Free Republic

SAVANNAH -- President Bush is planning a trip to Fort Stewart this month to congratulate the soldiers who led the assault on Baghdad, The Associated Press has learned. Sources with advance knowledge of the president's schedule said Wednesday that no final date has been set for the visit, although one source said it could be as early as Sept. 12. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity.The White House does not disclose Bush's schedule until 48 hours in advance.The presidential visit, first reported by the Savannah Morning News, has been widely expected. Residents of neighboring Hinesville have speculated since the...

Shocked Iraqi spokesmen refused to believe the Third Division could be where coalition reports said it was, while Pentagon officials hailed it as the longest and fastest armour attack in military history Even his own officers thought Major-General Buford Blount III's plan for the battle of Baghdad was overly optimistic -- many in fact could not believe it. "We thought they were kidding when the battalion commander said we're going to drive tanks into the middle of Baghdad," marvelled Captain Jason Conroy, one of the members of Maj.-Gen. Blount's Third Infantry Division. When Saddam Hussein's capital fell to coalition forces...