thedrifter
01-10-07, 11:01 PM
Ohio Families Want Details On Plans For More Troops
President George W. Bush's plan to send more troops to Iraq is what the U.S. has "got to do," said the father of an Ohio soldier who went missing following a 2004 ambush west of Baghdad.
"I always said it's not my call. It's our job to support him," said Keith Maupin, after watching the president's policy speech on Iraq on Wednesday night. "It's a tough call.
"I know that we can't fail over there. ... We've got to win. The only way to win is we've got to get rid of the terrorists."
In the speech, Bush outlined his plan to deploy 21,500 additional troops to Iraq.
Maupin's son, Army reservist Sgt. Keith "Matt" Maupin, has been missing since his capture April 9, 2004, following the ambush on his fuel convoy.
Bush's plan would build American presence in Iraq toward its highest level.
"If we're going to do that, we need to go in and take care of business," said Nancy Caley of Columbus, whose son is set to deploy to Iraq early this year. She said she would like to see more focused fights against insurgents and that the additional troops should lead to a resolution of U.S. involvement in Iraq.
Maupin said he supports of Bush's plan to see things through in Iraq.
"I believe that's what we've got to do," he said. "If the Republicans and the Democrats would just fight together, I think it would be a lot easier. How can you win a war if you pull out?"
He and his ex-wife, Carolyn, have been briefed by Pentagon officials periodically since their son was captured, and they have met with Bush.
"We're getting pretty frustrated," Maupin said.
Ohio has had 132 servicemen killed in Iraq, and some units have been hit particularly hard. The Columbus-based Lima Company lost 16 members in Iraq in 2005. Nine members of the company - a branch of the 3rd Battalion, 25th Marines based in the Cleveland suburb of Brook Park - were among the 14 Marines who died Aug. 3 in a deadly roadside bombing in Iraq.
Brook Park Mayor Mark Elliot said he hoped no one from the battalion would have to be deployed, and he didn't think the increase in troops would be well received in the community.
"I think it would be viewed, after the last election, not as positively, especially because of the large number of casualties the 325 had suffered," he said.
In his speech, Bush acknowledged for the first time he erred by failing to order a military buildup in Iraq last year and said he was increasing troops to quell the country's near-anarchy.
He said American troops will have a clearly defined mission to help Iraqis clear and secure neighborhoods, assist in the protection of the local population and "to help ensure that the Iraqi forces left behind are capable of providing the security that Baghdad needs."
In addition to extra U.S. forces, the plan envisions Iraq committing 10,000 to 12,000 more troops to secure Baghdad's neighborhoods.
Bush said it also was a mistake to have allowed American forces to be restricted by the Iraqi government. Bush said that, under his plan, U.S. forces will work alongside Iraqi units and be embedded in their formations.
"It's too little, too late," said Paul Schroeder, whose son, Marine Lance Cpl. Edward "Augie" Schroeder, was killed in Iraq. "He admits mistakes, but he doesn't really admit that (it was) really a mistake to ever go there."
Schroeder, of Cleveland, said he doesn't think the president's plan will work. He and his son's mother formed the organization Families of the Fallen for Change after their son's death.
Relatives who were supportive of Bush's decision said more troops will help build trust with Iraqis and that removing or reducing troops could lead to larger problems developing in Iraq in the years to come.
"My son believed that if we pull out we'd have to be back in five years and then try to resolve an even worse situation," said Paul Montgomery, of the Cleveland suburb Willoughby. His son Lance Cpl. Brian Montgomery died in Iraq with a sniper unit.
Michele Gire, of Centerburg outside Columbus, has three sons serving in the Marines, two of whom are in their second tour of duty in Iraq. Her sons are prepared to remain in Iraq for as long as needed.
"The American mind-set is that everything's supposed to be over in 60 minutes with four commercial breaks," she said. "Unfortunately, I think time is really what's needed."
Bob Derga of Uniontown said he supported the president's plan to send more troops as well as to embed U.S. troops with Iraqi forces and to put Iraq on notice that "our commitment is not open-ended." Derga's son, Cpl. Dustin Derga, 24, a Lima Company Marine, was killed by insurgents in Iraq in May 2005.
Some were conflicted in weighing their feelings about the country's commitment to the Middle East with their feelings of wanting troops to be home.
"It's a supreme sacrifice for the families," said Connie Gauthier, who was head of a support group for military families in the Toledo area. "I think we need to be there and the soldiers who served are glad they could help, but sending more, I don't know."
Ellie
President George W. Bush's plan to send more troops to Iraq is what the U.S. has "got to do," said the father of an Ohio soldier who went missing following a 2004 ambush west of Baghdad.
"I always said it's not my call. It's our job to support him," said Keith Maupin, after watching the president's policy speech on Iraq on Wednesday night. "It's a tough call.
"I know that we can't fail over there. ... We've got to win. The only way to win is we've got to get rid of the terrorists."
In the speech, Bush outlined his plan to deploy 21,500 additional troops to Iraq.
Maupin's son, Army reservist Sgt. Keith "Matt" Maupin, has been missing since his capture April 9, 2004, following the ambush on his fuel convoy.
Bush's plan would build American presence in Iraq toward its highest level.
"If we're going to do that, we need to go in and take care of business," said Nancy Caley of Columbus, whose son is set to deploy to Iraq early this year. She said she would like to see more focused fights against insurgents and that the additional troops should lead to a resolution of U.S. involvement in Iraq.
Maupin said he supports of Bush's plan to see things through in Iraq.
"I believe that's what we've got to do," he said. "If the Republicans and the Democrats would just fight together, I think it would be a lot easier. How can you win a war if you pull out?"
He and his ex-wife, Carolyn, have been briefed by Pentagon officials periodically since their son was captured, and they have met with Bush.
"We're getting pretty frustrated," Maupin said.
Ohio has had 132 servicemen killed in Iraq, and some units have been hit particularly hard. The Columbus-based Lima Company lost 16 members in Iraq in 2005. Nine members of the company - a branch of the 3rd Battalion, 25th Marines based in the Cleveland suburb of Brook Park - were among the 14 Marines who died Aug. 3 in a deadly roadside bombing in Iraq.
Brook Park Mayor Mark Elliot said he hoped no one from the battalion would have to be deployed, and he didn't think the increase in troops would be well received in the community.
"I think it would be viewed, after the last election, not as positively, especially because of the large number of casualties the 325 had suffered," he said.
In his speech, Bush acknowledged for the first time he erred by failing to order a military buildup in Iraq last year and said he was increasing troops to quell the country's near-anarchy.
He said American troops will have a clearly defined mission to help Iraqis clear and secure neighborhoods, assist in the protection of the local population and "to help ensure that the Iraqi forces left behind are capable of providing the security that Baghdad needs."
In addition to extra U.S. forces, the plan envisions Iraq committing 10,000 to 12,000 more troops to secure Baghdad's neighborhoods.
Bush said it also was a mistake to have allowed American forces to be restricted by the Iraqi government. Bush said that, under his plan, U.S. forces will work alongside Iraqi units and be embedded in their formations.
"It's too little, too late," said Paul Schroeder, whose son, Marine Lance Cpl. Edward "Augie" Schroeder, was killed in Iraq. "He admits mistakes, but he doesn't really admit that (it was) really a mistake to ever go there."
Schroeder, of Cleveland, said he doesn't think the president's plan will work. He and his son's mother formed the organization Families of the Fallen for Change after their son's death.
Relatives who were supportive of Bush's decision said more troops will help build trust with Iraqis and that removing or reducing troops could lead to larger problems developing in Iraq in the years to come.
"My son believed that if we pull out we'd have to be back in five years and then try to resolve an even worse situation," said Paul Montgomery, of the Cleveland suburb Willoughby. His son Lance Cpl. Brian Montgomery died in Iraq with a sniper unit.
Michele Gire, of Centerburg outside Columbus, has three sons serving in the Marines, two of whom are in their second tour of duty in Iraq. Her sons are prepared to remain in Iraq for as long as needed.
"The American mind-set is that everything's supposed to be over in 60 minutes with four commercial breaks," she said. "Unfortunately, I think time is really what's needed."
Bob Derga of Uniontown said he supported the president's plan to send more troops as well as to embed U.S. troops with Iraqi forces and to put Iraq on notice that "our commitment is not open-ended." Derga's son, Cpl. Dustin Derga, 24, a Lima Company Marine, was killed by insurgents in Iraq in May 2005.
Some were conflicted in weighing their feelings about the country's commitment to the Middle East with their feelings of wanting troops to be home.
"It's a supreme sacrifice for the families," said Connie Gauthier, who was head of a support group for military families in the Toledo area. "I think we need to be there and the soldiers who served are glad they could help, but sending more, I don't know."
Ellie