President Obama to Deliver Primetime Speech on End of Iraq Combat Ops

Aug. 31 speech will mark second time Obama addresses nation from Oval Office

By Marisa Guthrie -- Broadcasting & Cable, 8/26/2010 11:58:26 AM

On Aug. 31, President Obama will deliver a primetime speech from the Oval Office about the end of combat operations in Iraq. The speech, which will be about 15 minutes long, will begin at 8 p.m ET. All of the major networks will carry it live. Diane Sawyer will anchor ABC's coverage of the speech. She'll be joined by George Stephanopoulos. Brian Williams will anchor NBC's coverage, and Harry Smith will be on hand for CBS' coverage. Fox, which has on occasion demurred in handing over prime-time for the President's addresses, also will carry the speech live.

NewsHour's Jim Lehrer will anchor PBS' coverage, which will be followed by analysis from columnists Mark Shields and David Brooks.

Next week's speech will be only the second time Obama has addressed the country from the somber setting of the Oval Office. The last time was June 15 to defend the Administration's reaction to the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and outline clean-up and restitution efforts.

The U.S. military is in the midst of a withdrawal of combat troops from Iraq - the deadline for which is Aug. 31. There will still be 50,000 non-combat troops in Iraq for training and operational purposes, less than a third of the height of the 170,000 troops there during the surge of 2007. More than 4,400 American soldiers have been killed in Iraq. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 142 journalists have been killed in Iraq.