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Plan: Use wounded troops
if diplomats refuse service 
Rep. Hunter urges Bush to fire rebellious officials
who complain Baghdad assignment 'death sentence'


Responding to reports that State Department officials are refusing to serve in Iraq because it's too dangerous, Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., has proposed a novel plan to President Bush – to bypass the agency and recruit from among U.S. military troops discharged after suffering injury.

Hunter, a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, told talk-radio host Glenn Beck today he met with Bush just 30 minutes prior to the interview and gave him a letter outlining the plan.

"I said, 'Let's go over to Bethesda and Walter Reed (hospitals) and as we get these new – these soldiers and Marines who are embarking on new careers," Hunter said, "let's recruit them for the State Department; and let's fire these guys that refuse to go, and we'll give the State Department careers to these military guys."

A State Department proposal to have "directed assignments" in Iraq caused an uproar among foreign service officers, CNN reported, resulting in a contentious town hall-style meeting Wednesday.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice responded today, saying "people need to serve where they are needed."

The directed assignments would be necessary, the State Department says, if enough qualified foreign service officers don't step forward to fill open positions at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.

If State decides to enforce the assignments, it would be the first time since the Vietnam War era.

At the town meeting, one official called the order to serve in Iraq "a potential death sentence."

In the radio interview today, Beck responded enthusiastically to Hunter's idea.

"That is fantastic," Beck said. " … These guys are some of the most remarkable humans I have ever met and none of them, as you know, none of them want to leave service."

Hunter replied, "Exactly. And this would be great service for them. In Baghdad, in the State Department, the embassy, they know the lay of the land. They know the people, and they are professionals, and they are patriotic."

Hunter said Bush indicated he might be open to the idea.

"He was fairly noncommittal, but I gave him a letter," the congressman said. "I said I wanted to look at it, and I'm going to be following up with Secretary Rice."

Hunter said his letter to Rice urges the secretary to "immediately send a team of State Department recruiters to Walter Reed and Bethesda hospitals to our wounded warriors who will serve our country efficiently, effectively and with undying patriotism. And they won't hold a town meeting to tell you that they don't want to go."

Beck interjected, "You know what, it makes too much sense. They would never do it."

But Hunter sounded optimistic.

"I tell you, I think were going to do it," he said.

Exactly.

If this plan is implemented I think that there will be a major uproar amongst the liberals.

I think so too Pastor Roger, if for no other reason than its a "Republican" idea!  But I also agree that if the State Dept officials refuse to do what they have sworn to, then they should be fired and recruiting from military that have already been there makes perfect sense.  I know that if I didn't do the job I was hired to do, I would be fired from my job and they would get somebody in there that would do what my employer is paying them to do.  To make exceptions for officials is wrong.  And because it's wrong to keep these officials and because it will "offend" someone, I doubt they will ever do it.
Unless we can get a strong candidate, I can see the dems winning the election with either Hillary or Obama who will of course make a mess of the progress that has been made in the East.  As soon as the East sees that and the hesitation that the Dems will have on doing anything.....watch out!
I won't be surprised at all if the Dems win but only if it's God's will to put in place what needs to be toward the final hour.
I have said in another thread concerning the U.S. that the "bigger they are, the harder they fall" and I truly believe that America is going to fall hard.  We are not going to be the leading power that we were and that's because of moral decay but also we have sold ourselves out and also left the swinging doors open too long.
We have tried to bribe other countries into being our allies for decades and in so doing have given them money, weapons, contracts, etc ad infinitum.  This is all coming back to haunt us.
We could've been more or less self sufficient years ago had our government planned for it.  We have oil.  We have coal.  We have agriculture, industrial mills.  This country had every thing it needed, but we gave it away. 
Then due to corrupt government officials and money hungry lawyers, moral decay and "political correctness" set in and has spread like the cancerous disease that is and I don't see any stopping it now.  The wealthy and privileged of this country are in for the rude awaking of their miserable lives.  And it will be sooner than later.
In Christ,
Grammyluv (Yvette)

I see it precisely the same way.