Today the Obama campaign held a briefing for reporters traveling on Obama’s trip to the Middle East and Europe. In a conference room at the Four Seasons hotel in Amman, senior advisors spoke on background for a little less than an hour, discussing Obama’s motives and itinerary while abroad.

The presumptive Democratic nominee and Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Chuck Hagel (R-NE), who accompanied Obama on a Congressional Delegation trip to Kuwait, Afghanistan, and Iraq, are scheduled to arrive in Jordan by V22 aircraft at 2:30pm, local time. After getting briefed and resting up, the senators will hold a 45-minute media avail on their CODEL at the historic Amman Citadel.

While he isn’t exactly a stranger to magazine covers, television news, and newspapers, go ahead and call it Obama week in the U.S. press. There are 40 journalists whose news outlets are paying thousands of dollars to cover Obama’s first foreign trip as candidate for president - and he will sit down with anchors from the five television networks who will make the overseas journey to conduct the interviews in person.

The purpose of this trip isn’t political, Obama’s advisors say, but the candidate stands to gain from the expected constant press coverage, which will come by way of numerous photo-ops with world leaders, press conferences, and one rally-like event in Berlin, where some tens of thousands are expected.

But the campaign denies the Germany event is a big political rally. One advisor explained, “It will not be a speech about campaign issues, he’s not going to address campaign issues in terms of other candidates, it is not a speech about American politics, and so it’s not a campaign event. We’re not trying to recruit support from the crowds that are coming.”

Rather, “The point of the outdoor rally is that the Senator wants to speak directly to our allies and to the people of Europe and the people of the world and it would be inconsistent to do that and try to limit the attendance for that event. There’s a great deal of interest in his visit. We want to accommodate that interest.”

The campaign told reporters today that Obama will not hold any fundraisers while he is abroad - despite the fact that the Democrat is wildly popular in Europe.

Read Obama’s itinerary after the jump.

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Journalists were asked by the Obama campaign to hold off from reporting that Obama would visit Afghanistan and Iraq prior to his trip abroad next week until he landed safely in the region — which his campaign informed us early this morning that he has.

While a small “pool” of reporters was permitted to document his journey from Chicago to Andrews Air Force Base on Thursday, none made the journey abroad with Obama and Senators Reed and Hagael, as their visit is classified as a “Congressional Delegation,” funded by taxpayers.

The following email was received by reporters at 3:24am Eastern Daylight Time.

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At approximately 3:15 AM Eastern/2:15 AM Central, I received a phone call telling me that Senator Obama had landed at the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan.

Since leaving Washington on Thursday, Senator Obama had stopped and visited troops in Kuwait.

What follows is a pool report by the Chicago Tribune’s John McCormick.

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Background:

This is a pool report for July 17 for flight from Chicago’s Midway Airport to Washington’s Reagan National Airport, followed by motorcade to Andrews Air Force Base. All times are local for the geography mentioned. Please note that the campaign said it would be holding this for distribution until it confirmed Sen. Obama was on the ground in Afghanistan.

Report:

The motorcade left Sen. Obama’s home in Chicago’s Kenwood neighborhood at 11:11 a.m. There was one Chicago Police Department patrol car, followed by two SUVs, a sedan and a press van. Riding in the press van were agent Jill, Sam, John McCormick of the Chicago Tribune and Glen Johnson of The Associated Press.

The motorcade headed north on Lake Shore Drive to I-55 (Stevenson Expressway) and toward MDW. The CPD blocked traffic for our turn onto the western perimeter of the airfield, where we arrived at 11:31 a.m.

Waiting on the tarmac was a Gulfstream III (G3) executive jet (tail number N366JA). We exited our respective vehicles at 11:34 a.m.

The crew was waiting outside for the senator’s arrival and a few photos with him near a wing. He was wearing tan slacks and a short black jacket. After fishing around in the back of one of the SUVs for his luggage (he seemed especially to be checking his suits inside a garment bag), he was on the bird by 11:36 a.m.

Also getting on the plane were eight Secret Service agents and the two reporters. The senator briefly greeted us as we walked past his seat in the forward section. Seated near him was senior spokeswoman Linda Douglass, the only staff member on the flight.

After everyone found a seat on the crowded plane, the pilot announced that the flying time would be between 80 and 85 minutes. All seemed eager for him to start the engines, since the plane had been sitting under a hot sun and the cabin temperature was likely somewhere in the 90s. Sweat had begun to roll down the faces of some of the agents.

“We’re just easing you into it,” Obama told his bodyguards, referring to the heat and the desert weather they would all be traveling to in the coming days.

As the plane taxied, the senator, wearing a short-sleeve black shirt, chatted with Douglass. The plane was wheels up at 11:55 a.m.

Your pool asked Douglass if we could chat with the senator about his upcoming trip. She said she would check, but later told us that we would only get a brief chance to ask him a couple questions once at Reagan National Airport.

Janis, our stewardess, first served the senator his lunch (chicken and rice and broccoli). Everyone else had sandwiches, wraps, chips and candy (yes, just like on the bus), although we were served on china and given green place settings and cloth napkins.

As the plane peaked around 41,000 feet and 500 knots, according to the computer screen tracking our location at the front of the cabin, the senator read a copy of the Wall Street Journal. Johnson had claimed an aisle seat and reported that he first read a story about off-shore oil drilling and then one about Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.

By the time we were descending, at 17,000 feet, he had switched to the New York Times, spending most of his time in the Sports and Arts sections.

We were wheels down at 2:17 p.m. local and parked with the engines off by 2:24 p.m.

After getting off the plane, Douglass said there was time for “one question,” adding, “Then, we’re making him leave. He’s behind [schedule].”

Your pool, with the noise of the jet’s engines in the background, quickly asked what two or three things Obama was hoping to learn on this mission.

“Well, I’m looking forward to seeing what the situation on the ground is,” he said. “I want to, obviously, talk to the commanders and get a sense, both in Afghanistan and in Baghdad of, you know, what the most, ah, their biggest concerns are. And I want to thank our troops for the heroic work that they’ve been doing.”

Then, the senator was asked whether he plans to deliver some tough talk to Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki about doing more to stand up the instruments of self-governance in their own nations.

“Well, you know, I’m more interested in listening than doing a lot of talking,” he said. “And I think it is very important to recognize that I’m going over there as a U.S. senator. We have one president at a time, so it’s the president’s job to deliver those messages.”

By 2:32 p.m., the motorcade was rolling. This one included two local police cars, three SUVs, a Honda Accord, a minivan equipped with lights and sirens and another local patrol car. We were off the DCA property by 2:36 p.m.

Your pool was in the Honda with Douglass. It was driven by Molly Buford, who works in Obama’s senator office and also for the campaign.

The motorcade traveled I-395 to I-295 and then on to the Suitland Parkway, entering a northern entrance of Andrews Air Force Base at 2:57 p.m.

We passed several military helicopters and planes before arriving at 3:01 p.m. near an aircraft that had no markings, with the exception of an American flag on the tail. This was the plane that would transport the congressional delegation to their destination. A ground crew member told us it was a Boeing C-40C.

The senator greeted several military personnel waiting for him near the plane. He was carrying a laptop bag and had changed into some brown leather boots upon arrival in Washington.

The senator was also greeted by Mark Lippert, foreign policy advisor in his senate office. Douglass said he was the only member of Obama’s staff traveling with him on the congressional delegation trip. Douglass later told your pool that Lippert had returned in the late spring from a tour of duty in Iraq as a naval reservist.

By 3:03 p.m., the senator was on the aircraft, having been saluted by a member of the military on his way aboard. At 3:09 p.m., the plane’s door was closed. Four minutes later it was in motion and wheels up at 3:17 p.m., taking off to the south.

Later, Douglass confirmed that Sens. Jack Reed and Chuck Hagel were on the plane before our arrival. Your pool had not seen them at Andrews.

– John McCormick, Chicago Tribune.

ROBERT GIBBS

Senior Strategist for Communications and Message

Obama for America

ALBUQUERQUE, NM — Seeking to counter Sen. Obama’s major foreign policy address today, Sen. McCain pounced on his Democratic rival for announcing his strategy for Iraq and Afghanistan before he is set to travel to the two war zones.

“I note that he is speaking today about his plans for Iraq and Afghanistan before he has even left, before he has talked to General Petraeus, before he has seen the progress in Iraq, and before he has set foot in Afghanistan for the first time,” McCain told about 200 voters at a town hall meeting in Albuquerque, in remarks originally set to be delivered Thursday but moved up to coincide with Obama’s speech. “In my experience, fact-finding missions usually work best the other way around. First you assess the facts on the ground, then you present a new strategy. So this is certainly a departure to what I have usually done.”

The presumptive GOP nominee also criticized Obama’s recent statements about the surge as taking flip-flopping to a “new level”–pointing to Obama’s remarks that he had “no doubt” the military surge would succeed despite other statements to the contrary.

“My friends, flip-floppers all over the world are enraged..it give new meaning (to the term),” McCain told the town hall, later adding aboard his bus that Obama’s evolving position on Iraq “exceeds every (flip flop) that I have ever observed and I have seen some egregious ones.”

His criticism came during a speech where he called the current situation in Afghanistan “not acceptable” and laid out his “comprehensive strategy for victory,” which includes sending up to 15,000 additional troops to that battlefront in order to turnaround recent Taliban advances.

“Our commanders on the ground in Afghanistan say that they need at least three additional brigades. Thanks to the success of the surge, these forces are becoming available, and our commanders in Afghanistan must get them. But sending more forces, by itself, that by itself is not enough,” McCain said, later clarifying that the brigades would not just be American but be made up of a combination of U.S. and NATO forces. But the GOPer added today that more troops is not the only solution to bringing down the violence.

“What we need in Afghanistan is exactly what General Petraeus brought to Iraq: a nationwide civil-military campaign that is focused on providing security for the population. Today no such integrated plan exists. When I am commander-in-chief, it will,” he added.

Speaking to reporters aboard his bus, McCain also had some uncharacteristically tough words for Afghan leader Hamid Karzai, stating that he has not met U.S. expectations.

“Karzai has not been effective. Karzai has not been the strong leader that we hoped he would be,” McCain said. “He’s a very fine man–just not has (exercised the) strong leadership that we would (have) hoped.”

ALBUQUERQUE, NM — As Sen. McCain prepares to question his Democratic rival’s foreign policy credibility in a speech this morning, he got an assist today from a colleague on Capitol Hill.

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) sent a letter to Sen. Obama Tuesday pointing out that the Illinois Democrat has yet to hold a hearing on Afghanistan even though he chairs a European Affairs subcommittee with oversight of NATO and asking for one after Obama returns to the states.

“With oversight of NATO relations and its role in Afghanistan, I believe it is time for us to focus closely on these issues. As Ranking Member of your Subcommittee on European Affairs, I would welcome a chance to hold a hearing on NATO’s mission in Afghanistan upon your return,” writes DeMint. The argument is one of the cases the McCain camp has adopted from the Clinton campaign, which repeatedly brought up the fact that Obama never exercised his subcommittee’s oversight power in regards to Afghanistan.

Full letter after jump…

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The Obama campaign announced details of the Illinois Senator’s first trip abroad as a presidential candidate, saying he’ll be visiting France, Germany, Israel, Jordan and the United Kingdom to consult with leaders about common challenges like terrorism, nuclear proliferation and climate change.

“This trip will be an important opportunity for me to assess the situation in countries that are critical to American national security, and to consult with some of our closest friends and allies about the common challenges we face,” Obama said in a statement. “Israel is a strong and close friend of the United States, and is confronting grave threats from Gaza to Tehran. Jordan has been a close partner in the peace process and a host of other issues of common concern. France, Germany, and the United Kingdom are key anchors of the transatlantic alliance and have contributed to the mission in Afghanistan, and I look forward to discussing how we can strengthen our partnership in the years to come.”

“This will be an important opportunity to have an exchange of views with leaders in these countries about these and other issues that are critical to American national security — and global security — in the 21st century,” he said.

Not on this list: Iraq and Afghanistan, two countries that — according to the McCain campaign, which keeps a running tally — Obama has not visited for more than 900 days. Obama is set to travel to the war zones on a separate trip as part of a congressional delegation, not as a candidate.

Just days after Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari met with Republican candidate for president, John McCain, he took a phone call from Democratic candidate Barack Obama.

The two spoke as the Senator drove from his home in Chicago to Midway Airport this morning. When the candidate landed in Flint, Michigan, for his speech on competitiveness, Obama shared with reporters details about his conversation.

Obama said during the conversation, “We discussed a broad range of issues I thought it was very constructive. He emphasized to me his belief that as a consequence of the extraordinary efforts and sacrifice of US military forces, we’ve made significant progress in quelling the violence in Iraq. And that the Iraqi government is deeply interested in negotiating an effective Status of Forces agreement and a strategic framework agreement with the United States.”

Of course Obama is the candidate in the race who will begin withdrawing troops from Iraq, and has campaigned on such a platform since he got into the race. He said he told Zebari that while he was encouraged by the reduction of violence in Iraq, he “insisted that it is important for us to begin the process of withdrawing US troops, making clear that we have no interest in permanent bases in Iraq, that any negotiations for a Status of Forces agreement or strategic framework agreement should be done in the open and with Congress’s authorization, because I believe that it’s in the interests of both Iraq and the United States that any such critical negotiations have strong bipartisan support and that they can be sustained through a future administration.”

He also stressed the need for the need for “political accommodations” and the importance of engaging nearby countries. Finally, he said, “I gave him an assurance that should we be elected, an Obama administration will make sure that we continue with the progress that’s been made in Iraq, that we won’t act precipitously, but that we will move to end US combat forces in Iraq in a manner that’s as careful as we were careless getting in.”

When the Senator was asked if the Foreign Minister expressed concern for withdrawal, Obama replied, “No - he did not express that. He did emphasized his belief that we’ve made real progress and I think was eager to see political accommodations between the factions follow up in the wake of this progress.”

And on the much ballyhooed visit to Iraq, Obama said, “I told him that I look forward to seeing him in Baghdad.” A reporter asked if the trip might be before the Democrats’ August convention. “You know, we’ll make an announcement about that, but as I said, I’m interested in visiting Iraq and Afghanistan before the election.”

The RNC, which has been tracking the days since Obama’s last visit to the country in 2006, welcomes such a trip. “In the nearly 900 days since Barack Obama visited Iraq, the facts on the ground have changed dramatically – but his ideologically-driven position has not. When Obama visits Iraq, he’ll see that he was wrong to oppose the surge, wrong to continue to ignore our commanders’ advice and wrong to demand premature withdrawal. America cannot afford a Commander-in-Chief who needs on-the-job training,” said spokesman Alex Conant in a statement.

West Palm Beach, FL  — Sen. John McCain said he is not surprised that Democratic rival, Sen. Hillary Clinton, pulled out key victories in the Texas and Ohio primaries Tuesday night.

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“I congratulate her. I mean she works very, very hard. She is a real campaigner. I notice that she was up very late last night and yet she was able to be…in Washington and be on all the morning shows this morning. She is a very hard campaigner. I give her great credit,” McCain said during a media availability on his plane flight to Florida Wednesday evening.

“I would never count…the former President or Senator Clinton out of any race,” he added, noting that he has said on his campaign bus for weeks that Clinton is a tough campaigner and that “Republicans had a tendency to (doubt the Clinton’s) back in ‘92.”

But the praise ended there as he rebuked Clinton over remarks she made during her Tuesday victory speech where she declared that, “we’re ready to end the war in Iraq and win the war in Afghanistan.”

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“I think they’re inter-connected. And I don’t think you can…declare your going to basically give up in one place to al Qaeda and expect to prevail in another…..country in that part of the world,” McCain said. “I don’t think it’s realistic in any way to say you’re going to pull out of one country and yet you’re going to win in another one with a common enemy.”