BAGHDAD — Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the newly self-installed Caliph of The Islamic State, also known as Amir al Mu’minin Caliph Ibrahim, having only yesterday assassinated Iraqi President Nouri al-Maliki because he is a Shiite, was photographed earlier this morning by a solitary reporter greeting President Barack Obama at Baghdad’s presidential palace, formerly the principal residence of Saddam Hussein. Outside the palace, the Caliph’s 4,000 man army held up a banner proclaiming "Welcome Back To Iraq, Barack.”
The welcoming ceremony took place in the Green Zone, now known as the International Zone here.
The few foreign correspondents present noticed that Obama appeared to be somewhat subdued, but then they figured out that there was a reason for that.
In Washington, Bob Corker (R.-Tennessee), the ranking Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, took the to the floor of the Senate and mildly criticized the President for the timing of his trip to Baghdad. “I realize that it’s important to make peace with our former enemies,” Corker said, “but I think this was just a little bit premature.”
In rejoinder, at the White House, Press Secretary Josh Earnest pointed out that al-Baghdadi’s welcome banner did not say “Mission Accomplished."
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