Kerry to Address National Guard Association Conference

[bigtree]

Kerry to Address National Guard Association Conference; Will Share His Plan to Take Care of America's Troops And Military Families

9/8/2004 3:35:00 PM
To: National Desk and Political Reporter

Contact: Allison Dobson of Kerry-Edwards 2004, 202-464-2800, Web: http://www.johnkerry.com

WASHINGTON, Sept. 8 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The Kerry Edwards campaign announced today that John Kerry will speak to the 126th National Guard Association of the United States (NGAUS) General Conference and Exhibition on Sept. 16, in Las Vegas, NV.

Kerry's agenda includes a Military Family Bill of Rights which provides access to TRICARE, the military's health care system, for all members of the National Guard and Reserves in order to ensure quality care and equipment for men and women who wear the uniform.

The National Guard and Reserves make up about 40 percent of the U.S. force in Iraq. In addition to those soldiers mobilized for the war on terror and peacekeeping mission in the Balkans, there are thousands of Guardsmen across the country who are protecting the homeland and helping Florida residents recover from Hurricane Frances. Kerry has met with Guard families from Oregon to Florida, he has National Guard participants in many campaign events and regularly makes stops to visit with the families of Guard and Reservists serving overseas.

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=35852


Remember, in Vietnam:

National Guard: 6,140 served; 101 died.

Draftees accounted for 30.4% (17,725) of combat deaths in Vietnam.

* Hostile deaths: 47,359.
* Non-hostile deaths: 10,797.
________________________________________

U.S. Casualties In Iraq Rising
Associated Press

June 1, 2004

For the National Guard and Reserve, whose part-time soldiers make up at least one-third of the 135,000 American troops in Iraq, the trend in casualties during May was especially troubling.

At least 22 citizen soldiers died, nearly one-third of all U.S. losses in May. As a percentage of the month's death toll, that is about double what it had been in most previous months of the war. It also shows that the Guard and Reserve are bearing an increasing combat load.
_____________________________________________

Pentagon casualty reports show that 100 members of the National Guard and 57 members of the Reserves have died in Iraq since the war started in March 2003 — either killed in action or by noncombat causes.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2004-06-26-reserves_x.htm?csp=15


Three states - Arkansas, North Carolina and Washington - now have an Army National Guard combat brigade in Iraq. In the next rotation of troops that will begin late this summer, there will be at least three others, and probably a fourth, plus a National Guard division headquarters.

[bigtree]

1. .

[bigtree]

2. This will be a perfect opportunity to point up Bush's abuse of the Guard

deployments. Should resonate in the face of revelations of Bush's shirking of duty in the Guard.

Kerry will concentrate on the increased, open-ended deployments and backdoor draft as the public learns of Bush's past disrespect and dereliction of duty when he was tasked to serve.

[xray s]

3. National Guard troops and their families should be targeted by Kerry

These people have been cruelly abused by this administration. They have, in effect, been drafted into the regular army by default. All because Bush didn't have the guts to tell us the truth about the real cost in manpower needed to pursue his reckless policy in Iraq.