Obama to give Oval Office address on Iraq

President Obama will deliver a prime-time Oval Office address Tuesday about the drawdown of troops in Iraq.

The White House announced the time and place of the speech Wednesday, saying it will take place after the president visits with troops in Fort Bliss, Texas.  

This would be the second Oval Office address this summer by the president, who spoke to the country about the Gulf oil spill in June. 

The speech comes on the heels of a major withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from the country, about seven-and-a-half years after President Bush began the war. Less than 50,000 troops are now in Iraq and will remain through next summer to assist with training and support operations.

Obama is expected to state that the drawdown of combat forces there fulfills one of his major campaign promises, but that the U.S. still has much work to do to tamp down Islamic extremism across the globe.

The president's speech will begin at 8 p.m.