Operation Welcome Home Page #2

Um, I sound like

I'm giving a speech

back here in Washington

rather than out here

in the Saudi desert,

but this is the kind of speech

I give back in Washington

to let the Congress know

and to let the American people

know the quality,

quality of the Armed Forces

we have today.

And it's been another

source of pride to see

how the American people

have responded to this

over the last 5 or 6 weeks.

Folks just said "Well,

maybe they won't be

supportive after a few weeks. "

Wrong.

Every passing day,

the support increases.

"Maybe Congress will

start to be uneasy. "

Wrong.

The secretary and I

briefed Congress 2 days ago

and every single member

of the committee

we were preparing before, the

Senate Armed Services Committee,

supported what we're doing

and supported you guys.

Others have said,

"Well, it'll be too hot.

It'll be too gritty.

It'll be too dusty out there.

Won't they get hot

and tired?"

Soldiers have always

gotten hot and tired!

But you don't know

the kind of soldiers we got!

You don't know the kind

of hoo-ah guys we got,

who can take it and keep going.

So don't worry about my boys

out there; they'll take it.

- Hoo-ah!

- That's right.

Yeah! Hoo-ah!

With that type

of leadership and guidance,

the troops, the hardware

and technology

of the new American military

was brought to the fore.

With intensive training

in desert warfare

in both the United States

and the Persian Gulf.

First and foremost,

the military leadership saw

that the only proper response

was a massive buildup

of U.S. Forces,

thus avoiding

the mistakes of Vietnam

and the polarization

of that era.

Operation:
Desert Shield

would afford America

the time to build up

its troop strength

to over half-a-million

soldiers, sailors,

airmen and Marines in the Gulf.

While acclimating them

to the heat,

sand and cold of that region,

it took a high level

of commitment and sacrifice

for America's military

men and women

to endure the loneliness

of a foreign land,

away from their families

and loved ones.

Some experts

would question whether

America's volunteer military

would be strong enough

to face down an enemy,

battle-hardened

by 8 years

of bloody war with Iran.

The U.S. forces

were supported

by a coalition of 27 Arab

and other countries,

along with

America's NATO allies.

Thus, Saddam not only

faced American might,

but a united, global effort,

empowered by the United Nations.

On Thanksgiving, 1990,

President and Mrs. Bush

journeyed to the Gulf

in order to re-enforce

America's commitment

to confront Saddam's armies.

General Schwarzkopf,

we have a little present

for you.

It comes from the families

and friends

of our troops around the world

and it's just exactly your size!

Here he is!

Wear it with pride!

All right, well, Barbara and I

Barbara and I are very proud to

be sharing this Thanksgiving

with the men and women

of our allied forces,

and later we're going to visit

your partners in the Army,

the Navy and the Coast Guard,

Marines, together,

the finest armed forces

in the entire world.

We are here

because we believe

in freedom - our freedom,

and the freedom of others.

And we're here because

we believe in principle,

and we're here because

we believe in you.

Earlier this week, I set out the

key reasons why we're here.

Making a stand in defense

of peace and freedom,

and we're to protect freedom,

here to protect the future and

here to protect innocent lives.

First, freedom together,

as 10 United Nation Security

Council resolutions made clear,

there's a compelling

case for your mission.

What we're confronting

is a classic bully

who thinks he can get away

with kicking sand

in the face of the world.

And so far, we have acted

with restraint as is our way.

But Saddam is making

the mistake of his life

if he confuses

an abundance of restraint

and patience

with a lack of resolve.

Can't do much

about this warm weather,

but I hope you're

getting enough MREs.

Oh yeah!

That's a military term meaning

I'd rather have a Bud Light.

Now look, look, we know

that the days can

get pretty long out here

and you'll be glad to know

that if it goes on too long,

we have a secret weapon

in reserve.

If push comes to shove,

we're gonna get Roseanne Barr

to go to Iraq and sing

the national anthem.

Time was running out

for Saddam Hussein.

He stubbornly refused

to heed the order

of the United Nations

to withdraw from Kuwait.

Jan January 16, 1991.

America and its coalition

partners go to war.

I'd like to do that

by first reminding you

of the military

operational objective

that we set out to accomplish,

and that is simply

to eject the Iraqi army

from Kuwait.

All of our activities

must ultimately

support this fundamental

military objective.

Of course, when

we achieve that objective,

we then will be

in a position to restore

the legitimate

government of Kuwait

and provide for

the security of the region.

I'm not telegraphing anything;

I just want everybody to know

that we have a toolbox

that's full of lots of tools,

and I brought them

all to the party.

General Schwarzkopf

has them all at the party.

So, how are we doing

with respect to

that major operational

objective;

the Iraqi army in Kuwait.

Our strategy to go after this

army is very, very simple.

First, we're going

to cut it off,

and then we're going to kill it.

President Bush unleashed

American air power

in Operation:
Desert Storm,

the most devastating display

of military firepower

in the history of man.

Over a 42 day period,

America launched

a massive air campaign,

flying over 100,000 sorties,

the full arsenal of American

and allied air power

was brought to bear against

Saddam's entrenched forces

in both Kuwait and Iraq itself.

Out of the black of night,

the unseen, highly sophisticated

F-117 Stealth fighters

destroyed key Iraqi command

and control centers.

The Stealth fighters,

F-15 Eagles, F-16 Falcons

and the Navy's Tomcats,

Hornets, Intruders

and Corsairs became part

of an air campaign

referred to as the Nintendo War.

State-of-the-art

Apache helicopters,

the slow-flying but

devastating A-10 Thunderbolts

and naval battleship guns

hit Iraqi ground forces.

Meanwhile, thousands

of feet above it all

were the old and reliable

B-52 bombers,

pounding away

at Iraqi ground targets.

On February 23,

the ground war commenced.

Over 200,000

allied troops crossed

into Kuwait and Iraqi territory.

Smart weapons like the

computerized Tomahawk missiles

were tested for the first

time in Gulf combat.

Much of the high-tech

weapon systems of laser

and TV guided bombs and missiles

were able to hit their targets

with amazing accuracy,

while keeping Iraqi civilian

losses to a minimum.

With satellites 22,000 miles

above the earth

and night-vision optics

on the ground,

the coalition forces were

able to see the enemy

while Iraqi troops

were left in the dark

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