President Bush Makes Surprise Visit To Iraq

President Bush made a surprise visit to Iraq on Tuesday.

Not even Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki was aware the President was coming:

The prime minister had been invited to the embassy on the pretense of taking part in a video conference with Bush, supposedly at Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland's Catoctin Mountins.

[. . .]

Aside from al-Maliki and his cabinet, Bush was to see Jalal Talibani, Iraq’s largely ceremonial president. Bush also was to meet with the speaker of the parliament, national political leaders and U.S. troops during his five-hour visit.

According to MSNBC, President Bush flew to Iraq secretly from talks at Camp David, Maryland with senior national security advisers who gathered Monday to review how to bolster Iraq’s fledgling government and its capacity to handle the country’s defense:

Air Force One landed in hazy daylight at Baghdad Airport, where the temperature was above 100 degrees.

Then, Bush transferred to a helicopter for a six-minute ride into the heavily fortified Green Zone. White House officials said the helicopter ride posed the greatest risk for the president. 

This was President Bush’s second trip to Iraq. He visited American troops at Thanksgiving, 2003.