Governors Blast Bush over National Guard Deployments: Bad for Troops, States

Governors across the nation are lambasting President Bush for ordering over 12,000 National Guard soldiers to Iraq later this year. The deployments will not only weaken security at home but also further what one called "the Bush administration's failed policies."

That governor, Ted Strickland of Ohio, told Bush and Defense Secretary Robert Gates that the decision was "a breach of faith" since the troops were not supposed to be deployed until 2009. He also demanded that Bush assure him they will be properly trained and equipped

Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe said through a spokesman that the order amounts to "changing the rules" for soldiers. Guidelines proposed by Secretary Gates himself dictate that Guard units must have five years at home for every year deployed, but Arkansas' 39th Infantry Brigade spent 18 months in Iraq just two years ago. The spokesman noted that the National Guard is needed at home to handle natural disasters and other emergencies, like when guardsmen assisted police after tornadoes struck last February.

Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry implied Bush was implementing "a sneaky back-door draft."

Meanwhile, House Armed Services Chairman Ike Skelton personally wrote Gates about Army readiness in light of the "enormous stress and strain" caused by frequent deployments. He also noted the equipment crisis and expressed concern about the reports of current deployments being extended by four months. "I must ask you, Mr. Secretary, where does it end?"

Other states have also blasted Bush's use of the National Guard. Florida Sen. Bill Nelson said he is worried that Iraq has made his state unprepared to handle a hurricane. New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer released a report showing his National Guard had only a fraction of mission critical equipment needed to respond to a terrorist attack. Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano said the deployments could impact how her state fights wildfires.

Even the nation's top Guard officer, Lt. Gen. H. Steven Blum, says no state has more than 65% of the equipment they need. "If we don't have the equipment we need, the reaction time is slow, and time equals lives lost," Blum said. "Those lives are American lives."

Last year, nearly every governor signed a letter opposing Bush's use of federal control over the National Guard.