Claim: Sen. Hillary Clinton's 2003 Thanksgiving visit forced U.S. troops in Afghanistan to wait for their holiday dinner.
Example: [NewsMax.com, 2003]
U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton forced U.S. troops stationed at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan to wait for their Thanksgiving dinner last Thursday while she and her entourage arrived late, then cut in line and were served first. A soldier who witnessed the scene tells NewsMax: "Thanksgiving Dinner started at 3 p.m. that day, so the line was forming around "Once she got there," our source maintains, "Clinton and her entourage bumped everyone in line, forcing them to wait almost an extra hour." [Rest of article here] |
Origins: Although President Bush's surprise morale-boosting Thanksgiving Day trip to Baghdad to share holiday dinner with U.S. troops serving in Iraq garnered most of the headlines, U.S. Senators Hillary Clinton of New York and
While the President made a relatively short 2½-hour visit to Baghdad, the two senators undertook a four-day jaunt which included:
- Traveling to Islamabad, Pakistan, and meeting with the U.S. ambassador and embassy staff.
- Traveling to Kabul, Afghanistan, and meeting with the
U.S. ambassador and embassy staff, with a group of Afghan women leaders, with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, and with Brigadier General Lloyd Austin (commander of the Combined Joint TaskForce-180 in Afghanistan). - Traveling to
U.S. bases in Bagram and Kandahar (Afghanistan) and sharing Thanksgiving dinners withU.S. troops. - Traveling back to Islamabad and meeting with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf.
- Traveling to Baghdad, Iraq, and meeting with
U.S. Ambassador L. Paul Bremer (head of the Coalition Provisional Authority) andLt. General Ricardo Sanchez (the commander ofU.S. forces in Iraq), with international NGOs (non-governmental organizations) providing assistance to the Iraqi people, and with Iraqi women leaders, as well as sharing several meals and visits withU.S. civilians and troops stationed in Iraq. - Traveling to Camp Wolverine (a transit camp for American military flying in and out of Iraq) in Kuwait and meeting with
Lt. General John Abizaid, commander of CENTCOM (U.S. Central Command) as well as sharing breakfast withU.S. troops. - Traveling to Kirkuk, Iraq, and meeting local Iraqi leaders, plus sitting down for a final meal with
U.S. troops.
The
article quoted above (similar in tone to the long-discredited piece about Senator Clinton and
Similarly, some soldiers stationed in Baghdad reported that the extra security necessary for President Bush's visit denied them the opportunity to have any Thanksgiving dinner at all, as related in this excerpt of a letter to the military newspaper Stars and Stripes:
As part of the main push during major combat, our battalion was scattered all over the battlefield. We supported other units and paved the way (and roads) that others would use to get to the front lines. Our D9 teams helped push units as famous as the During the war, Meals, Ready to Eat were naturally the way to go. They were appreciated, even by the vegetarians who had only crackers and cheese after the veggie meals were gone. Now that we're stationed at Baghdad International Airport almost The one thing that they find a requirement was denied to them. They understand that President Bush ate there and that upgraded security was required. But why were only certain units turned away? Why wasn't there a special meal for President Bush and that unit in the new dance hall adjoining the
As a soldier deployed in Iraq, I hear all the complaints from individuals who think they have it worse than the next guy. I'm lucky enough to be with soldiers who often complain amongst themselves, but all they expect are good leadership and three square meals a day.
Of the reception of Senators Clinton and Reed in Bagram, the New York Times reported:
Twenty officers and soldiers from Queens, Ithaca, Geneva, Brooklyn, Homer, New Rochelle and other places across New York dined with the senators. Senator Clinton received a generally warm reception from members of the military, who are often perceived as conservative and Republican. After the meal, more than a dozen soldiers formed a line to have their photographs taken with the former first lady. A half dozen asked for her autograph, often inscribed to their daughters. One soldier had "It's great that she came here," said Capt. Jim Mullin, a 29-year-old from Mahopac who pointed out that Senator Clinton could have spent the holiday with her famous family. "It's selfless, something I respect."
The senators began the visit here with a meeting with the Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, in Kabul's stately presidential palace. They ended it in a linoleum-floored Army mess hall, eating turkey, mashed potatoes and yams off cardboard trays with soldiers from Fort Drum, the New York base of the
Additional information:
 | Afghanistan and Iraq Trip Report (clinton.senate.gov) |
Last updated: 27 January 2007
Sources: