The number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan may drop well below 10,000 - the minimum demanded by the U.S. military to train Afghan forces - as the longest war in American history winds down, Obama administration officials briefed on the matter say.
U.S. Army soldiers may gradually begin leaving Afghanistan until there are as low as 5,000 soldiers left That belief, the officials say, is based partly on Afghanistan's surprisingly smooth election, which has won international praise for its high turnout, estimated at 60 percent of 12 million eligible votes, and the failure of Taliban militants to stage high-profile attacks that day. Military leaders, including American General Joe Dunford, who heads U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, has identified 10,000 soldiers as the minimum needed to help train and advise Afghan forces fighting the insurgency, arguing a smaller force would struggle to protect itself. During a March visit to Washington, Dunford told lawmakers that without foreign soldiers supporting them, Afghan forces would begin to deteriorate "fairly quickly" in 2015. The Afghan air force, still several years away from being self-sufficient, will require even more assistance, he said. A smaller U.S. force could have other unintended consequences, possibly discouraging already skeptical lawmakers from fully funding U.S. commitments to help fund Afghan forces.
Ever since Afghanistan's smooth April 5 election, officials believe that the Afghan troops may be able to contain the Taliban themselves At their current size, Afghan forces will cost at least $5 billion in 2015, a sum far beyond the reach of the Afghan government. The United States has been widely expected to be the largest outside funder for those forces. The Taliban and other militants have been weakened by more than 12 years of Afghan and NATO assaults, but they still can obtain supplies and plan attacks from Afghanistan's remote mountain regions and tribal areas of neighboring Pakistan.
There are now about 33,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan, down from 100,000 in 2011 A U.S. force significantly below 10,000 might focus almost exclusively on counter-terrorism, tracking militants affiliated with a greatly weakened but resilient al Qaeda insurgency based on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, officials said. 'The longer we go without a BSA, the more challenging it will be to plan and execute any U.S. mission,' said Laura Lucas Magnuson, a White House spokeswoman. 'Furthermore, the longer we go without a BSA, the more likely it will be that any post-2014 U.S. mission will be smaller in scale and ambition.' Results of the recent presidential election may not be known for weeks, or months if runoffs take place. But leading candidates have said they will sign the agreement, which has been on hold because of reservations from current Afghan President Hamid Karzai. In late February, Obama announced that the United States might seek to sign the deal with Karzai's successor and possibly keep troops there after 2014 to train and advise Afghan forces and pursue al Qaeda militants. Some U.S. officials believe Afghan forces will require substantial, hands-on support from foreign troops, in addition to help from the United States. Mixed legacy for Karzai as Afghan presidentKABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghans go to the polls next weekend to choose a new president, and that in itself may one day be considered Hamid Karzai's greatest achievement. There has been no shortage of criticism of Karzai in recent years. His mercurial behavior and inability or unwillingness to tackle corruption in his government have been well documented. But in a nation hardened by decades of war, the fact that he is stepping down as president in the first democratic transfer of power ever is no small matter. It is made possible by a constitution that Karzai helped draft and that prohibits him from serving a third five-year term.
+14 An Afghan carpet seller holds up a framed carpet depicting Afghan President Hamid Karzai in his store in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, March 30, 2014. Afghans go to the polls April 5, 2014 to choose a new president, and that in itself may one day be considered Karzai¿s greatest achievement. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus) The April 5 election "is a historical marker that will in many ways determine I think not only how he's seen in history if he achieves that but will also be a very important indicator about the future of this country," U.S. Ambassador James Cunningham said last week. Cunningham said the differences between Karzai and his former American backers will most likely be relegated to a mere historical footnote. Karzai has refused to sign a security pact with the U.S. that would allow thousands of foreign forces to remain here after the end of 2014. Despite overwhelming public support for the deal, he left the decision to his successor. Many believe Karzai simply did not want to be remembered as the president who permitted foreign troops to stay in Afghanistan. Karzai inherited a broken country when the Americans and their allies chose him more than 12 years ago as a leader they hoped could cross ethnic lines, embrace former enemies and bring Afghans together. As he prepares to leave office, Afghanistan has made great strides yet remains hobbled by a resilient Taliban insurgency and fears of a return to civil war. In many parts of the country, women have more opportunities, schools have opened and nascent governmental institutions are functioning. After five years of oppressive Taliban rule, people are allowed to express their views in public. "This is one of his greatest legacies. We are here and we can say whatever we want and we can say it to him," said Saima Khogyani, one of 69 women lawmakers in parliament. "Whether he does what we ask is something else, but he listens." But widespread corruption, poor governance and stubborn poverty foster support for the Taliban, who control vast rural sections of southern and eastern Afghanistan. The militants have not only shown little interest in peace but have stepped up attacks aimed at disrupting the elections. Critics fault Karzai for employing former warlords linked to massive abuses. Karzai's defenders say he was hamstrung because the U.S.-led coalition enlisted those warlords to fight the Taliban, empowering them. Many remember the Karzai of the 1980s, when he lived in Pakistan as the former Soviet Union bombed his homeland, napalm laying waste to the countryside. He would talk of the Afghanistan of his childhood — ruby red pomegranate orchards as far as the eye could see, tribal elders passing through his family home outside the southern city of Kandahar, his father, a Popalzai tribal elder, dispensing wisdom and making decisions with a single sweep of his hand. "What he understood as democracy was what his father practiced in Kandahar, traditional (ethnic) Pashtun back and forth, (use of) jirgas," as a tool of governance, said Afghan journalist Ahmad Rashid. "I think it is his memories of his father and his past and how ruling and governing was done in the 60s when he was a child that has had just a huge impact on him." Shortly after the Taliban seized power in Kabul in 1996, Karzai became a matchmaker of sorts, shuttling between Afghanistan's disparate anti-Taliban groups trying to unite them under a single umbrella. After the U.S.-led invasion in late 2001, Karzai led a small band of men into southern Afghanistan to take on the Taliban regime. The Taliban eventually surrendered not to the Americans but to Karzai, seeking his guarantees of safe passage. Karzai was still in the mountains in Uruzgan province when he was reached by satellite telephone and told that his lifelong dream would come true: He would be the president of Afghanistan. He was to head a government cobbled together in Bonn, Germany, a collection of warlords-turned-politicians who brought with them their weapons and their militias. Afghanistan, which was a monarchy until 1973, has had other heads of state but none has been democratically elected. "There were other possible leaders, but Karzai's role in opposing the Taliban, his personal and family sacrifices, and his role in the war set him apart," said Zalmay Khalilzad, who served as President George W. Bush's special representative to Afghanistan. To many Afghan officials and foreign observers, Khalilzad was Afghanistan's de-facto ruler in those initial months after the Taliban's collapse. He lived at the palace, crafted alliances and took center stage organizing the traditional grand councils or loya jirgas that would eventually approve Afghanistan's constitution. "In the early days he (Karzai) was very much obligated to the Americans, in their lap as it were," said Rashid. "Khalilzad was almost running the country. It took some time for him to emerge." Khalilzad and Rashid agreed that Karzai's greatest contribution was his ability to cross ethnic lines, make deals with former enemies and hold the country together. "Karzai helped communities overcome past divisions, uniting the minority groups with the non-Taliban Pashtuns," said Khalilzad. "He enabled all communities to come together and overcome, to a large extent, the conflicts of the past. He has not put people in jail because they oppose him. He allowed freedom of expression. State structures have been restored, though unevenly." His leadership was affirmed in a 2004 election, although his re-election in 2009 was tainted by allegations of massive ballot box stuffing. With that in mind, some candidates have raised fears about fraud and government interference in the upcoming elections. Relentless insurgent violence also could keep jittery voters from the polling stations. Time and distance have caused memories to fade, occasionally shining an unfairly harsh light on Karzai's performance, said Paula Newberg, a former special adviser to the United States in Afghanistan. "It's sometimes hard to remember how isolated Afghanistan was in 2001," said Newberg, a government professor at University of Texas. "Afghanistan from 1996 to mid-2001 was a place where free speech was absent, women were hidden, food was scarce, and health care almost non-existent. Afghans themselves had little opportunity to improve their lives in Afghanistan, and large numbers were leaving the country for any place that would have them." The list of challenges Karzai faced over the years was daunting, said Newberg. "President Karzai's tenure in office could not have been anything but challenging," she said. "He came to office with the high expectations of others and great optimism among many Afghans and foreigners alike." He wowed the West with his impeccable English. Even the creative force behind Gucci, Tom Ford, anointed Karzai, resplendent in his long green and purple striped coat and signature karakul hat, "the choicest man on the planet." But the presence of more than 130,000 U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan, a spike in deaths of civilians by errant bombings and a coterie of "yes" men by Karzai's side caused the relationship to sour. He began angering Washington with belligerent statements, sometimes accusing the U.S. of being in cahoots with the Taliban and more recently calling the Taliban "our brothers" as he sought to bring them into a peace process. Karzai resented the United States for not taking the fight to Pakistan, where he believed the war should have been fought instead of in Afghanistan. And his friends say he never forgave many world leaders for what he felt was their deeply insulting criticism of the disputed 2009 election. "He disagreed with the United States about the source of the war," Khalilzad said in an email. "Also, he was treated personally in a way that violated his sense of honor." ___ Associated Press writer Kim Gamel contributed to this report. Kathy Gannon is AP Special Regional Correspondent for Afghanistan and Pakistan and can be followed on www.twitter.com/kathygannon
+14 In this Saturday, March 29, 2014 photo a picture of Afghan President Hamid Karzai hangs on a wall in the main room of the district municipality in eastern Kabul. Afghans go to the polls April 5, 2014 to choose a new president, and that in itself may one day be considered Karzai¿s greatest achievement. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
+14 In this Saturday, March 29, 2014 photo, a giant picture of Afghan President Hamid Karzai, right, is displayed next to Afghanistan's late King Amanullah Khan on the parade ground of the Ministry of Defense in Kabul, Afghanistan. Karzai inherited a broken country when the Americans and their allies chose him more than 12 years ago as a leader they hoped could cross ethnic lines, embrace former enemies and bring Afghans together. As he prepares to leave office, Afghanistan has made great strides yet remains hobbled by a resilient Taliban insurgency and fears of a return to civil war. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
+14 FILE - In this Nov. 26, 2013 file photo Afghan Army soldiers exercise under a picture of Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai at a training facility in the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan. Afghans go to the polls April 5, 2014 to choose a new president, and that in itself may one day be considered Karzai¿s greatest achievement. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus, File)
+14 In this Saturday, March 29, 2014 photo, a giant picture of Afghan President Hamid Karzai is displayed on the parade ground of the Ministry of Defense in Kabul, Afghanistan. Karzai inherited a broken country when the Americans and their allies chose him more than 12 years ago as a leader they hoped could cross ethnic lines, embrace former enemies and bring Afghans together. As he prepares to leave office, Afghanistan has made great strides yet remains hobbled by a resilient Taliban insurgency and fears of a return to civil war. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
+14 A picture of Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai hangs in a police chief's office, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, March 30, 2014. Karzai inherited a broken country when the Americans and their allies chose him more than 12 years ago as a leader they hoped could cross ethnic lines, embrace former enemies and bring Afghans together. As he prepares to leave office, Afghanistan has made great strides yet remains hobbled by a resilient Taliban insurgency and fears of a return to civil war. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
+14 In this Oct. 15, 2012 photo, an Afghan police recruit looks at a picture of President Hamid Karzai hung above beds in his sleeping quarters at the National Police Academy in Kabul, Afghanistan. Afghans go to the polls April 5, 2014 to choose a new president, and that in itself may one day be considered Karzai¿s greatest achievement. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
+14 In this Saturday, March 29, 2014 photo, a picture of Afghan President Hamid Karzai hangs on a wall in the main room of the district municipality in eastern Kabul. Afghans go to the polls April 5, 2014 to choose a new president, and that in itself may one day be considered Karzai¿s greatest achievement. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
+14 FILE - In this Oct. 29, 2013 file photo, a picture of Afghan President Hamid Karzai hangs on a wall at a technical school in Kandahar, Afghanistan. Afghans go to the polls April 5, 2014 to choose a new president, and that in itself may one day be considered Karzai¿s greatest achievement. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus, File)
+14 In this Wednesday, May 26, 2014 photo, a picture of Afghan President Hamid Karzai, right, hangs next to Afghan political and military leader Ahmad Shah Massoud at a luxury hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan. Afghans go to the polls April 5, 2014 to choose a new president, and that in itself may one day be considered Karzai¿s greatest achievement. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
+14 In this Oct. 15, 2012 photo, an Afghan police recruit stands in front of a board with announcements and a picture of Afghan President Hamid Karzai outside the sleeping quarters of the National Police Academy in Kabul, Afghanistan. Afghans go to the polls April 5, 2014 to choose a new president, and that in itself may one day be considered Karzai¿s greatest achievement. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
+14 In this Saturday, March 29, 2014 photo, a picture of Afghan President Hamid Karzai is displayed on a wall inside the Ministry of Defense in Kabul, Afghanistan. Karzai inherited a broken country when the Americans and their allies chose him more than 12 years ago as a leader they hoped could cross ethnic lines, embrace former enemies and bring Afghans together. As he prepares to leave office, Afghanistan has made great strides yet remains hobbled by a resilient Taliban insurgency and fears of a return to civil war. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
+14 FILE - In this Oct. 29, 2013 file photo, an Afghan soldier with a picture of President Hamid Karzai on his bullet proof vest, stands guard in the center of Kandahar, southern Afghanistan. Karzai inherited a broken country when the Americans and their allies chose him more than 12 years ago as a leader they hoped could cross ethnic lines, embrace former enemies and bring Afghans together. As he prepares to leave office, Afghanistan has made great strides yet remains hobbled by a resilient Taliban insurgency and fears of a return to civil war. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus, file)
+14 In this Thursday, March 27, 2014 photo, a picture of Afghan President Hamid Karzai is displayed on the book shelf in the living room of presidential candidate Zalmai Rassoul in Kabul, Afghanistan. Afghans go to the polls April 5, 2014 to choose a new president, and that in itself may one day be considered Karzai¿s greatest achievement. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus) 'He never gives up and he does not quit': President honors war hero injured on his 10th tour of Afghanistan in State of the Union address before leading emotional standing ovation in his honor
President Obama brought both sides of the political divide together during Tuesday's State of the Union address as he paid an emotional tribute to injured Afghanistan veteran Ranger Sgt. 1st Class Cory Remsburg. The president drew a standing ovation from Republicans and Democrats for the war hero who was left in a coma for three months in 2009 after a roadside bomb hit his convoy outside Kandahar during his 10th deployment to Afghanistan and Iraq. As Remsburg, 30, watched on from the public gallery as a guest of first lady, Michelle Obama, President Obama told the packed house how the hero continues to be an example to Americans each day as he works on his recovery. 'Cory is here tonight. And like the Army he loves, like the America he serves, Sergeant First Class Cory Remsburg never gives up, and he does not quit' and that he reminds us that 'America has never come easy.' Scroll down for video
+29 Unifying hero: US Army Ranger Sergeant First Class Cory Remsburg gives a thumbs up while receiving a standing ovation during US President Barack Obama's State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress on Tuesday
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+29 Thank you: Army Ranger Sgt.1st Class Cory Remsburg gives a thumbs up to President Barack Obama during his State of the Union address which the commander in chief returned - as the entire house gave the veteran a standing ovation Obama leads emotional standing ovation for wounded vet
+29 Tribute for a hero: Army Ranger Sgt. 1st Class Cory Remsburg is applauded after President Barack Obama acknowledged him during his State of the Union address on Capitol Hill
+29 Acknowledgement of his service: Everyone in the chamber stood and applauded Remsburg for a minute and 44 seconds, the most sustained applause of the evening
+29 Ten tours of duty: U.S. Army Ranger Sgt. First Class Cory Remsburg, injured while serving in Afghanistan, acknowledges applause during President Barack Obama's State of the Union speech
+29 Welcome: First Lady Michelle Obama gives Army Ranger Sergeant First Class Cory Remsburg the thumbs up prior to US President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Tuesday night
+29 Emotional moment: Rep. Tammy Duckworth wipes tears from her eyes during a standing ovation for U.S. Army Ranger Sgt. First Class Cory Remsburg, injured while serving in Afghanistan, who was a guest in first lady Michelle Obama's box Watch Video Here: Obama says America is better positioned than any nation
+29 First meeting: President Obama was first introduced to Sgt. 1st Class Cory Remsburg in France in 2009 at the 65th anniversary of the D-Day landings In an emotional moment, a visibly touched Remsburg then stood to acknowledge the sustained applause from the house as Michelle Obama smiled broadly at him and gave him a thumbs up. Then, the wounded soldier gave a thumbs-up in the direction of President Obama - who replied in kind and then saluted Sgt. Remsburg. It was a unifying moment and the high point of a policy laden speech that was filled with the president's threats to use his executive powers to bypass Republicans on legislation on Capitol Hill. 'Sgt. 1st Class Cory Remsburg never gives up and he does not quit': The American hero who united Congress in a standing ovationSgt. First Class Cory Remsburg joined the Army on his 18th birthday even though he wanted to enlist aged 17. It was his father ather Craig- an ex-serviceman - who attended the State of the Union address with him on Tuesday, who refused to sign the papers that would have allowed to him to join earlier. He was first deployed at age 18 to the 2003 invasion of Iraq and in total he has been on 10 deployments there and to Afghanistan. During his tours of duty with the Army, he clocked up 39 months in combat and was made chief of his company's heavy weapons unit. During his last deployment in October 2009, he was struck and almost killed by a roadside bomb in Kandahar, Afghanistan The force of the blast caused him to be propelled into a canal, face down, with shrapnel embedded in his brain - leaving him with a horrendous head wound. Sadly one of Remsburg's comrades in arms died in the same explosion. Remsburg suffered terrible injuries and was left in a coma for three months as a result, leaving him partially paralyzed, with difficulties speaking and brain damaged. However, Remsburg was unwilling to be bowed and went through at least 12 surgeries and hundreds of hours of rehabilitation. He has recovered sufficiently to be able to walk and speak now, although he still has problems with the left side of his body and is blind in his right eye. He was able to leave full time medical care last year and has returned home to Phoenix, Arizona, where he is working on his recovery and has begun cycling to aid this. His military honors include the Purple Heart, the National Defense Service Medal and the Bronze Star. It was toward the end of Obama’s address when he gestured toward the uniformed man from Phoenix seated next to first lady Michelle Obama and described the difference between the Remsburg he’d met the first time at Omaha beach on the 65th anniversary of D-Day— 'sharp as a tack'— and the wounded warrior his fellow soldiers found face-down in a canal, underwater, with shrapnel in his brain. 'The next time I met him, in the hospital, he couldn’t speak; he could barely move,' Obama said to the now-silent crowd in the House chamber. 'Over the years, he’s endured dozens of surgeries and procedures, and hours of grueling rehab every day.' As Obama spoke, the heads of lawmakers, Supreme Court justices and Cabinet members swiveled to their right and upward toward Remsburg, who had been clapping all evening by patting his right hand on his chest. His left hand lay curled in a brace. Remsburg, seated beside his father, Craig, is still blind in one eye and struggles on his left side, Obama said. But he’s slowly learned to speak, stand and walk again. He’s been awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart. 'Like the Army he loves, like the America he serves, Sgt. 1st Class Cory Remsburg never gives up and he does not quit,' Obama said. Everyone in the chamber stood and applauded Remsburg for a minute and 44 seconds, the most sustained applause of the evening. Wearing a bow tie under his uniform, Remsburg stood, waved and gave a thumbs up. Obama returned it. As Obama made his way out of the House chamber, Remsburg was helped up the steps of the gallery by his father. What was left of the crowd turned toward him again and applauded. The president's speech drew an eclectic mix of visitors to the House chamber. Among those sitting with Mrs. Obama were two survivors of the Boston Marathon bombing, as well as Jason Collins, an openly gay former NBA player. Republican House Speaker John Boehner brought business owners from his home state of Ohio who say Obama's health care overhaul is hurting their companies. Willie Robertson, a star of the television show 'Duck Dynasty,' also scored a seat in the House gallery, courtesy of the Republicans.
+29 Recovery: President Obama next met Sgt. First Class Cory Remsburg as he recovered from the serious injuries he suffered when he was hit by a road side bomb in Afghanistan in October 2009
+29 Third time: Never giving up, Sgt. First Class Cory Remsburg has battled back from his injuries to regain the ability to walk and here he is meeting President Obama for the third time It has become tradition for the first lady's guests to include those whose personal stories can help highlight a particular policy or issue for the president. Twenty-four people were invited to join Mrs. Obama in her box, including two Boston Marathon bombing survivors, Jeff Bauman and his cowboy hatted rescuer, Carlos Arredondo.
+29 First lady Michelle Obama arrives for President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Capitol Hill along with the honored guests she invited
+29 Honored guests: The first three rows near the First Lady were chocked-full of individuals who represent various parts of the President's policy initiatives 1. Antoinette Tuff is the mother and book keeper credited by police with preventing a shooting at Atlanta-area Ronald E. McNair Discovery Learning Academy in August by talking the gunman into surrendering. 2. Gary Bird. Is the fire chief who helped co-ordinate the response to the massive tornado that struck the town of Moore in May 2013, killing 25 people and destroying more than 1,000 homes and businesses. 3. San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee. The first Asian-American to run San Francisco, Lee is the son of Chinese immigrants and has helped mobilize support in Silicon Valley for an immigration overhaul. The White House also revealed that Lee is also working to raise San Francisco's minimum wage. 4. Vice Adm. Michelle Howard is set to become the Navy's first female four-star admiral this year. The White House said she will also become the first African-American female to achieve four stars. In 1999, she became the first black woman to command a Navy ship when she took command of the USS Rushmore. 5. Valerie B. Jarrett, is the Senior Advisor to President Barack Obama. She is also the Chair of the White House Council on Women and Girls and she oversees the Offices of Intergovernmental Affairs; Public Engagement; Urban Affairs; and Olympic, Paralympic, and Youth Sport.
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+29 Proud steps: Boston Marathon bombing survivor Jeff Bauman, who had to have both his legs amputated after being injured in the blasts, arrives before the start of U.S. President Barack Obama's State of the Union speech on Capitol Hill which he attended with Carlos Arredondo (right)
+29 US President Barack Obama receives a standing ovation as he delivers the State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night
+29 I did it: U.S. President Barack Obama winks up at first lady Michelle Obama as he arrives to deliver his State of the Union speech 6 and 7 Carlos Arredondo, Boston Marathon rescuer and Jeff Bauman, Boston Marathon bombing survivor. A photograph of Arredondo, 53, and Bauman, 27, has become one of the more memorable images from the April 2013 bombing. It showed Arredondo rushing a badly injured Bauman away from the scene of the attack. Bauman, who lost both legs, played a crucial role in identifying the bombers while he was in the hospital recovering. 8 Amanda Shelley, is a 37-year-old physician's assistant. Shelley was uninsured and couldn't get coverage because of a pre-existing condition until Obama's health care legislation became law, the White House has claimed. Two days after receiving coverage, she encountered abdominal pain that eventually required emergency surgery - which she wouldn't have been able to otherwise. Watch Video Here: Obama encourages individual achievement and collective effort 9 Nick Chute, is a Punch Pizza employee who the White House says has benefited from his employer's decision to pay a higher minimum wage - he was acknowledged by the president during his speech. 10 John Soranno is the CEO of Punch Pizza, which has eight locations in the state and the boss of Nick Chute. He raised the company-wide minimum wage to $10 an hour - a decision the president praised during his State of the Union Speech. 11 Estiven Rodriguez, is the son of a Dominican immigrant, Estiven spoke no English when he came to the U.S. at age 9. Now a high school senior, Estiven is one of the top students in his class and will attend Dickinson College in the fall on a scholarship from the Posse Foundation. He recently attended a White House event on expanding college opportunity.
+29 Survivor: Boston Marathon bombing survivor Jeff Bauman, who had to have both his legs amputated after being injured in the blasts, arrives before the start of U.S. President Barack Obama's State of the Union speech
+29 Horror: Emergency responder and volunteers, including Carlos Arredondo in the cowboy hat, push Jeff Bauman in a wheel chair after he was injured in an explosion near the finish line of the Boston Marathon Monday in Boston in April 2013
+29 US President Barack Obama delivers his State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress on the floor of the US House of Representatives in the US Capitol in Washington 12 Mary Barra became the first female CEO of General Motors this month after 33 years with the company. GM also benefited from a federal bailout of the auto industry.
+29 Help: Boston Marathon bombing survivor Jeff Bauman arrives before the start of U.S. President Barack Obama's State of the Union speech on Capitol Hill in Washington on Tuesday night 13 Sabrina Simone Jenkins is a single mother who served in the Air Force and then studied at DeVry University while working full time, caring for ill family members and dealing with her own serious medical issues. The White House said Jenkins graduated at age 42 with a 3.7 GPA and then earned a master's degree, but now has nearly $90,000 in student loan debt. 14 Craig Remsburg, a retired Air Force Reserve firefighter and father to war hero Cory. 15 Army Ranger Sgt. 1st Class Cory Remsburg has met with Obama three times since a roadside bomb in Kandahar, Afghanistan, on his 10th deployment, left him in a coma for three months, partially paralyzed and brain-damaged. 16 Misty DeMars (right of Mrs Obama), lost her job because of budget cuts a week after buying a home with her husband in May 2013. She wrote to Obama after her emergency unemployment benefits expired and now is one of the reasons why unemployment benefits are firmly back on the agenda. 17 Dr Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden 18 Kathy Hollowell-Makle was the 2013 teacher of the year in the District of Columbia public school system. A former Teach for America corps member, Hollowell-Makle teaches at Abram Simon Elementary, where 90 percent of her students demonstrated early literacy at proficient or advanced levels
+29 First lady Michelle Obama waves as she arrives for President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Capitol Hill in Washington
+29 One time opponent: Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., and Senator John McCain, R-Ariz. applaud President Barack Obama's State of the Union address
+29 Another years address over: President Barack Obama greets members of Congress as he leaves after giving the State of Union address
+29 Serious business: US Republican Representative from Wisconsin Paul Ryan (2nd R) listens to President Barack Obama deliver the State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress on January 28, 2014 at the US Capitol in Washington Those who also attended as guests of the first lady who are not pictured in the numbered picture above included, Peter Mouskondis, the president and CEO of Nicholas & Company, Inc., a third-generation, family-owned and operated food service distribution company, with roughly 500 employees. And, Jason Collins, 35, who in April became the first active male athlete on a major American sports team to come out as openly gay. Collins played 12 years in the NBA, going to the playoffs nine times and making the league finals twice, though he's no longer with an NBA team. Obama has said Collins' announcement marked progress for the gay community.
+29 Louisiana guests: Duck Dynasty's Willie Robertson and his wife Korie walk on the floor of the House after President Barack Obama gave the State of the Union address on Capitol Hill
+29 After the selfies: Duck Dynasty star Willie Robertson walks on the House floor the State of the Union address Sgt. Remsburg was just one of her honored guests on Tuesday during her husband's fifth State of the Union address to a joint session of congress - but some of the other guest attendees only served to highlight the deep partisan divide that exists on Capitol Hill. While the first lady warmly embraced Sgt.Remsburg before the start of President Obama's address, Republicans such as former vice-presidential nominee Paul Ryan posed for selfies with controversial Duck Dynasty star Willie Robertson. Robertson, the son of Duck Dynasty's patriarch Phil Robertson - who was temporarily suspended from the show after making anti-gay remarks - was invited by Louisiana's new Republican congressman, Vance McAllister.
+29 Feted guests: Duck Dynasty's Willie Robertson, center and his wife Korie, talk with Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., before President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Capitol Hill in Washington Indeed, Representative McAllister pointedly said in a statement that he looks forward to 'bringing some diversity to our nation's Capitol', with the invitation of the younger Robertson, despite the huge controversy his father created last year. Important: Duck Dynasty's Willie Robertson, center and his wife Korie, pose with Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., before President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Capitol Hill In addition, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham threw his hat firmly into the Duck Dynasty ring by gifting his invite to Willie Robertson's wife, Korie Robertson - and tweeted a smiling picture to prove it. During his speech, the president vowed to sidestep the continual partisan bickering on Capitol Hill and wanted to narrow the differences between the citizens of the United States. 'America does not stand still and neither do I,' Obama declared in his prime-time address before a joint session of Congress and millions of Americans watching on television. The economy and other domestic issues, including health care, dominated the president's address. He touched only briefly on foreign policy, reiterating his threat to veto any new sanctions Congress might levy on Iran while nuclear negotiations with the Islamic republic are underway and touting the drawdown of American troops from Afghanistan this year. The president garnered some of his loudest applause - at least from Democrats - when he took on lawmakers who oppose his signature health care law, which floundered in its initial rollout last fall. Obama said that while he doesn't expect to convince Republicans on the merits of the law, 'I know that the American people aren't interested in refighting old battles.' The president's go-it-alone strategy is in many ways an acknowledgment that he has failed to make good on two major promises to the American people: that he would change Washington's hyper-partisanship and that his re-election would break the Republican 'fever' and clear the way for congressional action on major initiatives. Some Republicans have warned that the president's focus on executive orders could backfire by angering GOP leaders who already don't trust the White House.
| Photos from Afghanistan, the last 5 monthsThe Obama administration plans to keep 9,800 US troops in Afghanistan after the war formally ends later this year and then will withdraw most of those forces by the end of 2016, consolidating them in Kabul and on Bagram Air Base. In a broad defense of his foreign policy, the president declared during a May 28, 2014 speech at West Point that the U.S. remains the world’s most indispensable nation, even after a “long season of war,” but argued for restraint before embarking on more military adventures. The following images are from the first five months of 2014, as U.S. troops continue their slow draw-down and Afghan security forces oversee the election of a new president. U.S. troops in Afghanistan may drop to as low as 5,000 as the longest war in American history finally winds down and 'Afghan security forces are robust enough to contain Taliban'
KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN - MARCH 09: Children watch as soldiers with the U.S. Army's 4th squadron 2d Cavalry Regiment climb back into their MRAP vehicles following a patrol into a village on March 9, 2014 near Kandahar, Afghanistan. U.S. President Barack Obama recently ordered the Pentagon to begin contingency planning for a pullout from Afghanistan by the end of 2014 if Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai or his successor refuses to sign the Bilateral Security Agreement. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images) #
An Afghan boy flies a kite on the Nadir Khan hilltop in Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, May 9, 2014. Kite flying is a popular pastime in Afghanistan, where opponents go after the kite wafting in the air after its line gets cut by another player in the so-called kite fighting.(AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) #
KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN - MARCH 09: Soldiers with the U.S. Army's 4th squadron 2d Cavalry Regiment eat lunch at an Afghan National Police (ANP) outpost during a patrol on March 9, 2014 near Kandahar, Afghanistan. U.S. President Barack Obama recently ordered the Pentagon to begin contingency planning for a pullout from Afghanistan by the end of 2014 if Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai or his successor refuses to sign the Bilateral Security Agreement. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images) #
KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN - MARCH 09: A young boy checks out SPC Brian Colip from Vacaville, California with the U.S. Army's 4th squadron 2d Cavalry Regiment while he keeps watch during a patrol through a village on March 9, 2014 near Kandahar, Afghanistan. President Obama recently ordered the Pentagon to begin contingency planning for a pullout from Afghanistan by the end of 2014 if Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai or his successor refuses to sign the Bilateral Security Agreement. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images) #
An Afghan carpet seller holds up a framed carpet depicting Afghan President Hamid Karzai in his store in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, March 30, 2014. Afghans go to the polls April 5, 2014 to choose a new president, and that in itself may one day be considered Karzai's greatest achievement. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus) - Niedringhaus, 48, was killed and an AP reporter was wounded on Friday, April 4, 2014 when an Afghan policeman opened fire while they were sitting in their car in eastern Afghanistan. #
An Afghan special force soldier stands guard next to the damaged entrance of a Lebanese restaurant that was attacked in Kabul, on January 18, 2014. At least 14 people were killed, including foreigners, in a multiple Taliban suicide attack on a popular restaurant in Kabul on January 17, officials said, with two gunmen launching an "indiscriminate" killing spree inside the venue. JOHANNES EISELE/AFP/Getty Images #
Former Taliban fighters sit alongside their weapons, prior to handing them over as they join a government peace and reconciliation process at a ceremony in Jalalabad, capital of Nangarhar province on January 19, 2014. NATO formally transferred responsibility for nationwide security to Afghan forces in June 2013. Noorullah Shirzada/AFP/Getty Images #
Afghan schoolgirls attend class in Kandahar on May 1, 2014. The literacy rate in Afghanistan is about 30 percent and about 42 percent of the country's population is under the age of 14. According to UNICEF more boys than girls attend classes in primary school in Afghanistan. JAVED TANVEER/AFP/Getty Images #
A Pakistani man leads his donkey-cart past a burning trailer truck transporting NATO vehicles following an attack by gunmen in the Wazir Dhand area of Khyber on May 5, 2014. Gunmen attacked three container trucks carrying NATO supplies en route to Afghanistan in Pakistan's troubled northwest killing two people, officials said. AFP PHOTO/STRSTR/AFP/Getty Images #
Afghan men protest following a suspected Taliban rocket attack during the night, in Ghazni province on May 14, 2014. Tens of Ghazni residents gathered in front of the provincial governor's office in the city, carrying the body of a dead child who was killed in rocket attack at their house in Qalai Qazi area of Ghazni. A suspected Taliban rocket attack on the city hit a residential house in Ghazni killing three people including a child and a woman, officials said, with three children wounded in the attack. Rahmatullah Alizadah/AFP/Getty Images #
Afghan rescuers search desperately for survivors trapped under the mud in Argo district of Badakhshan province on May 3, 2014 after a massive landslide May 2 buried a village. Rescuers searched in vain for survivors May 3 after a landslide buried an Afghan village, killing 350 people and leaving thousands of others feared dead amid warnings that more earth could sweep down the hillside. Local people made desperate efforts to find victims trapped under a massive river of mud that engulfed Aab Bareek village in Badakhshan province, where little sign remained of hundreds of destroyed homes. SHAH MARAI/AFP/Getty Images #
An aerial view shows the site of Friday's landslide that buried Abi Barik village in Badakhshan province, northeastern Afghanistan, Monday, May 5, 2014. Hundreds of people were killed in a horrific landslide and authorities are trying to help the 700 families displaced by the torrent of mud that swept through their village. The families left their homes due to the threat of more landslides, Minister for Rural Rehabilitation Wais Ahmad Barmak said. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) #
An Afghan woman, center, shakes a sheet from dust, near the site of Friday's landslide that buried Abi-Barik village in Badakhshan province, northeastern Afghanistan, Sunday, May 4, 2014. As Afghans observed a day of mourning Sunday for the hundreds of people killed in a horrific landslide, authorities tried to help the 700 families displaced by the torrent of mud that swept through their village. (AP Photo/Massoud Hossaini) #
An Afghan security force member destroys an illegal poppy crop in the Noor Gal district of eastern Kunar province on April 29, 2014. Citing the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime, John Sopko, the US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, said January 2014 that the rise in opium production is expected to continue and threaten the stability of the Afghan government. Noorullah Shirzada/AFP/Getty Images #
Afghan children buy candy floss from a street vendor near Qargha Lake in the outskirts of Kabul on May 9, 2014. Qargha Lake, located 9 kms outside of Kabul, is a popular recreational spot and known for its swimming and boating activities. WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP/Getty Images #
This photograph taken on May 9, 2014 shows an Afghan youth playing over the remains of a Soviet-era tank, graffitied with heart symbols, at a hilltop near Qargha Lake in the outskirts of Kabul. Afghanistan remains at war, with civilians among the hardest hit as the Taliban wage an increasingly bloody insurgency against the government. WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP/Getty Images #
Afghan residents queue to receive their voter cards at a voter registration centre in Kabul on March 30, 2014. Crowds queued up outside voter registration centres in Afghanistan and presidential candidates held large outdoor rallies for supporters six days ahead of elections that have been shaken by Taliban attacks. The vote, which will choose a successor to President Hamid Karzai, comes as US-led foreign troops withdraw after 13 years of fighting the fierce Islamist insurgency raging across the south and east of the country. SHAH MARAI/AFP/Getty Images #
In this picture taken on March 17, 2014, Afghan soldiers attached to the 4th Brigade, 201 Army Corps of the Afghan National Army (ANA) joke around as they sit together in the late afternoon near their barracks at a forward operating base in Khogyani district. In the eastern district of Khogyani, the war against Taliban militants is a day-to-day struggle for control of fields and villages just outside Jalalabad, one of Afghanistan's biggest and most strategic cities. ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP/Getty Images #
Afghan National Security Forces members jump onto a vehicle after an attack by a suicide squad on the former Afghan intelligence headquarters in the center of Kandahar, Afghanistan, Wednesday, March 12, 2014. Police officials said three insurgents who tried to storm the former headquarters of Afghanistanís intelligence service in southern Kandahar died in a gunbattle with security forces. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus) - Niedringhaus, 48, was killed and an AP reporter was wounded on Friday, April 4, 2014 when an Afghan policeman opened fire while they were sitting in their car in eastern Afghanistan. #
Afghan security personal surround the area after Taliban fighters stormed a government building in Jalalabad, east of Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, May 12, 2014. Taliban fighters stormed a government building in eastern Afghanistan killing police guards on Monday, the most serious in a wave of attacks marking the start of the insurgents' annual spring offensive. In the Taliban heartland in the south, an attack on a police checkpoint in Helmand province killed many policemen. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) #
A U.S. Army carry team moves a transfer case containing the remains of U.S. Army Sergeant Shawn M. Farrell II, as U.S. Army Major Gen. Thomas A. Horlander, U.S. Army Major Dennis Call, and U.S. Air Force Col. Ladd Tremaine salute, Wednesday, April 30, 2014, at Dover Air Force Base, Del. According to the Department of Defense, Farrell, of Accord, N.Y., died while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) #
In this file photograph taken on March 23, 2014, Afghan mourners offer final prayers over the flag-covered coffins of slain AFP reporter Sardar Ahmad, his wife and their two children during his funeral in Kabul. Six weeks after surviving a Taliban attack on a Kabul hotel that left his father, mother, brother and sister dead, miracle child Abuzar Ahmad, son of slain AFP reporter Sardar Ahmad, arrived in Canada on April 30, 2014 to start his life anew. WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP/Getty Images #
In this file photograph taken on April 6, 2014, Abuzar Ahmad, the youngest son of slain Afghan AFP reporter Sardar Ahmad, sits in bed during a visit by family members at a local hospital in Kabul. Six weeks after surviving a Taliban attack on a Kabul hotel that left his father, mother, brother and sister dead, miracle child Abuzar Ahmad arrived in Canada on April 30, 2014 to start his life anew. WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP/Getty Images #
In this Monday, March 17, 2014 photo, Afghan men play cards under a huge election poster showing Abdul Rahim Wardak, Afghanistanís former defense minister, shaking hands with soldiers in Kabul, Afghanistan. Wardak pulled out of the presidential elections, but warlords with a violent past have played a role in influencing Afghan politics since a U.S.-led coalition helped oust the Taliban in 2001. But they are emerging to play an overt political role in next monthís presidential elections as President Hamid Karzai leaves the scene. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus) - Niedringhaus, 48, was killed and an AP reporter was wounded on Friday, April 4, 2014 when an Afghan policeman opened fire while they were sitting in their car in eastern Afghanistan. #
An Afghan villager carries election materials over his shoulders as he hikes back to his village along a country road high in the mountains of Shutul District in northern Afghanistan on April 4, 2014. Afghans will vote on April 5 in the country's third presidential election to choose a successor to Hamid Karzai, who has led the country since the fall of the Taliban in 2001. SHAH MARAI/AFP/Getty Images #
Afghan women queue outside a school to get their registration card on the last day of voter registration for the upcoming presidential elections outside a school in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, April 1, 2014. Elections will take place on April 5, 2014. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus) - Niedringhaus, 48, was killed and an AP reporter was wounded on Friday, April 4, 2014 when an Afghan policeman opened fire while they were sitting in their car in eastern Afghanistan. #
An Afghan soldier, left, and a police man peek through a window as they queue with others to get their registration card on the last day of voter registration for the upcoming presidential elections outside a school in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, April 1, 2014. Elections will take place on April 5, 2014. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus) - Niedringhaus, 48, was killed and an AP reporter was wounded on Friday, April 4, 2014 when an Afghan policeman opened fire while they were sitting in their car in eastern Afghanistan. #
Supporters of Afghan presidential candidate Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai wait for his speech during a campaign rally in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, May 22, 2014. The campaign season for the second round of Afghanistan's presidential election kicked off today. (AP Photo/Massoud Hossaini) #
Afghan presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah arrives for a news conference in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, May 14, 2014. Front-runner Abdullah says that still there is time for the Elections Complain Commission to continue to their assessments ahead of the final election result announcements regarding the concerns over 1433 ballot boxes across the country and this assessment would have impact on the final results. (AP Photo/Massoud Hossaini) #
Afghan presidential candidate Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, center, looks on during a campaign rally in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, May 22, 2014. The campaign season for the second round of Afghanistan's presidential election kicked off today. (AP Photo/Massoud Hossaini) #
Afghan schoolgirls holds balloons and flags as they attend an election rally by presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah in Gardez, capital of eastern Paktia province on May 24, 2014. Afghan presidential candidates Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani will compete in the run-off on June 14 to determine who leads Afghanistan into a new era without the assistance of NATO combat troops to help fight the Taliban insurgency. WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP/Getty Images #
An Afghan policeman searches a vehicle passenger at a checkpoint in Ghazni province on May 27, 2014. Afghan presidential candidates Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani will compete in a run-off on June 14, to determine who leads Afghanistan into a new era without the assistance of NATO combat troops to help fight the Taliban insurgency. Rahmatullah Alizadah/AFP/Getty Images #
In this picture taken on March 16, 2014, Afghan soldiers attached to the 4th Brigade, 201 Army Corps of the Afghan National Army (ANA) walk in the rain in the early evening near blast walls inside at a forward operating base in Khogyani district. In the eastern district of Khogyani, the war against Taliban militants is a day-to-day struggle for control of fields and villages just outside Jalalabad, one of Afghanistan's biggest and most strategic cities. ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP/Getty Images #
Mahdi, 27, a drug addict, is bound in a cell in his 40-day incarceration at the Mia Ali Baba shrine in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, Thursday, May 1, 2014. It is believed locally that 40 days of chaining to a wall with a restricted diet at the 300-year old shrine can cure the mentally ill, drug addicts and those possessed by spirits. If a shrine keeper decides their situation is improving, they may be unchained for a few minutes. However, shrines such as Mia Ali Baba are frowned upon by health care professionals and other critics who say the remedy is ineffective and that those who run the incarceration prey on vulnerable people's religious beliefs and superstitions to make a profit. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) #
An Afghan labourer works at an aluminium workshop in Herat on May 27, 2014. Some 100 people work in the Herat Aluminium factory with around around 70 to 100 tons of aluminium produced each month, with most all of its products used domestically. Aref Karimi/AFP/Getty Images #
An Afghan labourer poses at an aluminium workshop in Herat on May 27, 2014. Some 100 people work in the Herat Aluminium factory with around around 70 to 100 tons of aluminium produced each month, with most all of its products used domestically. Aref Karimi/AFP/Getty Images #
Afghan security forces watch a house burn at the site of a clash between insurgents and security forces at the Indian Consulate in Herat, Afghanistan, Friday, May 23, 2014. Gunmen armed with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades attacked the Indian Consulate in western Afghanistan's Herat province Friday, an assault that injured no diplomatic staff, police said. Indian officials said there had been a threat against its diplomats in Afghanistan, but gave no other details. (AP Photo/Hoshang Hashimi) #
An Afghanistan National Army (ANA) soldier fires his weapon at the site of a clash between insurgents and security forces on the Indian Consulate in Herat, Afghanistan, Friday, May 23, 2014. Gunmen armed with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades attacked the Indian Consulate in western Afghanistan's Herat province Friday, an assault that injured no diplomatic staff, police said. Indian officials said there had been a threat against its diplomats in Afghanistan, but gave no other details. (AP Photo/Hoshang Hashimi) #
Afghan security policemen stands guard on a rooftop as smoke rises following an attack by insurgents on the Indian consulate in Herat on May 23 ,2014. Four insurgent gunmen launched a pre-dawn attack on India's consulate in the western Afghan city of Herat on May 23, before being repelled by security forces, in an assault highlighting instability as NATO troops withdraw. There were no casualties among Indian staff but at least two policemen were wounded when the heavily-armed attackers stormed a house close to the consulate and opened fire on the building. Aref Karimi/AFP/Getty Images #
A sand storm approaches Camp Bastion from the west on May 16, 2014 in Afghanistan. Within an hour the worst of the storm had passed. (Photo by Cpl Daniel Wiepen RLC/Ministry of Defence Crown via Getty Images) #
An Afghan farmer and child work on a wheat field in the outskirts of Jalalabad on May 9, 2014. Only about 15 percent of Afghanistan's land, mostly in scattered valleys, is suitable for farming with about 6 percent of the land actually cultivated with wheat being the most important crop. Noorullah Shirzada/AFP/Getty Images #
Afghan wrestlers compete at an outdoor arena in the northern town of Mazar-i-Sharif on April 29, 2014. Wrestling is a popular sport in Afghanistan, and is traditionally practiced among poorer members of Afghan society. FARSHAD USYAN/AFP/Getty Images #
Afghan policemen search a motorcyclist at a checkpoint in Ghazni province on May 27, 2014. Afghan presidential candidates Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani will compete in a run-off on June 14, to determine who leads Afghanistan into a new era without the assistance of NATO combat troops to help fight the Taliban insurgency. Rahmatullah Alizadah/AFP/Getty Images #
Afghan presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah, center, back to camera, arrives at a campaign rally in Paktiya province, east of Kabul, Afghanistan, Saturday, May 24, 2014. The campaign season for the second round of Afghanistan's presidential election kicked off on Thursday. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) #
An injured Afghan security personnel watches during an attack by insurgents on the Indian consulate in Herat on May 23 ,2014. Four insurgent gunmen launched a pre-dawn attack on India's consulate in the western Afghan city of Herat on May 23, before being repelled by security forces, in an assault highlighting instability as NATO troops withdraw. There were no casualties among Indian staff but at least two policemen were wounded when the heavily-armed attackers stormed a house close to the consulate and opened fire on the building. Aref Karimi/AFP/Getty Images #
In this picture taken on March 17, 2014, the Afghan national flag flutters in the wind behind barbed wire at a forward operating base where soldiers attached to the 4th Brigade, 201 Army Corps of the Afghan National Army (ANA) live in Khogyani district. In the eastern district of Khogyani, the war against Taliban militants is a day-to-day struggle for control of fields and villages just outside Jalalabad, one of Afghanistan's biggest and most strategic cities. ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP/Getty Images #
President Barack Obama gets a briefing by Marine General Joseph Dunford, commander of the US-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), right, after arriving at Bagram Air Field for an unannounced visit, on Sunday, May 25, 2014, north of Kabul, Afghanistan. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci) #
US President Barack Obama addresses US troops during a surprise visit to Bagram Air Field, north of Kabul, in Afghanistan, May 25, 2014, prior to the Memorial Day holiday. SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images |
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