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Email from VCOC President, 7 Sep 2006.
Colleagues:
This is a short summary of my impressions of President Bush’s remarks on “The Global War on Terror,” to MOAA, Washington Hilton, Tuesday, September 5, 2006. I was fortunate to represent you and I want to give you a report of the event.
The Speech: The remarks, copy previously provided, were very well received by some 500 people that squeezed into the ballroom. With more people than seats, some watched on a TV monitor in another room. Two busloads of diplomats (about 100) attended, many from counties attacked by al Qaeda and its terrorist allies. Three key US Senators were in the front row along with Attorney General Gonzales and Secretary of Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff.
The President was led on stage and introduced by General Jay Hendrix, Chairman, MOAA Board of Directors. The President thanked General Hendrix and MOAA noting the leadership of MOAA President, VADM Norb Ryan. The President was very animated using the terrorists’ words to detail their aims. He stressed the terrorists are not mad and have a plan. He compared their published plans to the published plans Lenin and Hitler laid out that were not taken seriously at the time. He stressed that we must take these people seriously or suffer the consequences. They are a threat to all free countries. The President was applauded numerous times during his speech and received several standing ovations, the first when he said, “we’ll accept nothing less than complete victory.”
The President had my complete attention throughout the speech. You could sense all attendees were listening very intently as the President laid out what the terrorists where trying to achieve and our strategy for defeating them. It was chilling. The President made a solid, compelling case how Iraq was a key battleground in the Global War on Terror. He noted the threat that Iran was now posing and emphasized that “The world’s free nations will not allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon.” He outlined the five basic elements of the Administration’s strategy for combating terrorism and America’s strong support for governments fighting terrorism. He closed by saying, “this is the great ideological struggle of the 21st century – and it is the calling of our generation.”
Please read the remarks, talk about them and spread the message – we are in a war that we must win. It is comparable to World War II and the Cold War. As veterans, our support is critical to maintaining the national will to win the Global War on Terror.
The Troops: To our left on the first row, there were about 20 soldiers who were recovering from wounds at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. The President made reference to them in his opening remarks. As soon as his speech was over, he immediately went over to where the troops were. It was a sight to see! He shook hands and spoke to each one and posed for pictures with each. The troops had their cameras and the President could be seen arm in arm, head to head, standing for the photos. You could tell he was really enjoying this and was energized by their presence. In turn, the troops enjoyed every minute of it. I had talked to the troops before the President arrived, thanking each for their service to our nation. A couple remarked that they had met the President twice before when he visited Walter Reed. It was uplifting for us all to be with these heroes.
National MOAA: National did a superb job of putting this together. With relatively short notice and security restrictions, working on the weekend, coordinating with the White House, etc. it all came together as a first class event. I believe the White House selection of MOAA, as the host for this pivotal speech, is a great tribute to MOAA that we can all be proud of. It is recognition of the important role we play on the national scene and the respect for the leadership roles we play regarding national defense, soldiers, retirees and veteran issues.
On the support side of the event, MOAA had three buses to take our people to the Hilton. Diane and I rode with the MOAA Headquarters people; several of our Mount Vernon MOAA members also made use of a MOAA bus. We departed MOAA Headquarters at 9:45 arriving about 10:20 at the Hilton. To tide us over, MOAA provided a first class light buffet, coffee, water etc. That really helped, as we were to be on site until after 2:00 p.m. We all went through metal detectors run by the Secret Service and then into the ballroom where MOAA staff people were directing all where to sit. As you can see in the photos, MOAA did a superb job of setting up the stage so that all of America could see the MOAA name.
Greeting the President: The six of us who were to greet the President were first taken to our seats on the front row directly across from the podium. Roughly 20 minutes before the President’s arrival we were taken to a side room that had curtains along the outside. We were lined up in order – tape on the floor marked our places. We represented a cross section of MOAA – LTC Joe Simonell, USA (Active Duty), LCDR Tom Smith, USN, Ret. (Maryland Council of Chapters), Marge LeTourneau, (National Auxiliary Advisory Council), COL Bill Flanagan, USA Ret. (VCOC), VADM Norb Ryan, USN Ret. and General Jay Hendrix, USA Ret., in that order. While we were waiting we exchanged views with Secretary Chertoff; one White House staffer was also present. The President came in, went down our greeting line. We each were able to say a few words, shake hands and have an individual photo. I introduced myself stating I was honored to welcome him as the representative of our Chapters in Virginia and that I was glad to see him making these speeches. As soon as the photo was taken, each member peeled off to wait behind a curtain; then we were rushed to our seats arriving as General Hendrix came to the podium with the President. A very memorable day!
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