The Dallas Morning News December 09, 2004
Exchanges with Rumsfeld a sign of growing frustrations, analysts
By David McLemore
Soldiers' bluntly spoken concerns about armored vehicles, pay problems and forced extensions of service caught some by surprise _ perhaps even the man they were pointed toward, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
Military analysts, however, saw the pointed conversation Wednesday in Kuwait as a sign of increasing frustrations and dipping morale among the troops in the field, as well as part of the military's tradition of open communications up the chain of command.
Troops in Iraq think that their mission is increasingly unclear and unending, said Erik Leaver, a researcher with the Institute for Policy Studies, a defense issues think tank.
"The problem is that soldiers are frustrated that their mission remains so undefined after all this time. Soldiers see Iraq as one big Whack-A-Mole. They clamp down on insurgents here and they pop up else. There doesn't appear to be an endgame in play."
Signs of soldiers' displeasure have been mounting, from a lawsuit filed over the Army's "stop-loss" orders _ which prevent soldiers from leaving the service when their enlistment term is up _ to a supply unit's refusal to transport fuel for fear that its vehicles were vulnerable to attack.
But the exchange repeated on television Wednesday _ with Rumsfeld taking a tough question about armor for vehicles, troops cheering the soldier who asked it, and the secretary's curt response _ was the most pointed and public example yet.
With attacks continuing relentlessly and casualties increasing, "falling morale in Iraq has been an issue for the military for sometime now," Leaver said, adding: "This incident just gives it a very public face."
Army Spc. Thomas Wilson of the Tennessee Army National Guard asked Rumsfeld why vehicle armor is still in short supply, nearly two years after the start of the war that ousted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.
Other soldiers, mostly reservists and National Guard troops preparing to head into Iraq, also challenged the secretary on issues of snarled pay and benefits and stop-loss policy.
The frank airing of such concerns can be healthy, said John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, an Alexandria, Virginia-based defense research Web site.
"The soldiers who spoke to Mr. Rumsfeld shared the military duty to inform those above them in the chain of command about their concerns. And they need to do it as clearly and certainly as they can," Pike said. "And God bless 'em for doing it."
The presence of so many reserve and guard forces, which make up more than 40 percent of the U.S. troops in Iraq, may account for the public airing of the grievances, Pike said.
"The reservists and guards troops are a little older and a little more accustomed to speaking their minds.
Regina Wilson, ex-wife of Spc. Wilson, would agree. She told The Associated Press she wasn't entirely surprised to see her husband on TV challenging Rumsfeld.
"He is always like that," she said. "I don't think he understands the concept of biting one's tongue. It wouldn't matter if it was Bush himself standing there. He would have dissed him the same."
She said both voted for President Bush in November.
Wilson added that she was not impressed with Rumsfeld's response.
"Rumsfeld's answer seemed like he was sidestepping around the question. If there is something lacking, perhaps that is why our death toll is climbing," she said.
The concerns raised by the Tennessee Guard soldiers are heard throughout the military, said Capt. Kristine Munn, public affairs officer for the Arkansas National Guard in Little Rock. The 39th Combat Brigade, comprised largely of soldiers from the Arkansas Guard, has been in Iraq since April.
"All the issues that came up in the press conference with the defense secretary are ones we've heard, too," Munn said. "But nothing is out of control or something we can't deal with. We've been able to address and resolve most concerns at our level. Those we couldn't, we forward up the chain of command.
Before they went to Iraq, the brigade's 4,300 soldiers were outfitted with the newest body armor and Kevlar helmets, Munn said. "Our Humvees and other vehicles were either up-armored in Kuwait or we received the new armored ones."
With the concerns made clear, what matters now is the military's response, Pike said.
"Some issues, like stop-loss, are just reality. It ensures unit cohesion. You don't want replacements coming in piece-meal," he said. "It's not fair, but the troops will just have to live with it."
Equipment shortages are another matter.
"This is not exactly news to the Pentagon," he said. "If there's a supply problem on getting armored Humvees to the field, then somebody better figure out why. The commander's first priority is to make sure they a troops have what they need."
Maj. Gen. Gary Speer, deputy commanding general of U.S. forces in Kuwait, told reporters afterwards that to his knowledge, every vehicle deployed from Kuwait had at least "Level 3" armor. That means it at least has locally fabricated armor for its side panels, but not necessarily bulletproof windows or protection against explosions that penetrate the floorboard.
Pentagon spokesman Lawrence Di Rita called Rumsfeld's session with the soldiers, "an upbeat event," adding: "That being said, there's always going to be issues that soldiers want to raise."
"There's an old adage that you never issue an order outside the chain of command and you never try to get information inside the chain of command, and there's some truth to that," Di Rita joked at a Pentagon news conference.
Retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Don Sheppard, a CNN military analyst, said frustration appears to be growing among National Guard and Reserve soldiers, especially because of the continued battles with insurgents, equipment shortages and unexpected extentions of the tours of duty.
"And so definitely they're very, very concerned, and you're seeing their frustrations vented today," he said. "It wasn't a great day for the secretary in front of the troops there."
© Copyright 2004, Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service © Copyright 2004, The Dallas Morning News
