Photo By Staff Sgt. Engels Tejeda | Rep. Joseph Weldon (R-Fla.) tells Soldiers that they have ample support at home,...... read more read more
Troops welcomed a change in the parade of politicians who made their way through Iraq during the Christmas season when a congressional delegation rocked their dinner while performing as part of the Second Amendments.
"We just want to say thanks for your sacrifice and that regardless of what you may hear from a handful in Congress through the media, we all support you," said Rep. Kenny Hulshof (R-Miss.), who is the drummer of the rock and roll band.
The Second Amendments is Congress" only rock "n" roll band and it's a spin-off of a band called "The Amendments" with which Rep. Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) performed during the "90s.
"That's how we came up with the name of the band," Hulshof said, noting that the name does not have any reference to the right to bear arms.
Still, lead singer Peterson was quick to joke with a crowd of cheering and armed Soldiers that "we are the Second Amendments, and although we didn't bring any guns, we see plenty of them here. So we are not worried."
Joining Peterson and Hulshof, Rep. Jon Porter (R-Nev.) took on the keyboard, Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-Mich.) jammed as the lead guitarist, and Rep. David Weldon (R-Fla.) riffed on the bass.
The representatives toured military facilities in the Middle East between Christmas 2005 and New Year's Day, conducting congressional business during the day and partying with the troops at night.
Delegate Madeleine Bordallo (D-Guam), Rep. Melissa Hart (R-Pa.) and Rep. Michael Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), who are not members of the band, traveled along and helped motivate the troops.
The group's official business focused on visiting wounded troops, checking on the progress of the war on terror, analyzing the military's nursing corps and patient information management, and reviewing the program for armoring vehicles.
"We tried to pair up with Soldiers from our state," Hulshof said. "They were extremely professional and very positive. When you can look a Soldier in the eyes and he says from his hospital bed, "I can't wait to get back to my unit," that to me is the epitome of this Army."
The delegation found, for the most part, that morale is high in theater, though they realized that for some troops repeated deployments are becoming taxing.
"We've found on this trip that our Soldiers are very well treated. The equipment is excellent and they are doing great," Bordallo said. She noted that Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands have one of the highest numbers of deployed servicemembers per capita. This was her fifth trip to check on her Soldiers.
Porter, who headed the delegation and who chairs the House of Representatives" subcommittee on Federal Workforce and Agency Organization, was particularly interested in the military's nursing corps.
He said that he was interested in knowing what kind of incentives would help fix the nation's nursing deficit. Porter said that Nevada, his home state, will be short 1,000 nurses this year. He wanted to know what kind of incentives attracts a military nurse who is seeking a career change.
At the same time he wanted to know how to continue recruiting for the military health care system. His committee is working on legislation regarding these issues.
During the daytime, the delegation went about its fact gathering, but after the sun set, they rocked.
"The bass sounds pretty good," said Staff Sgt. William Jones, an electronics warfare interceptor with the 1st Military Intelligence Battalion. He's a musician from Weldon's district. "I may vote for him based on [his] music skills," he joked.
Soldiers in the audience sang along to some country and rock "n" roll hits and seemed relaxed during the performances " an atmosphere that the band is getting used to. They played in front of 6,000 at a Farm Aid benefit concert outside Chicago. Of course, playing at Anaconda was not an ordinary appearance. During sound check Hulshof thought he had set off an alarm when a siren went off. It was a mortar attack.
"It was a reminder for us, as members of Congress, of what our servicemembers are going through day to day," Porter said.
Still, even if for a moment, the Soldiers said the visit helped relieve them from their daily routines.
"It's a boost in morale because they are high profile back home," said Maj. Anthony Camacho, the chief of administrative and operational law for the 29th Brigade Combat Team. "The fact that they came all the way out here to see us, communicates that we have not been forgotten at home."
The delegation also visited Pakistan, where it wanted to check on the use of relief money Congress donated for earthquake relief.
| Date Taken: | 01.12.2006 |
| Date Posted: | 01.12.2006 11:29 |
| Story ID: | 5089 |
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| Web Views: | 118 |
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