*** SPOILER ALERT***  If you are like me and DVR-ed last night's episode of House, you might want to stop reading now.

Actor Kal Penn, of Harold and Kumar and House fame, has announced that he's one of the lucky few to have scored a gig at the White House. He's leaving Hollywood to become an Associate Director in the Office of Public Liaison, the office primarily responsible for public outreach. Penn, 31, was a regular on the campaign trail for Obama, campaigning for him as far back as the Iowa caucuses. Indeed some long-time Obama staffers told the Gaggle back in January how fond they were of Penn. "He was there for us when there was hardly any of us," one advance staffer told your Gaggler. Penn tells Entertainment Weekly that he was "incredibly honored a couple of months ago to get the opportunity to go work in the White House. I got to know the President and some of the staff during the campaign and had expressed interest in working there." We wonder if he had to submit his resume on change.gov, along with the 300,000 others wanting to work there.

Penn, whose grandparents marched with Ghandi in the Indian independence movement, says he's been thinking about trading his lab coat for a suit and tie for some time, but described leaving House as "bittersweet." We imagine the "bitter" part of that equation might have something to do with the massive pay cut he'll have to take. (And perhaps with the shocking way his character was written out of the show. Let's just say there'll be no running back to Hugh Laurie's sexy arms for Penn.) Fans hoping to catch a glimpse of the actor will likely be able to see him see him showing up to work at the Old Executive Office Building, where his office will be located.

Holly writes from Iraq:

The press pool is now told that Talibani may be on his way. We are at the generals palace just across the lake from Al Faw palace, holding outside while Obama meets with Maliki. It's dark out now and the only sound I can hear is fighter jets flying overhead.

Gagglette-in-chief Holly Bailey is with the President in Iraq. Here's what she has to say:

Upon arrival in Baghdad, your Gaggler sprinted to a long caravan of SUVs and vans.  Before exiting AF1, secret service read your pool reporters a long scary explanation of what to do should they hear a siren indicating a bomb about to hit. Holy um, bad word. The motorcade, which was tailed in the sky by low flying black helicopters, slowly exited down a dusty road for the five mile drive to Camp Victory. In all directions, there is just total devastation. Dead trees, piles of bricks and rubble that were once presumably buildings. Just nothingness. It looked like moonscape, only dusty. On the ride there, we passed what appeared to be a mobile home park or something like it but there were no people there, just military vehicles parked everywhere.

Upon arrival, the motorcade passed lots and lots of soldiers informally standing along the side of the road saluting Obama. Near Al Faw palace (Saddam's former home, built to commemorate the retaking of the Al Faw peninsula during the Iran-Iraq war, but which now serves as a Camp Victory), we passed a group of several hundred soldiers formally assembled to salute the President. Our driver pointed out another palace across a small lake. "That was Udays house," he said, referring to Saddam's son. Al Faw, which is enormous marble behemoth, is in impeccable condition considering it's in the middle of a war zone.

Inside, the palace is characterized by massive gleaming crystal chandeliers. The press pool was taken into a meeting with Obama, General Odierno and other military folks. They were heard talking about the perseverance of the troops. Asked why he was here, Obama said "to thank the troops" and said that although the focus has been mostly on Afghanistan lately, Iraq was still important even if conditions had improved. His presence here was a reminder of that. Obama said he would meet with Prime Minister Maliki. Gibbs said afterwards that Maliki would come to see Obama and that there was a possibility that President Talabani will too.

More than a thousand marines gathered in an immaculate circular rotunda, under a massive chandelier, to hear the President. An enormous American flag hung one side of the room. As Obama entered virtually everyone in the room whipped out digital cameras and held them above their heads to snap photos. "Hooah," Obama yelled, doing his best impression of the traditional Marine cry, when he took the stage. The crowd went wild: He's a rock star here too. His remarks were primarily about thanking the troops for their service. During the speech someone shouted, "I love you" and Obama shouted, " I love you back". The President talked at length about sacrifice of the troops and how people had missed the birth of babies and crucial moments in their lives.  "As long as I am president you will get the help you need and the support you deserve," he said. The Vice President's son, Beau Biden, who serves in the Delaware National Guard, was in the audience.

Actually, not that much. Except same sex marriage. Vermont just became the fourth state in the union to legalize it, after the legislature voted to override Governor Jim Douglas' veto. Vermont was the first state to adopt to legalize civil unions, and now joins this very small group. Here at the Gaggle, we keep re-reading the names of these states -- three Northestern and one Midwestern -- and a song from childhood comes blasting back: One of these things is not like the other ones things....Can you guess which thing?

In a surprise visit, President Obama traveled to Baghdad to visit with troops and meet with top Iraqi officials. It was his second visit to Iraq, his first as president. Reporters traveling with the president have been whispering for days about the possibility of Obama tacking on an extra stop to his week-long tour of Europe. Speculation had centered on Afghanistan, which has emerged as Obama’s top military priority since being sworn into office in January. But Obama went to Iraq instead, partly because of proximity. Baghdad is just a two-hour flight from Istanbul, the last scheduled stop on Obama’s trip.

At about 4:40pm local time, Obama landed in Baghdad on Air Force One under a hazy dusty sky. In fact the weather forced the White House to scale back its plans. Initially, Obama planned to helicopter around Baghdad and meet not just with troops but with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki and President Jalal Talibani. But the weather was too bad, forcing Obama to motorcade to Camp Victory only. “Commanders on the ground determined weather prevents helicopter travel,” White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told the press pool on AF1. Asked why the leaders wouldn’t come to him, Gibbs cited “timing.” But upon arrival at Al-Faw Palace, one of Saddam Hussein’s former homes that is now occupied by top military command, reporters learned from Obama himself that Maliki would indeed travel to meet him.  Asked why he came to Iraq, Obama said he was here to “thank the troops.” They are doing extraordinary work,” Obama told reporters. He said that although Afghanistan is getting much attention these days that Iraq still deserves attention and that his presence here is a reminder of that. Reporters are now waiting to hear Obama’s remarks to troops here.

The White House insisted on ultimate secrecy about the trip and took only the small travel pool of 14 reporters who regularly fly with Obama. On Monday, a senior administration official disclosed the trip to Newsweek, who was scheduled to fly home with Obama on Tuesday under the condition that it not be discussed with anyone or reported until Obama had landed safely in Baghdad. “Don’t worry about telling your bureau chief,” the official said. To keep word of the trip from somehow being intercepted over e-mail or phone, the White House had already called him.

Our favorites this morning from around the web:

Home sweet historic home
Obama's "historic" bubble has already been constructed around his persona. Now, almost 6,000 miles away, Hawaii lawmakers are considering whether the 12-story apartment building that was his boyhood home should be named a "historic place." (NPR)

Omnipresent Axelrod
There's little in the White House that David Axelrod doesn't do. He talks policy and strategy with different teams, and has the president's constant ear. But history has shown that the public is leery of all-encompassing advisers, which could quickly turn Axelrod into a liability. (Politico)

Hands off NorKo
North Korea defied global condemnation last week when it tested a long-range missile. Fred Kaplan argues that in order to get the U.S. back in the driver's seat with the isolated Asian country, the Obama Administration needs to play a much different -- and hands off -- game. (Slate)

Supreme bypass
If the Supreme Court decides this summer to hear a case from former Guantanamo detainees, the eventual ruling would set standards and procedures for treatment of terror suspects almost entirely out of the hands of the president. (AFP)

Minnesota: End in plain sight
Probably best not to hold your breath, but NPR reports that a conclusion to the indefatigable Minnesota senate race could end as early as today with a new ruling of a review panel. It also could stretch on. (NPR)

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After the Hagia Sofia, President Obama walked the short block to the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, better known as the Blue Mosque. It’s the national mosque of Turkey, and before going inside, everybody—including the president—had to remove their shoes, while women covered their heads with a scarf. The building is not nearly as old as the Hagia Sofia, but it’s still pretty old. It was built sometime between 1609 and 1616. It's called the Blue Mosque because it was built with thousands of blue tiles inside. More photos after the jump.

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President Obama kicked off his final day in Turkey with a visit to two of Istanbul’s most recognizable sites, the Hagia Sofia. Built almost 1,500 years ago (it was constructed between the years 532 and 537), it was initially one of the world’s largest basilicas before being converted into a mosque. It’s now a museum--and a home, your Gaggler must note, to a lot of cute cats. Obama, with Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel in tow, took a quick walking tour through the building this morning. Click for more pictures after the jump.

As your Gaggler noted yesterday, security has been noticeably tighter around President Obama since his arrival in Turkey on Sunday night. Perhaps this is why: CBS News, citing a report in a Saudi newspaper, says a man was arrested in Istanbul on Friday for alleging plotting to kill the president. Their World Watch blog reports:

The man, who was carrying an Al-Jazeera TV ID card in the name of M.G., confessed after his arrest that he was planning on stabbing the U.S. president with a knife during the Alliance of Civilizations summit held in Istanbul, adding that he had three other accomplices to help him execute his plan. According to the paper, Turkish investigators were trying to verify whether the Qatari-based Arab TV channel has truly issued the ID card produced by the man, or if it’s a forged copy. The suspect, a permanent resident of Istanbul, has been regularly attending all conferences and events relating to the Middle East held in the city.
 
According to the paper, Al-Jazeera here in Turkey claim they don’t know the man. A cause for concern for the White House: The man was reportedly credentialed to attend Obama-related events here in Istanbul today.