Gates Salutes U.S. Servicemembers at Awards Dinner

By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service

Oct. 16, 2007 - Six U.S. military members recognized by a local patriotic organization for their overseas service in the war on terror also received Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates' personal thanks here yesterday evening. "You are the best, and we all owe you. And, in all sincerity, we're all humbled by you," Gates told the Grateful Nation Award recipients at the start of his remarks at the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs' annual award dinner.

"It's surreal," Grateful Nation Award honoree Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Jason T. Fetty said of his meeting with Gates. He said the experience was "an incredible honor."

Fetty received the Silver Star for actions in Afghanistan in February, when he stopped a suicide bomber from killing hundreds of innocent people at a hospital opening in Khost. The staff sergeant forcibly maneuvered the would-be killer away from the crowd when the bomb went off.

Fetty, who's recovering from his wounds from the blast, said he was pleased to learn later that the grateful Afghans had staged a huge anti-Taliban demonstration after the incident.

Other 2007 Grateful Nation Award recipients are:

-- Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Jose Romero,

-- Navy Lt. Seth A. Stone,

-- Coast Guard Petty Officer 1st Class Jesse K. Gitchel,

-- Air Force Staff Sgt. Elizabeth C. Spradley, and

-- Air Force Staff Sgt. Ryan A. Wallace.

It was "terrific" to visit with the servicemembers, Gates said as he thanked each one prior to the start of the dinner. "It's such an honor to be with them and meet them," he said.

Spradley, an explosive ordnance disposal technician, helped clear more than 5,000 miles of Iraqi roads from improvised explosive devices during her recent tour of duty in Kirkuk. She participated in 170 high-risk missions and neutralized 35 improvised explosive devices and two car bombs.

"We would disarm and mitigate any hazards along the roadways in Iraq," Spradley recalled, noting she was too focused on her missions to be distracted by the danger.

She said meeting the defense secretary and receiving the JINSA award "truly are an honor."

Stone, a Navy SEAL special warfare operations specialist, earned two Silver Stars and a Bronze Star with a "V" device for valor for service in Ramadi, Iraq, in September 2006, where he led his team in fighting off a group of insurgents that threatened to destroy another SEAL unit.

Coast Guardsman Gitchel was in temporary command of a 110-foot-long cutter when he and his crew stared down a group of Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps-crewed ships in the North Arabian Gulf in August 2007. The Iranians were threatening Iraqi oil rigs.

Romero served with distinction in combat with a tank battalion that participated in the drive to Baghdad during Operation Iraqi Freedom in the spring of 2003. Afterward, he became a renowned Marine drill instructor noted for his leadership and team-building skills used in molding the lives of young Marines.

Wallace is an air combat controller who earned the Silver Star medal for more than 24 hours of continuous work calling in airstrikes against insurgents during combat in Najaf, Iraq, during his October 2006 to April 2007 service in Iraq. About 250 insurgents were killed in the battle.

"It was a surprise, and it is an honor, as well," Wallace said of receiving the Grateful Nation Award. Meeting Gates was an awesome experience, he added.

Gates received the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs Henry M. Jackson award for his contributions to national security as a former career Central Intelligence Agency officer who worked his way up to director. Later, Gates was a key national security advisor, and he now serves as defense secretary. Previous Jackson Award recipients include Vice President Richard B. Cheney and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Peter Pace.

Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Marine Gen. James E. Cartwright assisted David P. Steinmann, chairman of JINSA's board of advisors, during the Grateful Nation Award ceremony. Cartwright saluted the awardees as well as all U.S. servicemen and women engaged in the war against terrorism.

"These young people will just flat knock your socks off," the four-star general said. "They are our greatest generation and our greatest treasure, and we should never forget that."

"I think nothing gives JINSA greater institutional gratification than tonight," Steinmann said before the servicemembers' award ceremony. "We need our Grateful Nation Award winners. They represent the best that our country can produce.

"We need to be reminded that our country produces men and women like this," Steinmann said.

Senior NCO: 'Capacity Building' Begins With Enlisted Force

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

Sept. 18, 2007 - While Navy Adm. Timothy J. Keating, commander of U.S. Pacific Command, was here today meeting with senior Tongan military and government officials, his senior enlisted leader, who had accompanied the admiral, was noticeably absent. Air Force Command Chief Master Sgt. James A. Roy frequently joins Keating during overseas meetings to explain how the U.S. military trains, equips and develops its enlisted force as leaders.

But, Roy said, Tonga already has a keen appreciation of the value of a strong enlisted force and noncommissioned officer corps, and an effort is afoot to professionalize the country's NCO corps.

So rather than preaching to the choir in military headquarters buildings, Roy spent his time here out in the field, checking on Tonga's progress. He visited with Tongan soldiers, sailors and Marines, observed troops going through basic training, walked through the Marine Corps barracks, and checked out the hangar that houses Tonga's tiny air force fleet.

"I'm impressed by what I've seen in Tonga, that commanders are giving (enlisted members) the responsibilities and authorities they need to lead the force," he said.

Just two and a half months into the job as PACOM's top NCO, Roy said he sees an increasing recognition within the Asia-Pacific theater of just how much the enlisted corps can bring to the mission.

Some regional countries haven't let go of the old mindset that strong NCOs diminish the authority of the officer corps, Roy conceded. "It doesn't. It compounds that authority," he said. "And that's what more militaries are realizing."

Mongolia, for example, has left behind its old Soviet-style military structure, investing training funds to develop its enlisted troops into leaders, he said. The Philippines are going through "complete reform" in professionalizing their force. Japan has made "huge strides," Roy said.

The U.S. military works closely with these countries to offer assistance. Foreign troops attend U.S. military schools and NCO academies. American NCOs train foreign servicemembers who return home to train other troops. The United States and its allies train together through military exercises around the world.

When he visits with foreign militaries interested in strengthening their NCO corps, Roy emphasizes there's no one-size-fits-all formula. Even the United States, which stands alongside Australia and New Zealand on the leading edge of NCO professionalism, has no one system for developing NCOs, he said.

In August, when a group of Malaysian officers visited the PACOM headquarters to talk about their enlisted force, Roy pointed to differences in the four U.S. armed services' NCO academy programs. "I told them that when you go out and visit our services, you will see different ways of doing it, all very successful in what they are accomplishing," he said.

As the United States helps other nations work to achieve similar successes within their own militaries, Roy said, it's also helping to build stronger regional partners.

This effort, called "capacity building," is critical for these partners to be able to carry out missions ranging from peacekeeping to humanitarian responses together.

But it's particularly important, he said, in light of pressing threats they face, particularly in the global war on terror.

"This is something we as a nation can't do alone. It's beyond our capability," Roy said. "Succeeding will take many nations working together and contributing to the effort. And as we help strengthen our partners, we're building the capacity that's needed to confront the threat."

Young People Should Find Ways to Serve, Pace Says

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

Aug. 16, 2007 - Whether it's through military service or another means, young Americans should find some way to serve their country, the U.S. military's top officer said here today. "I do believe that each of us who has had the blessing of the accident of birth of being born in a free country ought to find some way to repay our country," Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said during a town hall meeting at Collier Field House here.

"If we have a system that allowed people to join the Peace Corps or allowed people to do good work inside the United States where it's needed, or join the military," it would help the country.

Young people should give a year or two of their lives to making society better, and U.S. leaders should take such a commitment seriously, Pace said. "We would be a much stronger society, and we would be giving back to the world what we should be giving back," he said.

The general also put to rest rumors about a possible U.S. military draft. "Nobody in any leadership position is having any serious discussion about a draft," he said.

Future NCOs Welcome Top Sergeant Major to Italy

By Petty Officer 1st Class Derrick Ingle, USN
Special to American Forces Press Service

Aug. 1, 2007 - With a South Carolina accent, words of wisdom and a little physical fitness, the U.S. military's most senior enlisted member captured the hearts of some of the Army and Air Force's most promising leaders of tomorrow. Army Command Sgt. Maj. William J. Gainey, senior enlisted advisor to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, yesterday visited with 40 Airman Leadership School graduates at this northeastern Italy base.

The school prepares Air Force senior airmen and Army specialists and below to be noncommissioned officers. While the six-week course gets young soldiers and airmen ready for the next pay grade, the most senior NCO in the Defense Department used only 60 minutes to do his bit to prepare them for life.

"Most of you don't know me, do you?" Gainey asked. "You heard some old sergeant major was coming to visit and said, 'OK, what's the big deal?'

"All I care about is that you know who your first-line supervisor is, because guess what? One day that's going to be you. Don't worry about who I am," Gainey said. "Worry about your young soldiers and airmen when you become an NCO. You have to listen to your people. This is my motto: I put my God first, my family second and my job or service third. As long as you prioritize in this order, the rest will fall into place, I promise you."

From motivational mottos to metaphoric examples of how each branch of service makes up the "apple pie" called the Defense Department, the 32-year Army veteran used parables -- and about 600 push-ups -- to relate to the military's next generation.

Gainey had several volunteers come to the stage for a physical challenge. "He said he'd add up all the push-ups we can do and do one more," Air Force Staff Sgt. Odell Straughter said.

"He did just that, too. Out of nine of us, we did around 600. He counted it up, dropped down and did one more," Straughter continued with a laugh. "It was a listening tool. He said, as future NCOs, we have to listen to exactly what our people are saying, not what we think they're saying."

The "push-up challenge" not only served as a wake-up call for some to open their ears, but as also enlightenment reminder to maintain physical readiness.

"I do 100 push-ups every morning. If you don't embrace physical fitness, how can you carry a wounded lad out in the field?" Gainey asked. "If you're not in shape enough to be there for your troops, shame on you."

With Gainey's stern, yet welcoming, on-stage presence, the young troops where quick to take heed of his advice.

"He's such a dynamic speaker," Air Force Senior Airman Bradley Von Hawgg said. "He knows how to draw you in. Everything he was saying was right on. He was talking to us and not at us. He's able to talk to the chairman at the Pentagon on one level and then come to Italy and still relate to non-NCOs. How does he do it? Last week I was thinking about leaving the Air Force, yet after meeting the SEAC, I'm not so sure."

Those who know Gainey best say he was a contagious motivational leader long before becoming the top NCO in the Defense Department. From the sands of the Middle East to the halls of the Pentagon, this South Carolina native has always been referred to as "a soldier's soldier."

"I've served with him before his appointment to Washington, D.C.," Army Command Sgt. Maj. Earl Rice, of the Southern European Task Force in Vicenza, Italy, said. Gainey also visited Vicenza during his trip to Italy.

"The secret of his success is he didn't forget where he came from. He remembers what it's like to be a young private, a young sergeant, and an NCO. He's using that same mentality at DoD's headquarters that he had out in the field. It's an honor to have him come out a visit us."

(Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Derrick Ingle is asigned to the Joint Staff.)

Service Academies Retain Principles, Embrace Change to Train Future Leaders

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

May 24, 2007 – As "ruffles and flourishes" rings through the three U.S. military academies over the next few days, several thousand new graduates will accept their commissions and join the military ranks. These young second lieutenants and ensigns all enrolled in their respective schools -- the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y.; the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.; and the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. -- recognizing they'd graduate into a wartime force.

Most were sophomores in high school when they watched televised images of the Twin Towers falling and the Pentagon burning, then the U.S. going to war in Afghanistan. Most hadn't yet been to their senior proms when the country entered Iraq. This week they'll leave their schoolhouses behind to join their fellow soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines serving around the world in the war on terror.

To get a better picture of how their schools have prepared them for this calling, American Forces Press Service spoke with their academic deans and alumni who have risen to the senior military ranks.

Here's what they had to say about what has changed at their institutions and what remains fundamental, and how they're helping ensure their graduates are ready for the challenges they'll confront as military officers.

The Basics

Although they're four-year schools like thousands of others that dot the United States, the U.S. service academies stand uniquely apart. All were founded with the specific goal of educating military leaders -- people who understand not just the art and science of war, but also the fundamentals of leadership.

That's a principle the academies have held at their core as they strive to develop what Army Col. Dan Ragsdale, vice dean at West Point and a 1981 graduate, calls "critical thinkers" armed with the education and training they need to think on their feet.
"Our expectations are that these future leaders are going to have to draw on a relatively broad set of skills, backgrounds and experiences to help solve the problems that they are going to confront in ... a greatly ambiguous world in which they are going to have to operate," he said.

To develop those skills, the academies offer curricula that recently retired Army Gen. John Abizaid, a 1973 West Point graduate who went on to lead U.S. Central Command, described as "some of the most challenging in the nation today."

The coursework is steeped in science, math and engineering so graduates are prepared to enter a highly technical military, whether they'll be flying aircraft, serving on nuclear-powered submarines or calling in air strikes as they lead ground forces in combat, explained William Miller, academic dean and provost at the Naval Academy and a 1962 graduate.

"We want to ensure all our graduates have a good, solid technical foundation for serving as an officer in a very, very technically demanding environment," he said.

Equally important, officials agree, is an understanding of the world in which they'll operate. All three academies have expanded their curricula to increasingly focus on regional studies and language skills.

"The kinds of problems that our ... graduates will face are across a broad spectrum, so we have to give them a technological foundation," Ragsdale said. "But we also have to give them a social and cultural perspective around which to address and solve problems. We have to help them understand and appreciate the political aspects of any problem they are trying to address."

More Than Academics

There may be no pat formula for preparing new officers to serve in wartime, but officials agreed it requires more than mastery of academics.

"Our graduates are not going to be historians and mechanical engineers," Miller said. "They are going to be leaders and problem solvers in a very demanding environment."
There's no possible way to train students for every possible situation they'll encounter when they enter military service, the officials agreed.

"That's a given," Ragsdale said. "But because we know that, we have worked to create an environment where they can develop as the adaptable, agile, critical thinkers they need to be to lead the soldiers who will be entrusted to their care."

The academies strive to prepare cadets and midshipmen to look at problems from multiple dimensions and to juggle priorities.

Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that's one of the biggest lessons he took away from his Naval Academy experience.

"At school, there was always too much to do, and in the Marine Corps, there has always been too much to do," Pace said. "Therefore, you really have to take the important and set it aside to do the critical."

Pace said being bombarded with myriad demands as a midshipman reinforced the importance of teamwork, another principle he said he's carried throughout his career. "In combat, there is nothing you do as an individual," he said. "It's all based on teamwork."

Developing Leaders

While developing their cadets and midshipmen intellectually, the academies also focus on developing them as leaders.

Abizaid said the most important lesson the academies need to instill is "the ability to lead people in a positive, inspirational way."

From their first days at their respective schools, cadets and midshipmen get exposed to valuable lessons in leadership. Initially they observe upperclassmen serving in various leadership positions -- some successfully, some less so. Later, students try their own hand at leadership posts. Through this process, they begin to understand what leadership style works for them, what doesn't, and how they can improve their leadership skills.

Gen. John Corley, Air Force vice chief of staff and a 1973 graduate of the Air Force Academy, described his alma mater as a "leadership laboratory" where cadets exposed him and his fellow cadets to "a set of experiences that you just don't find in other places."

"They also provided challenges," Corley said. "It was a test ... in terms of your development (and) ... your ability to grow and become a leader of character."

"I learned a lot from observing good leadership, and from observing bad leadership, and through experimentation on my own part, trying things that worked or didn't work for me," Pace said of his time at the Naval Academy.

That's the single biggest difference between the military academies and traditional civilian colleges and universities, the deans and alumni agreed.

"Our first and foremost overarching outcome is to commission ... leaders of character who embody our ... core values of integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do," said Brig. Gen. Dana Born, dean of faculty for the Air Force Academy and a 1983 graduate. "It stands at the very foundation of what we do."

Miller said leadership lessons learned at the academies have a long-lasting impact on how graduates confront problems.

"No matter what (military) community our graduates enter, ... they are going to be leaders, and we want to ensure they have a good ethical foundation for the decisions they are going to make," he said.

Educating for the Future

While preparing their cadets and midshipmen for the immediate requirements they'll face as graduates, academy officials say they recognize the need to keep their eyes focused on the horizon.

"We try to stay balanced and not hyper-reactive," Ragsdale said. "We recognize that we're providing a foundation upon which they can develop as successful officers."

"We can't just focus on the fact that we are currently engaged in a shooting war ... and think only about what (midshipmen) are going to need right after graduation," agreed Miller. "We need to look at what (future officers) are going to need for the longer term and recognize that we're preparing them for a career of service."

By approaching education as a "strategic investment," Miller said, the academies are helping students recognize that their education will be just beginning as they accept their commissions.

"We are trying to lay a foundation on which they can build over their career and continue to learn," he said. "That's important, because being in the armed services demands lifetime learning."

Change

The biggest misconception about the academies is that they're so embedded in tradition that they can't or won't change with the times, officials said.

"That is about as far from the truth as you can get," Ragsdale said. "On the contrary, we understand ... that our graduates have to be prepared for a changing world. So while we hold on to our firm foundations upon which the institution was built, we have embraced change to ensure we are providing the kinds of experiences our cadets need to be successful in the world they are going to face when they graduate."

Born described sweeping changes in the Air Force Academy's core curriculum so courses build on previous lessons and broaden students' exposure to new concepts and approaches. The other academies have instituted similar changes.

These changes are helping ensure students have a foundation from which to draw when they graduate into a wartime environment. "We need students to learn and be able to build upon prior learning, as opposed to just teaching and hoping that they remember it when they need it when they are in downtown Baghdad making decisions," Born said.

Intraservice Cooperation

An intensive system of sharing and cooperation is helping the academies evolve to better serve their students' and services' needs. Staffs meet in person and share e-mails regularly to keep each other informed about new initiatives they're trying and what they've learned along the way.

"We are trying to learn from each other in a leap-frog fashion rather than all of us learning linearly and stumbling over the same obstacles," Miller said.

"We have very common goals and a common set of outcomes that we would like all our graduates to achieve," Ragsdale agreed. "So we share those things that have worked, and on the flip side, those initiatives that have not been successful so they can learn from our mistakes."

Born said the academies recognize their similarities and build on each others' strengths. "We ... team together to share lessons learned and best practices. We learn from each other and are able to progress more quickly by sharing our lessons learned," she said.

So despite infamous interservice rivalry in the sports arena, Born said, there's a healthy respect and common understanding among academy students, graduates and staffs.

"When it comes to the football field, there is all kinds of talk and all kinds of competition," she said. "But when it comes right down to it, we are all working toward commissioning officers and leaders of character for our nation."

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Civilian Leaders Impressed With Servicemembers' Role Overseas

By Carmen L. Gleason
American Forces Press Service

April 30, 2007 – After traveling nearly 18,000 miles to see the young men and women of the U.S. armed forces in Southwest Asia, members of the Joint Civilian Orientation Conference 73 have come away from the experience with a heightened respect for those who are serving the nation. The 45 participants were civic and business leaders from around the country who covered their own expenses to join in the Defense Department's oldest public affairs program by visiting servicemembers from each branch to learn more about the military's role in operations in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility.

The weeklong tour began at the military's headquarters at the Pentagon before moving on to Djibouti, Bahrain, Kuwait and other bases in Southwest Asia, including a visit to the USS Dwight. D. Eisenhower in the Arabian Gulf.

"I hope that this trip will expand the way you view liberty and freedom," said JCOC co-host Allison Barber, deputy assistant secretary of defense for internal communications and public liaison, at the start of the trip. "(The war on terror) is not just a military solution; it's broader than that. It's also an economic, intelligence and coalition solution."

During their whirlwind trip, participants heard from both the most senior military leaders at each location and individual troops who are carrying out the nation's mission. They had the chance to fire weapons, ride in Humvees, land on a naval aircraft carrier, and experience a little of the training servicemembers go through in preparation for deployments.

They were also given briefings on how the United States is working with allies to bring security and stability to countries in an effort to help build economic and governmental independence.

The majority of the trip's participants had little to no previous interaction with the U.S. military, and while they are leaders from a variety of backgrounds -- finance, sports, entertainment, political, academic and business industries -- they all said they wanted a better context of the nation's role in the Middle East.

"The knowledge one gains from being an alert reader from media and books doesn't compare with the immersion experience we've had over the past week," said Ann Brownwell Sloane, who is the chief executive officer and owner of Sloane and Hinshaw, Inc., a company that provides planning, administrative and counseling services to U.S. and overseas grant-making foundations and individual philanthropists. "I wish everyone could have this experience," she said.

Sloane said she feels that most Americans haven't taken on any burden of this war. "I find it dismaying that people will walk away from their television sets because they aren't connecting with the messages of the leadership on our role (in the Middle East)," she said.

JCOC participant John Turner, an associate with the management consulting firm McKinsey & Company, said the trip has given him a different perspective on the U.S. military's role in the region.

"I am impressed with the way information has been integrated into the modern military," he said. "It also makes me understand the agenda of the governments in the region a little better."

Turner works with major media companies in the Middle East and Europe. Through an International Affairs Fellowship from the Council on Foreign Relations, he has also worked with the State Department on economic, political and educational reform in the Middle East.

"We have gotten a lot of context from this trip," Turner said. "Now when we read these stories in the media, we'll better understand the peripheral and cultural impacts on the area."

The U.S. military has been using the research from JCOC participant Amy Coen's organization, Population Action International, in its leadership schools to better understand the impact of age, poverty levels and education on urbanization and civil conflict between nations.

Coen said she wanted to participate in the trip to gain more insight into how the military is working with societies to develop better governance, security and growth strategies in underdeveloped countries.

"I think the military understands the importance of developing friendships to create environments for positive change," she said.

Coen said she was deeply touched by the bravery, commitment and patriotism of soldiers on the ground. "I had no idea how hard this job was and miserable it is, in terms of heat and fear," she said after going through a convoy exercise where soldiers train on detecting improvised explosive devices. "To have to daily go through these physical and psychological demands; I'm utterly impressed with our military."

Other trip participants were equally affected by the dedication of the young men and women serving so far from home. Many formed personal friendships with troops and were moved to tears when interacting with them on an individual basis.

Wal-mart Foundation Community Program Development Manager Kathleen Cox has worked on numerous military outreach programs since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, to communicate her company's dedication and support of the U.S. military. However, she said she didn't realize how much the trip would touch her on a personal level.

Although she came on the trip armed with hundreds of phone cards to pass out to all troops with whom she interacted, she also had the opportunity to interact with National Guard troops from near her hometown of Bentonville, Ark.

"They were so thankful for the phone cards, but the words of thanks and hugs from us meant so much more to them," she said. "Even though we weren't able to see each and every soldier, I hope the message will get to others about how much we appreciate what they're doing over here."

Oklahoma Secretary of State Susan Savage said she was in awe throughout the trip.

"It never dawned on me that my visit could boost the morale of these troops," she said. "This was the best experience."

Whenever Savage would learn that servicemembers in an area were from her home state, she would take the time to seek them out and get information so that she could get in touch with their families once she got back home.

"You guys are inspirational. It's great to come out here and learn what you are doing so far from home," Savage told Army Spc. Dustin Ackerman, a Tulsa, Okla., native, when she met him on a training range in Kuwait.

Ackerman also had the opportunity to interact with the President of Fat Brain Toy Company, John Batcher. The soldier had recently placed an order for kites from the company to be shipped to Kuwait. When he saw Batcher's name on the list of visitors to the area, he left a letter for Batcher telling him who he was. Batcher worked with leaders in the area to meet Ackerman. He and the soldier flew one of the kites together on the training range.

"This has made my year right here," Ackerman said after meeting Batcher and Savage.

"That's what JCOC is all about," Batcher said. "It's to make soldiers feel good and let them know we support them."

Batcher also took down the names of soldiers' children throughout the trip so he could send them toys from his company as a show of appreciation for their service to the nation.

The JCOC trip has other participants brainstorming on what they can do to show support for America's men and women in the armed forces.

Kelli Johnson, president of ACE Clearwater Enterprises, an engineering and manufacturing firm in Torrance, Calif., said that she and other participants are planning to come together to do something "meaningful" in support of the nation's military.

"It's our obligation," she said. "We're not exactly sure what that is at the moment, but how can we say, 'We're here for you and support you' but then go back home and do nothing?"

"I am so incredibly impressed with this entire trip," Johnson said. "I am humbled, inspired and proud of our troops. They make me proud to be an American."

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