VIDEO: John Kline wins re-election

Video: Creative Commons by-nc-nd

Thank you for your service, Red Bulls

The Minnesota National Guard 1st Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division (1/34th BCT, in military parlance) has proudly returned home to Minnesota. The 1/34th web site concisely summarizes the "Red Bulls's" amazing tour of duty in Iraq:

The 1/34 BCT conducted its Transfer of Authority ceremony with the 1/82 BCT(A) at the Ziggurat of Ur on 11 July 2007, ending another chapter in Red Bull history.

During the longest deployment of any unit to date in Operation Iraqi Freedom, they drove 2.4 million miles with 99% on time starts;

discovered a significant number of IEDs before they could detonate;

achieved a 98% vehicle readiness rate;

processed 1.5 million vehicles at entry control points without incident;

completed $29 million in Iraqi reconstruction (seven water plants, 90 miles of road, numerous schools, and hundreds of miles of roadside cleanup);

closed eight redundant radio relay points and improved the remaining three;

and provided $55 million in force protection improvements for four bases.

1/34th BCT has earned the Operation Iraqi Freedom Campaign Streamer for its service in Iraq from March 2006 to July 2007.

Fortunately, these brave soldiers will be helped in significant ways after the yellow ribbons come down:

After experiencing the intensity of combat, Minnesota Guardsmen will reunite with their families and resume their civilian lives. The Minnesota National Guard, under the leadership of men like Maj.Gen. Larry Shellito, Col.Kevin Gerdes and Chaplain John Morris, have developed a unique combat veteran reintegration program in hopes of changing the way soldiers and airmen are reintegrated into their communities.

The "Beyond the Yellow Ribbon" program has proven an effective means to prepare every combat veteran and his family for a safe, healthy and successful reintegration following deployment.

"As a 25-year veteran of the Marine Corps, I remember the joys and difficulties of coming home from deployment," [Minnesota Congressman Rep. John] Kline said. "Minnesota’s 'Beyond the Yellow Ribbon' includes extensive reintegration efforts, and Minnesotans can be proud of this pioneering program. I was pleased to work with the National Guard Bureau and the Minnesota National Guard to introduce legislation that would create a national program.”[1]

If you enjoy your freedom in America, thank a Red Bull or any veteran. Well done, Red Bulls, and welcome home!

UPDATE: Congratulations to MOB member The Patriette on the homecoming of her favorite member of the 1/34th Red Bulls: her husband! Tune in to her blog for details!

Ramstad, Kline disagree on vote of "no confidence"

Is a vote of "no confidence" really a good idea in a time of war?

In parliamentary systems, votes of no confidence may be the first step to removing a prime minister or dissolving parliament. In our democratic republic, we have votes of confidence or no confidence by the entire electorate every election cycle.

House Concurrent Resolution 63, disapproving of the decision of the President to deploy more than 20,000 additional United States combat troops to Iraq, is an American version of the parliamentary vote of no confidence. My U.S. Representative from MN-3, Jim Ramstad, spoke in favor of the resolution:

As General Colin Powell, one of the most respected military leaders of our generation, put it, a surge was already tried in Baghdad last fall, and it failed...

It's time for Congress to step up and express our strong support of our brave troops, our continued support of their original mission and our opposition to the increase of U.S. troops to police a civil war in Iraq.

President Bush's new strategy is more than a troop surge. Bush intends to: let the Iraqis lead; help Iraqis protect the population; isolate extremists; create space for political progress; diversify political and economic efforts; and situate the strategy in a regional approach. Ramstad's phrase "police a civil war" is something we would expect to hear from liberals like Wendy Wilde or Al Franken.

Rep. John Kline (MN-6) sees the resolution for what it is: Congressional micromanagement à la the Vietnam war. In a thoughtful and thorough statement on the floor of the U.S. House, Kline said:

One critic of the administration's handling of Iraq, a very vocal critic, and a man who I knew and admired throughout my Marine Corps career, retired General Anthony Zinni, the former commander of Central Command, spelled it out bluntly when he noted that, "We cannot simply pull out, as much as we may want to. The consequences of a destabilized and chaotic Iraq sitting in the center of a critical region in the world could have catastrophic implications."

...Let us not promote a humanitarian disaster which is almost unimaginable. Let us support success in Iraq. Let us support the new commander in Iraq and give him what he needs to succeed in this mission.

Ramstad is one of the most patriotic, pro-troop people anywhere. While not what I would call conservative, he works hard for his district and the Republican Party. I see him across the Third District every Memorial Day, from a mid-morning American Legion ceremony in a tiny Wayzata cemetery to the flag-draped, spit-and-polish observance at Fort Snelling National Cemetery. And I will be forever grateful for his principled vote against No Child Left Behind, in spite of bone-breaking arm twisting from the Bush White House. But I question whether a vote of no confidence in a time of war is truly in the best interests of freedom and our country.