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Coffman Returns To Colorado After Serving In Iraq(Colorado State Treasurer Mike Coffman)
cbs4denver.com ^ | 27 March 2006 | Anna Alejo

Posted on 03/27/2006 9:29:02 PM PST by A.A. Cunningham

Coffman Returns To Colorado After Serving In Iraq

(CBS4) DENVER State Treasurer Mike Coffman returned to Colorado after serving as a U.S. Marine in Iraq. He took a military leave in June to rejoin the Marines and help set up the new government in Iraq.

Major Coffman received a commendation medal for overseeing the creation of 414 polling centers for Iraq's national elections. He worked in the Sunni Arab area which is described as some of the most hostile territory.

"What was an amazing thing was how civil the Iraqis all were to me, even in an area where they didn't really support what we were doing," Coffman said. "Even when they discussed something and they disagreed with me and they got emotional about it. It was never in an offensive way."

Coffman said he was heartened buy the risks Iraqi candidates for office were willing to take.

"The sad reports that I had in working elections of candidates being killed in the national election that happened so often," Coffman said.

A week before he was to return home, Coffman's convoy was hit by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED).

"Fortunately nobody was killed," Coffman said. "But three Marines had to be medevaced to the states that were badly burned."

Coffman said he believes America's sacrifice is leading to the birth of a democracy and wants to use what he's learned in his campaign for Colorado Secretary of State in the fall.

"The understanding of what it means to move the political process forward," Coffman said. "And I think we need to do that in Colorado, as well, and you need to be continually vigilant. Certainly not to take things for granted and to do everything we can to protect the right to vote."

On Tuesday, Coffman will sit down for a briefing with acting state treasurer Mark Hillman. He said his first priority before finishing up as treasurer will be to begin reform of PERA, the state's pension fund.

(© MMVI CBS Television Stations, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Government; US: Colorado; War on Terror
KEYWORDS:

Coffman working on elections at Camp Fallujah.

Coffman shows photos from Iraq to CBS4's Anna Alejo in CBS4's newsroom on Mar. 27

1 posted on 03/27/2006 9:29:07 PM PST by A.A. Cunningham
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To: A.A. Cunningham

Brave guy. I wish he runs in CO-7.


2 posted on 03/27/2006 9:34:50 PM PST by LdSentinal
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