President Obama said Iraq is going to need help due to the jihadist advance, and that his team is working to determine the most effective aid to offer. The White House has refused previous Iraqi requests for American airstrikes against Iraqi insurgents. The US has been flying reconnaissance drones over Iraq since last year. US officials are now considering options including US airstrikes, intelligence sharing, stepped up provision of military equipment, and enhanced training of Iraqi and Kurdish forces. Officials said US ground troops would not be deployed in Iraq. Senator McCain called for Obama to replace his national security team with officials who were involved in the Iraq war. A makeshift bomb damaged a power plant in Nogales, Ariz. yesterday; it detonated near a large diesel fuel tank, puncturing it, but the fuel did not ignite.
