Defense secretary says U.S. is not pulling troops out of Iraq Defense Secretary Mark Esper says the U.S. military will not be leaving Iraq following a non-binding Iraqi parliamentary vote to expel foreign troops from the country. CBS News State Department reporter Christina Ruffini, Politico White House correspondent Anita Kumar, and Los Angeles Times congressional reporter Jennifer Haberkorn spoke to CBSN's "Red & Blue" about the state of U.S. policy foreign policy following the killing of a top Iranian general.