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Vet Group Plans Pro-War Blitz
Military.com By Christian Lowe July 17, 2007

A year ago, Pete Hegseth was leading Soldiers in combat, tamping down the flames of the sectarian bloodletting that erupted after a massive explosion demolished the so-called "Golden Mosque" on his home turf of Samarra, Iraq.

It was tough duty, with firefights and IEDs a near daily occurrence. Despite the danger, he saw value in his mission of stabilizing Iraq and fighting terrorism.

But his fight didn't stop upon his return to high-intensity civilian life in New York City - just the tools he'd use to wage it.

"For me, it's an extension of duty," the Army Reserve officer who served with the 101st Airborne Division in Iraq said. "I call it 'our exposed domestic flank.' That's where the enemy knows we're weak."

So Hegseth teamed with former Marine infantry leader Wade Zirkle and other Iraq and Afghanistan war vets to muster troops to their cause. They started Vets for Freedom in 2006 hoping to energize like-minded vets of recent combat deployments into a fifth column will help influence the war debate.

Too much of the coverage of the war - and the debate about it - comes from people without firsthand knowledge, Hegseth believes. So now he wants those who dodged bullets and roadside bombs to speak out.

"The veterans' voice needs to be a part of this debate and it hasn't been" Hegseth said. "I think they can articulate why we can't give up pretty well."

As casualties mount in Iraq, anti-war veterans groups such as Veterans for Peace and Iraqi Veterans Against the War are gaining clout among lawmakers and presidential candidates opposed to the surge. Another recently-established anti-war veterans' political action committee, VoteVets.org, is credited with the victory of several Democratic war vet candidates in November.

"Veterans know more about this war than anyone else in America," said Paul Rieckhoff, executive director of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, a non-political advocacy group. "For the first three years of this war, the conversation has been dominated by the policy wonks, talk show hosts, and politicians. It's about time we got into the next level and had a real debate about the war from the people who've been there."

Recognizing that the political momentum toward withdrawal is gaining strength, Vets for Freedom has organized a surge of its own, launching the "10 Weeks to Testimony" campaign aimed at bolstering its ranks, contacting lawmakers, and reaching out to local groups. These efforts are designed to synch up with the upcoming testimony by overall Iraq commander, Gen. David Petraeus, who will deliver a progress report to Congress in September.

Hegseth is quick to point out his organization is non-political and not affiliated with any political party, but he recognizes the battle to keep the current strategy in Iraq on track takes place in a political arena.

"Vets for Freedom launched our '10 Weeks to Testimony' campaign and committed to leading the charge to support General Petraeus and stop anti-war radicals and politicians on Capitol Hill from undermining the mission in Iraq," according to a Vets for Freedom release. "Unfortunately, despite thousands of phone calls to Capitol Hill this week, even more Republican senators have bowed to political pressure and declared defeat."

Hegseth hopes Vets for Freedom can help hold back the anti-war wave. His group is bolstering its "10 Weeks to Testimony" campaign July 17 with a day-long visit to Capitol Hill where volunteers intend to speak with lawmakers in hopes of bolstering support for the current Iraq strategy. The visits were moved up several months because Vets for Freedom organizers recognized their position was losing ground as Republican war backers inched further away from support in July.

"We were really gearing up towards September and hadn't anticipated Republicans' bailing so quickly," Hegseth said.

So far about 30 veterans have signed up for Tuesday's event, a small fraction of the 5,000 members Vets for Freedom claims on its rolls. But that hasn't taken organizers' eyes off the target.

Hegseth opines, "We want to be the Soldiers' voice for victory - the Soldier's voice that says 'the politicians in Washington are bailing on a war that we are seeing progress on.'"

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