House Demands Report from Army on LTC West Investigation

HASC Press Release | 21 Nov 03

[O6ret]

PRESS RELEASE

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee on Armed Services

Duncan Hunter (R-CA), Chairman

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 21, 2003

HOUSE ARMED SERVICES LEADERS DEMAND INFORMATION CONCERNING LT. COLONEL WEST

Actions to Save Soldiers Were Proper Based on Available Information

WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Reps. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) and John M. McHugh (R-NY)are calling on U.S. Army leadership to immediately provide a report on the investigation of Lt. Col. Allen West. West is charged with improperly interrogating an Iraqi prisoner.

Based on the information currently available to them, Hunter and McHugh believe that West's actions may well have been necessary to protect the lives and safety of his fellow soldiers and not the actions of a criminal, as he is charged. Hunter is Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee and McHugh is Chairman of the Subcommittee on Total Force, which has jurisdiction over military personnel matters.

According to news accounts, the incident in question took place this pastAugust near Tikrit, Iraq, when guerrillas attacked U.S. soldiers underWest's command. An informant told U.S. authorities that a local policeman was involved. West ordered the policeman brought in, though he proveduncooperative. West has testified that he fired his pistol near the head ofthe Iraqi, threatening to kill him in an effort to obtain information to protect his troops. As a result of the tactic, the Iraqi provided information regarding a planned sniper attack on U.S. soldiers. Two insurgents were arrested, a third fled and there were no attacks in the area. West immediately informed his commanding officer of the incident. He is currently facing an inquiry to determine if there is cause for a court-martial.

"We are highly disturbed by media accounts that the Army is beginning criminal proceedings against Lt. Col. Allen B. West for taking actions in Iraq that he believed were necessary to protect the lives and safety of his men," stated the Congressmen in a letter to Les Brownlee, Acting Secretary of the Army. "To us, such actions if accurately reported do not appear to be those of a criminal," the letter continues.

In addition to the information previously requested, the Congressmen are asking to see a new report. "We are aware the Army has completed a preliminary inquiry regarding whether to proceed to a court martial and would like to review that report," said Hunter and McHugh in a joint statement. "Our interest is in justice. Based on what we know right now, it is more than reasonable to assume that Col. West acted in a manner proportionate to the threat against his soldiers."

[StarCMC]

Thanks for the bump Calpernie -- BTTT!!

[William Terrell]

And the first sergant says the troops agree with and celebrate punishment for Col. West?

[William Terrell]

Well, ok, when the true story appears you ping me.

[mdmathis6]

"You would be surprised how intimidating in can be to an islamist to be held and interrogated by women"

I think it just pisses them off! It is also an interesting study into the psyche when the threat of death was involved with this gentlemen. It seems as though he wasn't ready for his 72 virgins! This moslem gave the needed info to the colonel in a few moments, whereas hours with the "women interrogators gave them nothing!"

Humiliation and honor is a key motivator with these islamofascists. It was less humiliating and more honorable to give into a male threatening death then it was to give in to "decadent infidel slut western women"!(as I've heard muslim men describe American women!)

[Eaker]

I'm rapidly smoking and drinking my way to that location as we speak (according to my dear mother).

LOL!!!!

[Ispy4u]

No one is celebrating punishment.

The way the troops see it he lost his discipline. Plain and simple, everyone who has been in any branch of the military knows that nothing good comes from losing your discipline.

Argue it to the death if you want but every successful army in history has been successful because of, not in spite of, discipline.

[Ispy4u]

Now you wouldn't be letting me be a bad influence on you, would you?

[Ispy4u]

The guy gave info, but the reliability of it is suspect.

Decades of training and study has been devoted to discovering that once a person is willing to tell you what you want to hear, you can never trust their information again.

[DLfromthedesert]

There are too many Clitonites still in charge in our Armed Services. We CANNOT allow this fine officer to be railroaded because he refuses to bow to PC Clintonism-type rules whiletrying to fight a war.

Kudos to Duncan Hunter!!

[Eaker]

Naw, it is part of my retirement plan..........

[Busywhiskers]

"Whatever happened to the idea of "separation of f***ing powers?""

Ever heard of Congressional oversight?

[bulldogs]

This moslem gave the needed info to the colonel in a few moments, whereas hours with the "women interrogators gave them nothing!"


Women have no place on the battlefield. This is proof.

[Ispy4u]

I'll raise my glass to that!

[mdmathis6]

Hey it isn't just the Military's fault...I submit that the cultural conflicts happening in our country have had a deleterious effect on our military's preparedness and morale. We are a country at conflict with itself, with no sense of moral mission or real sense of purpose or duty. There may be more Colonel Wests, not fewer in the coming years if something is not done to check the cultural deterioration. The Judge Moore debacle in Alabama is another symtom of the same condition. Colonel West has done "wrong" but since we are in conflict as to what right or wrong really is in our country, force wielded by the greatest number untimately will decide it...temporarily any way!

Have you ever read "Star Ship Troopers" BY Heinlein? Especially the earlier unabridged editions? Very frighteningly prophetic in sketching the decline of the "unlimited democracies" and the rise of anarchic factionalism. The solution was to have the military take over...but a military in which voting and Governing citizens were those who had served in the military (Service guarantees citizenship!)

As for you and other so called people who claim they know people who know people as to how the story went over there;especially another poster who claims to know the first sargent in the outfit West was in, there is security monitoring you know, the witnesses themselves who would be testifying in the hearings aren't going to be just telling people what went down...with-out jeopardizing their own careers. You are right, what went will happen to West probably be decided in the hearing. But think of what you have read about the moral climate of the military from the beginning thru Korea and compare it with now...factoring in of course that West probably would have been a white officer then and not a black officer...and compare it with now! West would not have been even given a slap on the wrist for what he is accused of now.

[mdmathis6]

The info save the lives of his men and foiled an attack..people were captured! They can worry about reliability of the source later...if the source himself was not killed by his fellows at some late date.

[Ispy4u]

The info may have save[d] the lives of his men and foiled an attack..people(named under duress and possibly innocent) were captured! They can worry about reliability of the source later (like right after bad info gets a whole lot more of our guys killed)...if the source(or operative who wanted to disrupt cooperation between West's unit and the police) himself was not killed by his fellows at some late date.

A little editorial correction to present an objective version of the story not biased by information released by only LTC West and his lawyers. Now that the badguys know that some leaders won't collaborate information with intel before acting on it it would be very easy to set them up for a truly horrendous attack.

[Calpernia]

>>>>I guess you guys should feel good about the fact that you have finally raised enough of a stink to poison the judicial proceedings.

I for one am VERY happy ^-^

I'm off to the trout pond on this fine sunny day.

Isn't activism great? :)

[Ispy4u]

Remember you said that when one day a bunch of Dems get together to influence judical proceedings in a way you don't agree with. Every shortcut has it's consequences.

[mdmathis6]

Hey...the Army says he's bad...the defense says West did know wrong...that is what my take on the story is. Even though West is subject to the UCMJ, there is still presumed innocence until found guilty.

The Army itself doesn't deny that soldiers weren't saved and terrorists captured...they(or at least some army nitwit) are questioning the means by which the colonel achieved these ends.

In another era, or perhaps if another race or certain political connections were involved...this wouldn't have gotten any-where.

As for horrendous attacks...hadn't they been ongoing? Maybe West acted as they did because conditions are actually much more worse then what has been depicted by our government and more like what has been depicted by the "liberal" press after all? Maybe this shouldn't be going to trial after-all...it might be an embarrassment for Bush. Then again the Clintonite left-overs in the army would love it that way!


West will probably be found guilty. The problem was when West was confronted by the local advocate general...(the press has never released his..or ...HER name?) West was told, retire now and lose your retirement benefits or be court martialed and face prison. Those facts don't seem to be in dispute by any-one, nor does any-one dispute the fact that West offered to retire at a reduced rank of Major and admit to some culpability of mis-judgment! What he did (or didn't do) does not
rise to the degree of punishment that was proposed for him, especially in light of his past service, which from as much info as I have been able to see, meritorious!

We spoke of humiliation before. The real FACT IS IF THE AG FELT THAT WHAT HE DID WAS SO HEINOUS...THEN THE COLONEL SHOULD NOT HAVE EVEN BEEN GIVEN A CHOICE! He should have been immediately arrested and summarily court martialed instead of being asked to arbitrarily humiliate himself. He either did wrong or no wrong, but don't give him a chance to potentially damage the public image of the military. He chose to stand and fight in a Clarence Thomas sort of fashion, and the military will not soon live this one down.

[AndyJackson]

He had no right to choose anything outside of the rules he swore to follow.

Here is the oath of office to which an officer swears, " I, John Doe, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.''