ARCHIE LEVINE SUPPORTS THE TROOPS MORE THAN YOU DO!

George Bush serving fake turkey to the troops, who had been strictly ordered not to talk to the press. Instead of eating this delicious looking plastic turkey, the troops got to eat, essentially, TV Dinners and waited three hours to do it. Many soldiers that day went to their bunks to eat MREs as a protest against the President. The whole thing was engineered to seem like a spur of the moment thing, but was actually a long planned and well executed effort to upstage a visit to Iraq by Senator Hillary Clinton.

George Bush, he supports our troops!

(updated February 10th, 2005)

News

Penalizing veterans, Boston Globe, February 9, 2005
Back from Iraq - and suddenly out on the streets, by Alexandra Marks, The Christian Science Monitor, Feb. 8, 2005
Social service agencies say the number of homeless vets is rising, in part because of high housing costs and gaps in pay.
Bush Budget Raises Drug Prices for Many Veterans, by Robert Pear and Carl Hulse, New York Times, February 7, 2005
President Bush's budget would more than double the co-payment charged to many veterans for prescription drugs and would require some to pay a new fee of $250 a year for the privilege of using government health care, administration officials said Sunday.
Nickle-and-Diming the Troops, by David Hackworth, DefenseWatch, February 1, 2005
The combat pay of the average soldier in Afghanistan and Iraq is only $7.50 a day. What's the meaning of 'support the troops' if we can't even pay them a living wage?
Who's Dying in Our War? The answer is Army Reservists and National Guardsmen such as Californian Patrick McCaffrey. By Rone Tempest, LA Times, January 30th, 2005
But as the U.S. campaign in Iraq bogged down in the summer of 2003, the Pentagon turned to its legions of "citizen soldiers," serving mostly weekend duty in crumbling state armories, and ordered them to relieve exhausted regular Army units in Iraq and Afghanistan. Authorized by a presidential emergency order issued only two days after the Sept. 11 attacks, the historic deployment took place with relatively little public notice or fanfare.
"A military in extremis": Still living in a fantasy world, the administration has no strategy for maintaining the current number of U.S. forces in Iraq for two more years. By Sidney Blumenthal, Salon.com, Jan. 27, 2005
For One Contractor, A Road Too Hard: Peril Eclipsed Pay On Iraq Supply Job, by Jackie Spinner, Washington Post, January 17, 2005
Even Bush's Most Loyal GOP Soldiers Alarmed by Strain on Troops, Ronald Brownstein, LA Times, January 17, 2005
The strains on the volunteer military from the war in Iraq are now unsettling as many Republicans as Democrats — and exposing an enduring contradiction in President Bush's agenda.
Death Without Honors: For the families of contractors working in the outsourced Iraq war, there are no presidential letters or 21-gun salutes -- only shock and grief. By David Zucchino, LA Times, January 15th, 2005
Mortgaging the Future of Our Armed Forces, by Ivan Eland, Independent Institute, January 3, 2005
Invisible Soldiers: Iraq War Veterans Go Homeless Months After Returning From War, Democracy Now!, December 27th, 2004
War On The Cheap, by Bob Herbert, New York Times, December 20, 2004
GIs Lack Armor, Radios, Bullets: U.S. Has $400 Billion Defense Budget, CBS News, Oct 31, 2004
Along With Prayers, Families Send Armor, by Neela Nanerjee and John Kifner, New York Times, October 30, 2004
Letting Down the Troops, by Bob Herbert, New York Times, October 29, 2004
Bush’s War Against the Military By Ian Williams, In These Times, October 24, 2004
Discounting that he sent American troops into Iraq on false pretenses, a real commander would fight for the welfare of his troops. But Bush has demonstrated a consistent unwillingness to do so, and as a result many high-ranking officers have endorsed Kerry, including retired Navy Adm. William Crowe and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army Gen. John Shalikashvili.
Poisonous Fogs of War, LA Times, October 25th, 2004
Whether one looks back to soldiers exposed to radiation in World War II, to Agent Orange in Vietnam or to possible environmental poisons in the 1991 war in the Persian Gulf, the U.S. government hasn't always given military veterans the healthcare and attention they deserve. Two recent studies show that the problem continues.
No casualties? White House disputes Robertson comment: 'The president never made such a comment', CNN, October 21, 2004
[Pat] Robertson, an ardent Bush supporter, told CNN in an interview Tuesday night that he urged the president to prepare the American people for the prospect of casualties before launching the war in March 2003. Robertson said Bush told him, " 'Oh, no, we're not going to have any casualties.' "
Study: Nearly 1.7 Million Veterans Lack Health Care, By Maggie Fox, Reuters, Tue 19 October, 2004
National Guard clause delays tax bill, CNN, October 11, 2004
Endangering the National Guard: The real scandal about Bush and the National Guard is the damage he is wreaking on the military reserves required to keep America safe at home. By David Englin, TomPaine.com, October 5, 2004
The Grief of Baghdad: The painful stories and pictures of some of the 16,000 American soldiers – like Cpl. Tyson Johnson – wounded in Iraq might move Americans to action. Maybe that's why we don't see them in the mainstream media. By Evan Derkacz, AlterNet, October 5, 2004.
Army Forcing Reenlistment, Soldiers Say: Some troops feel they are being told to sign up for another tour -- or be shipped to Iraq. Military officials deny the allegations. By David Kelly, LA Times, October 3, 2004
Influx of Wounded Strains VA: Claims Backlog Besets Returning U.S. Troops, by Josh White, Washington Post, Sunday, October 3, 2004
Not enough troops to keep pace, study says, by Vince Crawley, The Navy Times, October 04, 2004
High Time for Bush to Tell the Truth, by Ray McGovern, AntiWar, September 30, 2004
Army May Reduce Length of Tours in Combat Zones, by Thom Shanker and Eric Schmitt, New York Times, September 27, 2004
A strident minority: anti-Bush US troops in Iraq, by Ann Scott Tyson, The Christian Science Monitor, September 21, 2004
" Though military personnel lean conservative, some vocally support Kerry - or at least a strategy for swift withdrawal."
Commander-In-Chief's Bait-And-Switch, by Harley Sorensen, San Francisco Chronicle, September 20, 2004
"The thing that rankles me most about George W. Bush these days is the way he lies to our troops."
Supporting the Troops, Doubting the War, by Sasha Abramsky, The Nation, September 16, 2004
GIs claim threat by Army: Soldiers say they were told to re-enlist or face deployment to Iraq, by Dick Foster, Rocky Mountain News, September 16, 2004
Iraq Warfare Put U.S. Troops Under Growing Stress-Study, Reuters, Sep 16, 2004
Families to Confront Bush on Use of Guard: Protesters gather in Las Vegas, where president will speak today to National Guardsmen. By Maria L. LaGanga, LA Times, September 14, 2004
THE GRINCH THAT STOLE VETERANS OVERTIME PAY, by Greg Palast, One Thousand Reasons, September 6, 2004
The Republican War Against Vietnam Veterans: First John McCain, then Max Cleland, now John Kerry--the Republican attack machine says Vietnam veterans are crazy and are frauds, By Stewart Nusbaumer, Intervention Magazine, August 15, 2004
National Guard unit back home after 15 months in Iraq, by Hal Bernton, Seattle Times, Aug. 1st, 2004
Our Troops Are Stretched Dangerously Thin: Thousands of troops face mandatory extended duty
While constantly telling us to support the troops and provide whatever funding is necessary for Iraq, the Bush Adminstration is:
- his budget actually calls for a $15-billion, 10-year REDUCTION in veteran's benefits.
The Department of Veterans Affairs is scheduled for $910 million cut in 2006 “that would bring its budget below the 2004 level.” (Washington Post, 2006 Cuts In Domestic Spending On Table, May 27, 2004)
Many Troops Dissatisfied, Iraq Poll Finds, by Bradley Graham and Dana Milbank, Washington Post Staff Writers, Thursday, October 16, 2003; Page A01
Troops short on body armor - Lifesaving vests hit by U.S. delays, by Matt Kelley, Associated Press, October 14, 2003

"There's only one person who hugs the mothers and the widows, the wives and the kids upon the death of their loved one. Others hug but having committed the troops, I've got an additional responsibility to hug and that's me and I know what it's like."
—Washington, D.C., Dec. 11, 2002

President Bush has not, as yet, attended a funeral or memorial of a single American killed in action.

To all this, we respectfully ask, "Huh?"

Is there a draft in here? (I'm getting a chill...)

Fear of Draft Affecting Election, by Jim Lobe, AntiWar.com, October 21, 2004
GOP Pressures Rock the Vote to Stop Talking About the Draft, Democracy Now!, October 19, 2004
U.S. Has Contingency Plans for a Draft of Medical Workers by Robert Pear, New York Times, October 19, 2004
Troop Number in Iraq Too Low, Military Poll Says, by Thom Shanker, and Brian Knowlton, New York Times, October 17, 2004
Bush Says He's Best Protection From Draft, by Ron Fournier, and Deb Riechmann, Associated Press, October 16, 2004
Despite vote, draft a definite possibility, by Dave Zweifel, The Capital Times, October 15, 2004
It's Drafty in Here: George W. Bush may have to bring back conscription, whether he wants to or not. By Matthew Yglesias, The American Prospect, 10.13.04
Nobody Wants a Draft, but What if We Need One? Adding volunteers now makes sense. By Steven J. Ross, LA Times, October 13, 2004
Bush's security plan now rests on nothing but hope: America doesn't have the troops to deal with North Korea and Iran, by Peter Galbraith, The Guardian, October 11, 2004
The Draft is a Form of Slavery: We Must Reject an Army of Conscripts By Rep. Ron Paul, Counterpunch, October 8, 2004
All Out of Volunteers: A Draft in the Air? By Dave Lindorff, Counterpunch, October 7, 2004
When war hits home, by James Carroll, Boston Globe, October 5, 2004
The Option Nobody's Pushing. Yet. By James Dao, New York Times, October 3, 2004
Military And Civilian Draft Expected In 2005 For 18-26 Year Olds, Coastal Post Online, July 2004

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