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War in Iraq ‘Personal’ to Gates, Nominee Tells Senators
American Forces Press Service ^ | Jim Garamone

Posted on 12/05/2006 4:05:26 PM PST by SandRat

WASHINGTON, Dec. 5, 2006 -- Defense secretary nominee Robert M. Gates spoke today on how the war in Iraq has touched him personally -- 12 graduates of Texas A&M University, which he has led as president for the last four years, have been killed in Iraq.

Click photo for screen-resolution image
Sen. Edward Kennedy, left, listens as Sen. Carl Levin questions Robert M. Gates, defense secretary nominee, during a Senate Armed Services Commitee confirmation hearing, Dec. 5. Photo by Cherie A. Thurlby  '(Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available.

Gates is President Bush's nominee to succeed Donald H. Rumsfeld as secretary of defense.

“I would run in the morning with some of those kids; I would have lunch with them,” Gates said during his confirmation hearing at the Senate Armed Services Committee. “They would share with me their aspirations and their hopes, and I would hand them their degree and attend their commissioning. And then I would get word of their deaths.

“So this all comes down to being very personal for all of us,” he added.

As of yesterday 2,899 servicemembers have died in Iraq. “Every one of them is an individual tragedy for a soldier who has been killed and their family and friends,” he said. “And I see this.”

He said people have talked to him about the pressures of the confirmation process, but the real pressure came when he met a woman who had two children in Iraq. The woman told him, “For God’s sake, bring them home safe,” Gates said. “That’s real pressure,” he added.

Gates promised to listen closely to people, draw his own conclusions and make his own recommendations. “I did not give up being president of Texas A&M University … to come back to Washington to be a bump on a log and not to say exactly what I think and to speak candidly, frankly and boldly to people at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue about what I believe and what I think needs to be done,” he said.



TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Government; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: frwn; iraq; personal; senators; war
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To: Pondman88
W and Gates got two years to clean this thing up..if they don't, if it goes bad, Hello President Obama.

And you can bet the 'Rats (and some RINOs) will be doing all they can to ensure that it all goes to snot.

21 posted on 12/05/2006 7:35:54 PM PST by El Gato
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To: SandRat

I think after today with all this Oprahlike stuff we need some quotes from "Patton"

"We're gonna keep fighting. Is that CLEAR? We're gonna attack all night we're gonna attack the next morning. If we're not VICTORIOUS. Let no man come back alive."

"Now there's another thing I want you to remember. I don't want to get any messages saying that we are holding our position. We're not holding anything. Let the Hun do that. We are advancing constantly and we're not interested in holding onto anything except the enemy. We're going to hold onto him by the nose and we're going to kick him in the ass. We're going to kick the hell out of him all the time and we're going to go through him like crap through a goose"

"The bilious bastards who came up with that stuff about individuality know as much about battle as they do about fornicating."

God do we need a Patton today.


22 posted on 12/05/2006 7:58:52 PM PST by Swiss
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To: caisson71

Face it--all you know you learned from somebody else's report. You don't have a clue about what goes on behind the scenes and you sure don't know anything about Rumsfield or Gates.


23 posted on 12/05/2006 8:42:49 PM PST by lonestar (Me, too--Weinie)
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To: maxwellp
Rumsfeld would have been crucified by committee after committee if he had stayed on.

What's so hard to figure out?

24 posted on 12/05/2006 9:48:27 PM PST by what's up
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To: lonestar

Get up out of the wrong side of the rock today buddy? I saw/listened to Gates testimony before Congress. Do I understand Englis? Mostly.


25 posted on 12/06/2006 9:25:10 AM PST by caisson71
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