Bush Surprise Visit to Iraq.

I had the pleasure of being asked to stand behind the President as he addressed service members in Baghdad Iraq. After his speech it was awesome to be able to shake his hand and watch him shake hands with, sign stuff for the service members who had stood for hours waiting to see him.

Good for You, I envy that.
When the Clintons (all 3) visited my ship in NYC, things were no where near as jovial or spirited. At least with Pres Bush, I’m sure no one had to be “hand picked” by the command to do the meet and greet.

You can be sure I was not in the running to be selected to even see the Clintons, they kept my troublemaking a$$ far away.

When it comes to O, you can be sure if he ever visits the troops, There will be a special detachment just for him so he doesn’t get embarrased. No joke.

I posted this on the other thread at ‘Breaking News’ #220. Here ya go:

After action report:

Probably over 1,000 soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines packed the palace and stood for a couple hours (lots arrived way early to make sure they could get in).

The 4th Infantry Division had some band members there playing some great tunes and even doing vocals. Support folks had chow, snacks and beverages laid out for the crowd.

People were packed in like sardines. The backdrop for the stage was a gigantic flag that reached all the way to the ceiling, maybe about 70 feet.

General Odierno introduced the President. Started with, “Someone wanted to come see you to say goodbye, and to wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays...”

The troops were jazzed and very energetic, though this was about 2200 at the end of a, no doubt, very long day for everyone.

A great cheer went up when he took the stage. The President talked about the early decisions to go into the war, UN resolutions, the success of the Coalition. He talked about the dark days during ‘04-’05, and the ultimate success of the surge. Many compliments for the unprecedented successes of the military. The troops broke in several times with applause and “Hooahs!”.

Two things stood out. The first was when he said its sometimes hard to understand you’re making history when you’re in the middle of the action. Second, he said he was ordering everyone, as Commander In Chief, to call their families when “y’all get out of here tonight” and tell them “the Commander in Chief says ‘thank you’” for all the sacrifices made.

He spoke about the losses and injuries to friends and loved ones, and how the troops would someday be thought of in the same way as those who were in Normandy, Verdun, Korea and elsewhere.

He was very comfortable with the troops and talked about what he would miss most not being President which was not being CiC. Afterwards, he stayed for a bit and shook hands and signed autographs. This one was just for the troops - no civilians or contractors or TCNs, just our soldiers, airmen, sailors and marines. It was clearly a great morale booster.

Kit

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