banks and financial sector a response. has to run for at least a couple for crucial supply route through which a fifth o

. >> it is good to know that i am a part of history, and it is good to know that i am leaving iraq a more stable country. >> mid-december, the death of yet another tyrant. authority korean state television reported the dear leader kim gung ill died of a massive heart attack. 2012 begins with a flurry of caucuses and primaries as politics returns to the spotlight for november's presidential election. and the pentagon, we will cover it all as it happens. shepherd smith, fox news. >> as we mentioned, the iowa caucus is just two days away and the final push is on. meantime, five of the presidential hopefuls have signed on in hopes of getting their names on the virginia ballot. joining us with more is larry sabato, the director of the university of virginia center for politics. always good to see you. let's talk -- >> thank you. >> thank you. let's talk about what is going on in virginia right now. we underand it that the attorney general may be filing emergency legislation to try to get the ballots opened for the five remaining candidates? >> yes. that is a part of the deal. you know, thi

of what the capital of iraq. the president of iran is now. named medicare jaffery thought we set out for the streets of new york to discover what americans know about their country's policy at home all around the world. there's not much new year cheer from economists predicting a return for recession in europe for two thousand and twelve in fact our leaders use their new year messages to warn of hard times ahead for their countries german chancellor angela merkel said europe was facing the most severe test in decades while french president sarkozy has warned that the debt crisis blanketing the continent was far from over many governments have been forced to slash their spending to meet debt obligations as economic growth in europe has been at a standstill for months some analysts believe that the e.u. leaders are keeping the eurozone together are only deepening the crisis. in leaders are trying to shore up the eurozone by having greater degrees of centralization and more having countries like france and germany have the final say in a sense o

the capital of iraq. you know the president of iran is. you know a name that a general gaffe or something we set out for the streets of new york to discuss what americans know about their countries policy about the globe. there's not much in new year cheer from economists predicting a return to recession in europe for two thousand and twelve in fact leaders used new year's messages to warn of hard times ahead for their countries german chancellor angela merkel said europe was facing its most severe test and decades of french president nicolas sarkozy has warned that the debt crisis of the continent is far from over many governments have been forced to slash their spending to meet debt obligations economic growth in europe has been at a standstill for months investment advisor patrick young says he doubts the single currency has a viable chance of survival over the next twelve months. unfortunately the prognosis for the new year must be one of a terrible high go for it is absolutely to my mind clear that we are going to have a crushing rece

what's the capital of iraq here's. the president. bush president he just died what about the capital of around the capital yes i do but if you're asking me i can't tell you that either top secret come on i've always called him and. it's not libya it's pakistan anything he gets a. little something if the president of iraq iran iraq right all right you know his name but a jet a giraffe or something when it comes to picking a future for the you want choosing what comes next may be tough without the knowledge of what has gone on in the past and even the very present situation our party we are. a sport a bit later this hour and find out why english soccer team manchester city's new yes liberations have been extra special but headlines are next in just a few moments here on r.g.p. . the closeup team has been to dagestan. birthplace to the most ambitious football club in the world. no argy goes to the far east where the tuber industry affects the legendary siberian tigers where the native community loses its weight in the modern world. and w

secretary of defense panetta mentioned iraq. in all due respect, iraq is unraveling. it's unraveling because we didn't keep residual force there because the president of the united states pledged to get out of iraq. we could have kept a residual force there and kept some stability. instead, it's unraveling and iran's influence is increasing. there's every possibility you could see a very chaotic situation in there. >> schieffer: do you think there's a civil war coming there? >> i think there's clearly an unraveling going on, which could eventually lead basically into three different kinds of states in iraq. we needed to keep a residual force there. that was what the bush administration envisioned. and that is what we should have done. we never gave them a number until, in the words of general dempsey, the numbers cascaded down to 3,500. the iraqis were ready to deal on the issue. this administration did not give them a number. what the perception is now, particularly in that part of the world, is that the united states is weak and withdrawing. that is also having its e

i knew joe truly wanted to get out of iraq and wants to get our soldiers out of afghanistan as soon asn be pulled out. so i -- one of the reasons i wanted my husband to run for president in the first place, i wanted -- i knew joe would fight to get out of iraq. for me, when we joined with the administration with barack and michelle, i knew that, you know, it's a dream come true that now we're out of iraq and we're moving towards moving out of afghanistan. >> as a mother, in the position of having a son out there, what did you find were the most difficult things to deal with, when you're talking to all the other families? what are the things you most relate to, in terms of problems or issues that arise when you have a loved one who's at battle? >> i think -- well, with the wounded warriors, my son was not wounded, but when they come back, the mothers sort of pull me aside and talk to me privately about, you know, i never thought my son would come back like this and, you know, make these comments to me. i feel like, you know, i just hug them and that's what i thought about, too. what if

of u.s. troops left iraq at daybreak crossing into kuwait marking the end of the nearly nine-year war. >> it's nice to leave. >> reporter: this says it all. last vehicle out of iraq, written in chalk. there were 500 soldiers involved in the last convoy. >> looking forward to getting home. everybody is going to look back and say we were the last ones there. >> reporter: soldiers have to wait five days in kuwait. they passed the time playing cards and games. >> i can't wait to go home. >> reporter: the war has been costly. it claimed the lives of 4,500 american soldiers. the united states spent $800 billion on the war since the invasion in 2003. for virginia national guard troops, it was a hero's welcome. >> you remember me? >> reporter: first lieutenant frank met his little girl for the firs time. soldiers returning from war to the open arms of loved ones. darcy spencer, news 4. >>> some 4,000 troops will remain in kuwait to help finalize the move out of iraq. >>> meanwhile, the don't ask don't tell played a part in naval history. two women shared the covets kiss as the crowd cheered and waved

this is an opportunity for all areas of iraq, of all religious affiliation, of all backgrounds, this is an opportunity to have a unified iraq. and the only way to do that is by compromising. and one of the challenges in new democracies is that compromise is not in the vocabulary, especially in countries where people were oppressed, brutalized over many years. they believe that democracy gives them the opportunity to exercise power and even though it's not the specific individual, saddam hussein is gone, he oppressed the shi'a, terribly abused the kurd, chemical attacks, he's gone but people's minds are not yet open to the full potential of what this opportunity can mean for them. unfortunately there's a lot of line drawing and boundary imposing between different political factions. so we are certainly conveying in as strong a message as we can that these political difficulties and disagreements have to be peacefully resolved for the good of all iraqis and that everyone has a chance to grow the pie bigger to have more freedom, more economic prosperity by working together. it's not easy

out of iraq for good. >> is this kind of scene that is happening across the country. the drop in iraq is done, and a wedding and the tories come to an end. -- the waiting and the worries come to an end. >> can be more energetic. >> the only thing left to do is open presents. whatever it is, the biggest surprise has been unwrapped. >> very happy for all of them. still to come, if you are looking to lose a few pounds in the new year, you are not alone. plus, heading to the gym will help you lose extra weight, but how can you stay motivated? >> temperatures that definitely a demotivator. it is so cold out there. we will talk about what is causing this difference in temperatures when we come back in the insta-weather-plus forecast. it just got more frustrating and frustrating. a lot of times, the picture would break up. for the amount of money that i am paying, my cable company should take care of me. [ male announcer ] stop paying for second best. move up to verizon fios tv, internet and phone for our best price online -- just $89.99 a month guaranteed for two years. firs

did recommend a surge of five brigades into iraq. and the improved security situation. >> those of us who do not understand how this works, as you mentioned, the american enterprise institute, how this all works and why did we go in there on this surge and why do the kagans get credit and why do you like what they suggest? >> i don't know how you get from this study to the battleground, but in terms of the surge, it was clearly -- i did find out, i believe this was 2006, that the notion of this always looked like a band-aid, the same principle of camping down in a red-light district. you always get those kinds of security results. this is pretty much what the basic principle of the troops surge -- surge was. it was going to prompt them, surge until they merge. and the leaders of the different communities would go about the business that they must want to start, building a very peaceful and productive democracy. and this is something that i think was taken right out of an academic lecture hall, grafted onto a very foreign and complicat

extensive material that we can we provide it they printed story after story based on the leaks of the iraq and afghanistan war logs as well as the diplomatic cables they had. no problem using that information to sell more papers make a profit when it suited them and then of course they turned completely against society and started writing smear pieces about his dirty socks so as not to give the establishment the wrong impression so as not to be seen as being in cahoots with the man of the us government is leading a massive investigation against which charges of espionage they cared more about his dirty socks and they did about some of the real mistakes like publishing the names of informants so they are in my mind cowards and if you read michael hastings recent interview with us on to rolling stone seems like he feels the same way and so you can imagine the shock of the outrage and as mark out a man has put it today the pearl clutching that's been going on since this announcement was made this morning now it's perhaps the most ludicrous part of it all is that even the associated press whic

little something if the president of iraq iran iraq all right you know his name but a jet a giraffe or something when it comes to picking a future for the you wants to see what comes next may be tough without the knowledge of what has gone on in the past and even the very present it is this it should not be on. the top secret response. troubles a bit later very said. ventured to a small over the world who had to rush white sea for diving and kite surfing hofner that commercial and. headlines in two minutes time. he. wants it all to moscow autopsy doris' u.s. president barack obama signs a bill imposing new tough sanctions on iraq targeting the central bank the financial sector in response. has to run for at least a couple for crucial supply routes through which a fifth of the world's oil flows. and he wave of violence erupts in syria with demonstrators claiming schools more would be killed by security forces arab league observers reacted to recently made in the end their mission to broker peace. while the world welcomes the arrival of twenty twelve father works and champagne almost.