Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, speaking in Sydney, Australia, today: “On the assessment of the effectiveness of the air strikes, they have been very effective, from all the reports that we’ve received on the ground. I will be speaking with General Austin here in a couple of hours. I spoke with Chairman Dempsey this morning. I have been talking with our people on a — on a regular basis, not just on those assessments, but all the other dimensions of — of what we’re doing and how we’re doing and future operations in Iraq.”
Above, in this AP photo, President Barack Obama laughs while golfing with former NFL player Ahmad Rashad at Farm Neck Golf Club in Oak Bluffs, Mass., on the island of Martha’s Vineyard, Saturday, Aug. 9, 2014.