Great post and a very good assessment of the enemy's response. Good work.
Posted on 12/09/2004 9:22:17 AM PST by Nascardude
Edited on 12/09/2004 10:05:10 AM PST by Admin Moderator. [history]
RUMSFELD SET UP; REPORTER PLANTED QUESTIONS WITH SOLIDER
Thu Dec 09 2004 11:49:38 ET
Chattanooga Times Free Press reporter Edward Lee Pitts is embedded with the 278th Regimental Combat Team, now in Kuwait preparing to enter Iraq, and is filing articles for his newspaper. Pitts claims in a purported email that he coached soldiers to ask Defense Secretary Rumsfeld questions!
From: EDWARD LEE PITTS, Chattanooga Times Free Press military reporter
Sent: Wednesday, December 8, 2004 4:44 PM
To: Staffers
Subject: RE: Way to go
I just had one of my best days as a journalist today. As luck would have it, our journey North was delayed just long enough see I could attend a visit today here by Defense Secretary Rumsfeld. I was told yesterday that only soldiers could ask questions so I brought two of them along with me as my escorts. Before hand we worked on questions to ask Rumsfeld about the appalling lack of armor their vehicles going into combat have. While waiting for the VIP, I went and found the Sgt. in charge of the microphone for the question and answer session and made sure he knew to get my guys out of the crowd.
So during the Q&A session, one of my guys was the second person called on. When he asked Rumsfeld why after two years here soldiers are still having to dig through trash bins to find rusted scrap metal and cracked ballistic windows for their Humvees, the place erupted in cheers so loud that Rumsfeld had to ask the guy to repeat his question. Then Rumsfeld answered something about it being "not a lack of desire or money but a logistics/physics problem." He said he recently saw about 8 of the special up-armored Humvees guarding Washington, DC, and he promised that they would no longer be used for that and that he would send them over here. Then he asked a three star general standing behind him, the commander of all ground forces here, to also answer the question. The general said it was a problem he is working on.
The great part was that after the event was over the throng of national media following Rumsfeld- The New York Times, AP, all the major networks -- swarmed to the two soldiers I brought from the unit I am embedded with. Out of the 1,000 or so troops at the event there were only a handful of guys from my unit b/c the rest were too busy prepping for our trip north. The national media asked if they were the guys with the armor problem and then stuck cameras in their faces. The NY Times reporter asked me to email him the stories I had already done on it, but I said he could search for them himself on the Internet and he better not steal any of my lines. I have been trying to get this story out for weeks- as soon as I foud out I would be on an unarmored truck- and my paper published two stories on it. But it felt good to hand it off to the national press. I believe lives are at stake with so many soldiers going across the border riding with scrap metal as protection. It may be to late for the unit I am with, but hopefully not for those who come after.
The press officer in charge of my regiment, the 278th, came up to me afterwords and asked if my story would be positive. I replied that I would write the truth. Then I pointed at the horde of national media pointing cameras and mics at the 278th guys and said he had bigger problems on his hands than the Chattanooga Times Free Press. This is what this job is all about - people need to know. The solider who asked the question said he felt good b/c he took his complaints to the top. When he got back to his unit most of the guys patted him on the back but a few of the officers were upset b/c they thought it would make them look bad. From what I understand this is all over the news back home.
Thanks,
Lee
EDWARD LEE PITTS FILED STORY ABOUT THE TROOPS BEFORE THE POW-WOW WITH RUMSFELD
Developing...
You are not being realistic. Your heart is in the right place but you simply don't understand the time it takes to adjust to unorthodox warfare.
Now you've done it. Introduced facts and reason. Boy are you going to get it.
You don't get the point. The question is irrelevent. What is important is the selective USE of the question by the lyin' PoS who make up the RATmedia. Provision of appropriate armour is the least of its concerns at the top of which is the desire to undermine the President. THAT is why the soldier was prepped with the question not ANY concern for the safety of our soldiers.
Is the Dept. of Defense transcript no good?
The paper he works for ought to fire him for these kinds of tactics, but since most papers are liberal, it's not likely to happen. (He'll actually probably get a raise.)
By the way, I thought Rummy did pretty good in answering the question.
Tommy Franks talking about this on Cavuto right now. Says Rummy has been asked these types of questions before. Says media's believability isn't something he'll comment on, LOL!
Says Rumsfeld will take the question to heart. But that he's sure Rumsfeld wasn't angry about the question.
The media pukes were in a tizzy right before the elections in Afghanistan
Haven't heard squat from them since the election ..
Why would that be???
Maybe because things are going better then the media wants?
A....no. Untill the other day I had not heard a soldier in a war zone complain about lack of equipment on the evening news. Also I know for a fact that folks have been buying kevlar vests and sending to their kids who are serving over there, (we sent 2 to our nephews at a cost of $1.500 bucks) Kinda unheard of in my lifetime. I think its rather cheap of you to try and politicize the situation.
Worse, America has no industrial platform to support new innovations in such areas as metallurgy. With the steel industry virtually wiped out, the technological base with which to advance into new metals and compounds that will be *the new industries of tomorrow* and essential for military superiority is gone too. Thus, America will have to turn to foreign suppliers for its needs.
This is where our short-sighted trade policies have put the future prosperity and security of America…Right up the Creek.
The figure out how to do it and send your ideas to Rummy. As I understand it, it is not a money problem but a production problem.
Let's just say this:
The soldiers I know and served with would have been cheering Rumsfeld before he even spoke.
It's not about money.
I know you are, it's just hard to get through to some.
Great post and a very good assessment of the enemy's response. Good work.
As Rush pointed out, they're already pist because there's not enough deaths from this action they disagree with. So ease up and don't become their tool. We all support our troops here and you most assuredly know that. So stop agitating. What you are concerned about will be handled without your falling for this reporter's cheap stunt!!!
Awww, poor baby. Have they taken all the bonafide lunatics off the air in your area?
Now its you that isn't answering the question.
".......under JFK and LBJ when I served. We found ways to get around it."
The only "armor" I ever saw on wheeled vehicles in 67-68 was a layer of sandbags on the floorboards.
Its nice that factory-produced "armor" is being retrofitted, but this whole issue is a tribute to the 'field expedience' of the American GI, which is what gave rise to DOD production of armor retrofits in the first place.
If it gets better hardware to our troops, I guess I don't care how it was done.
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