Four authors who have had first-hand experience in Iraq participated in a panel discussion, moderated by Mr. Kunetka, titled “Boots on the Ground: An Intimate View of America in Iraq.” The members of the panel spoke about their experiences, the war in Iraq, life after Saddam Hussein, and the current situation there. Following their discussion, the panelists responded to questions and comments from members of the audience. The event took place inside the Senate Chamber of the Texas State Capitol.

George Packer is the author of The Assassins' Gate: America in Iraq, published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Michael Goldfarb is the author of Ahmad’s War, Ahmad’s Peace: Surviving Under Saddam, Dying in the New Iraq, published by Carroll and Graf Publishers.

John Crawford, author of The Last True Story I’ll Ever Tell: An Accidental Soldier’s Account of the War in Iraq, published by Riverhead Books.

Nathaniel Fick is the author of One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer, published by Houghton Mifflin.