Free Republic

WASHINGTON — The nation’s homeland security chief left little doubt Friday that Texas Gov. Rick Perry — rebuffed repeatedly in his demands for more National Guard along the border — can forget about getting more troops.

PASS CHRISTIAN — Gail Nicholson chokes back tears talking about how close to death her stepson came while serving in Iraq. “I can’t think about it without even crying,” she said. “The specifics are a little bit more than I can accept without getting upset.” Sgt. 1st Class Jesse Nicholson, a 1992 graduate of Pass Christian High, received the Bronze Star on Saturday in Jackson for saving as many as 20 troops on Feb. 16, 2005. On that day in Iraq, the Mississippi National Guardsman volunteered to walk in front of patrol units and search for explosive devices. He and...

Emiliano Santiago, an Oregon National Guardsman, finished his eight-year enlistment last June. But four months later the Army wanted to ship the Pasco resident to Afghanistan and reset his military termination date to Christmas Eve 2031. Santiago, 27, decided to take it to court. His lawsuit, Santiago v. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, will be heard today in a special sitting of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in Seattle. It will be the highest court review of the Army's "stop-loss" policy, which affects about 14,000 soldiers nationwide. Of the 4,200 citizen soldiers in the state's 81st Brigade Combat Team,...

PALMDALE - For Phelan resident Kevin Scott, it means seeing his 1-year-old daughter walk. For Tehachapi resident William Maybee, it's a new appreciation of what family and friends mean. For Wrightwood resident Adam Gorey, it means a honeymoon. For soldiers from Bravo Company, 185th Armored Regiment of the California Army National Guard, it means they can move on with their lives after more than a year. Two buses carrying the soldiers from the Palmdale Armory arrived in Poncitlan Square on Monday to a throng of supporters and to the arms of their families. "Today, we welcome soldiers who have fought...

TANG Evaluations of Lt. Bush FACTS AND SPECIFIC ACHIEVEMENTS: Lt. Bush is an exceptionally fine young officer and pilot. After completing the F-102 all weather interceptor school in November 1969, he came to this unit as a highly qualified fighter interceptor pilot. Lt. Bush possesses sound judgment and is mature beyond his age and experience level. During the last weapons firing deployment, he delivered both primary and secondary weapons from the F-102. Lt. Bush performed in an outstanding manner following the test project requirements set forth. He also participated in a practice element deployment during annual field training. He...

Not only was George W. Bush fulfilling his National Guard duties in 1972, he was already showing the conservative political ideology that is now the bane of many Democrats, according to a Joppa man. Joe Holcombe, 71, was the office manager for Winton "Red" Blount in his unsuccessful race for the U.S. Senate in 1972. Bush was the county coordinator for Blount's campaign, Holcombe said. The Blount family and the Bush family were good friends, Holcombe said. Blount lost to Morgan County native and U.S. Sen. John Sparkman. Bush joined Blount's campaign "a little before or a little after the...

FORT POLK, La. (AP) - Men in Arab headdress detonate a homemade bomb along a roadway used by U.S. convoys. A suicide truck bomb rips through a troop encampment, killing dozens. An insult triggers fighting between Iraqi Kurds and Arabs. These events, staged at Fort Polk to replicate the dangers facing U.S. forces in Iraq, made clear to the 4,800 National Guardsmen training at this remote Army base that preparing for a postwar tour of duty is unlike anything they have done before. "We got a very big wake-up jolt" when the training kicked off in mid-January, said Brig. Gen....