Vets On The Hill AAR (Part I)

Okay, so I couldn’t liveblog the VOTH event like I had planned. I learned something the past few days: the more you pay (or Vets For Freedom pays) for a hotel, the more expensive the extras become. The Sheraton National Hotel where we stayed wanted $9.95 per day for internet access!! In case you haven’t noticed, I’m a cheap homie! I ain’t paying ta blog. Heck, I don’t even get paid to blog!

Instead, I opened up my Microsoft Word and began typing away. Below is my after action review of the Vets For Freedom, “Vets On The Hill” event. I hope you enjoy reading about it as much as I loved living it!!

1630, 7 April 2008

I made it safely to DC and checked into the Sheraton National Hotel. While at the airport, I met with four other vets from the Marines and Army - here for Vets on the Hill (VOTH) as well. Pete Hegseth told me that over 400 vets are scheduled to be here for VOTH.

I have a BEAUTIFUL view from my hotel room. Looking straight out my window I have a view of the back side of Arlington National Cemetary, the Washington Monument, the Air Force Monument (which absolutely inspires me!), and the eastern side of the Pentagon. Fort Myers is a brief 10-minute walk away.

After checking in, I received my folder that outlines my itinerary. I will be a part of the Alabama delegation instead of the Texas delegation. One of the things I told Pete was that, while I’m a Texan to the bone, I live in Alabama, own a home in Alabama, pay taxes in Alabama, and if I’m more needed to represent the state “SEND ME!” I also found out that I was the senior Alabama delegate and responsible for coordinating our peeps and being the spokesperson. After the event, I approached Pete and just volunteered to be the Alabama State VFF Captain. Hopefully, I can help drum up a few more volunteers for the next VOTH.

I am scheduled to meet with both state Senators tomorrow – Sens. Richard Shelby and Jeff Sessions. I am also meeting with Reps. Aderholt and Mike Rogers. Interestingly enough, none of the Democratic representatives, Reps Davis and “Bud” Cramer, are scheduled to meet with us. I will, of course, be paying a visit to their office anyway (as well as the offices of the Republicans I’m not scheduled to meet) to find out why they couldn’t squeeze in a few minutes with vets from their state.

I called Rep Cramer’s office since he represents my district and scheduled an appointment with his military legislative assistant. Cramer is already booked, of course. This is his last term, and he is retiring. I imagine he could care less right now who comes to see him.

1755, 8 April 2008

Leave it to a veteran’s organization to begin the day with a 0515 work call!! The day started bright and early at 0430 as I arose from my Sheraton National Hotel bed to shower and pack my bag. I headed downstairs to meet the Alabama delegation of Vets for Freedom – an Active Guard Reserve member named John Badger (“just call me Badger”). Badger is a Specialist from Enterprise, Alabama. We were supposed to have another veteran from Alabama with us, but she was unable to make it. So, as an Army of Two, we headed down to the main ballroom for opening exercises.

At almost exactly 0500, we found our way to our table located just off the main stage to the right. We passed other tables that were labeled with one or two states, for those with small appearances. Alabama had a table all to herself! For the two of us!

“More pastries for me,” I thought.

Would you believe the Alaska delegation had so many people, they asked to sit at our table? Amazing. I’m going to have to work on the Alabama veteran population when I get back.

The Alabama table. The vet facing the camera is Badger. Everyone else was from Alaska!

Slowly, Vets For Freedom members began sauntering into the room, locating their table, and making introductions. I noticed Uncle Jimbo from Blackfive and went over to converse for a while. After forcing me to do copious amount of SF push-ups (that’s where you just stand there with your hands in your pocket with your ballcap tilted ever so slightly skyward; all I was missing was the dip in my lip!), Jimbo ordered me to recover and we commenced with blog speak.

For those that have never had the opportunity to meet Jimbo and/or haven’t listened to his videos on YouTube or Blackfive, you’re missing a very charismatic personality. His straight forward honesty and way with words is both grating and motivating, depending on who you are. To steal a line from a cheesy movie, “he makes me want to be a better blogger!”

The guy on the left was escaped mental health patient Uncle Jimbo, shown here captured red handed by Vets For Freedom Executive Director Pete Hegseth.

Over 450 vets were seated in the ballroom. Miraculously, it looked like most of the hangovers had been suppressed and everyone was able to get up early enough.

Every chair was filled and some people were standing along the walls in the conference center of the Sheraton National Hotel.

At 0530 sharp, Pete Hegseth opened the meeting with a greeting and introduction. He mentioned that Former Chariman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Richard Myers, would be speaking and that breakfast was scheduled to be served around the same time, so we needed to be respectful to minimize the distractions. The pastries before me were enticing but I didn’t want to ruin my appetite for what was sure to be a nutritional, veteran-worthy breakfast. So, I refrained from grabbing at the flaky goodness before me and maintained a constant state of attention towards the stage and the speakers wrestling with an unruly microphone.

Pete Hegseth read an email from a PFC preparing for his first deployment to Iraq. He was writing to ask VFF how to go about making the organization the beneficiary of his death benefits should something happen to him in Iraq. The young Soldier has no family and wanted to make sure that his benefits went where they could be most useful. Naturally, VFF isn’t taking the PFC up on his offer, but Pete noted it highlights the kind of support that VFF is getting from the field.

General Richard Myers got up and gave a motivational speech that transcended political slants and advocated for victory. He reminded what we were there for and the nobleness of our venture in the nation’s capitol.

After his comment, Gen Myers took questions from the audience. One veteran made a comment about the ROE and how Soldiers should be given “blanket pardons” for mistakes. Thankfully, Myers didn’t completely agree with that option, since it would ruin our credibility and possibly damage agreements between our two countries, but noted importantly that “the benefit of the doubt [in such cases] should go the Soldier.”

Soldiers are placed in difficult situations on a daily basis in which they must make split second, life, or death decisions. Those decisions aren’t always right and thorough investigations should be conducted in any event. However, if there is doubt about what really happened, the Soldier’s side should always be taken lest morale be destroyed and Soldiers hesitate in making important decisions which could result in injuries or death.

Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Richard Myers, addresses Vets For Freedom.

The final guest speaker for the morning opening remarks was Coach John Thompson, Georgetown Men’s Basketball Head Coach. Thompson was Hegseth’s college basketball coach when the former was attending the school. Pete never got to play a game but was faithful to the team. Coach joked that the reason he kept him benched was because he was saving them for his true calling – to lead the pro-troop movement.

Before leaving the floor, Thompson answered the question in my mind of why a college basketball coach without military experience was invited to be a guest speaker at a veteran’s event.

“You know, in basketball, I sometimes hear players prepare for a game by talking about ‘going to war’ or ‘going into battle’,” he relayed. “But I always tell them that they are just playing a game.

“There is nothing even remotely close that our players go through to what each of you have seen and done in actual combat,” he continued. “I just want to make sure that I say ‘thank you’ for allowing me to have the freedom to make a career out of playing a game. Thank you!”

The introduction finished promptly and I was able to slip a They Have Names card into General Myers’ hands before he headed off to another event. We were told that we’d be boarding the buses from back to front so Badger and I sat down and wargamed our strategy to ensure we were able to touch as many congressmen as possible. Of the two Senators and seven Representatives from Alabama, four had not agreed to meet with us: Reps Joe Bonner (R-AL), Terry Everett (R-AL)(Badger’s Representative in Enterprise, AL), “Bud” Cramer (D-AL)(my Representative in Huntsville, AL), and Artur Davis (D-AL).

After a few minutes, we looked up and noticed that there were only a few people left. We had never seen a bunch of vets move that fast when told before! VFF members were eager to get out there and touch our congressional leaders! We boarded a bus and we were on our way to the Capitol where the official kick-off and media event were staged. It was then I realized that they hadn’t served any breakfast and the tempting pastries that had slowly and miraculously disappeared during the speeches was, in fact, the breakfast. My stomach grumbled at me and vowed revenge when I least expected it.

Amazingly, the two guys who were last to the buses were the first ones to arrive at the stage. I think because I had been to DC so many times and knew my way around, everyone else decided just to follow us. I had no idea where I was going, but my keen nose for sniffing out a rally led me directly to the rally point. We took up position right on the rope line, not 10 feet from the podium.

Badger and I on the rope line right in front of the VOTH podium. I may look like a wimp cause I’m the only one in this picture with a jacket on, but the truth is that no one else was smart enough to bring their own (or lucky enough to have a wife pack their bag!).

It was a chilly morning, but felt nice. I even decided that after I downloaded my bag off the bus, I’d take off my jacket and leave it behind (which I wouldn’t have had if Emily hadn’t mothered me into it - Thank you, babe!). Halfway through the event, a cold chill swept across the open field and a light drizzle fell upon us. But, we were undeterred and, like Sadr’s militia, the foul weather retreated in defeat.

At the site, media cameras were setting up and testing their white balance and sound checks. I thought about Obama and how angry his reverend would be that there weren’t any black checks. Yet another example of racial insensitivity rampant in the nation’s capitol. I bit my tongue.

The main speaker for Vets On The Hill was a very popular veteran in his own right – Senator John McCain. While I still haven’t forgiven him completely for sabotaging my efforts to deploy again, I couldn’t help but be in awe of the fact that I may very well shake the hand of the next President of the United States. Then, I realized that I didn’t really care because I had already shaken the hand of the CURRENT President. Besides, I’m not a person that gets starstruck very easily. As a matter of fact, I was more in awe meeting up with Yankeemom, Debbie Lee (mother of fallen Navy Seal Marc Allen Lee and spokesperson for Move America Forward), Concrete Bob, and Taco’s Mom! Those are my heroes! They take on the Code Stinkos on a regular basis.

Here I am with the Soldiers’ Heroes!!

As we waited in the blistering cold (Emily told me to stop whining as she had checked the weather and it wasn’t that bad) various Senators and Congressmen/women cycled along the rope line and shook our hands. I shook their hands and took their pictures but only got pictures taken with two of them – Rep. Jim Marshall (D-GA) and Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL). As a huge fighter for the military in the Senate, I wanted to make sure I shook Senator Sessions’ hand and thanked him for what he does for us. As the lone Democrat at the event who also believes that victory in Iraq is more important than toeing the party line, I also wanted pass my appreciation along to Rep. Marshall. See…I can be bipartisan as long as the politician is for victory before premature withdrawal (LL, stop giggling at the verbage!).

Congressman James Thompson, me, and Badger.

Tomorrow, I’ll write about the guest speakers at the VFF kick off at the Capitol (which included Senator John McCain) and my experiences speaking with other Senators and Representatives. Hint: I sat at Ron Paul’s desk, but forgot to take a picture. I was too distracted by the mess!! I also ran into General Eric Shinseki in the hall between meetings. He’s the reason I have to wear this crappy beret!

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