DOD Transcript - Trooper asked Rummy in MAY 2004 Uparmor Humvees

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.defenselink.mil/transcripts/2004/tr20040513-secdef0747.html

Presenter: Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Richard Myers Thursday, May 13, 2004 10:37 a.m. EDT

Question. Here's a mike, and anyone who has a question, why don't you wander towards one of the fellows with mikes? There's one right here. Good.

Q How you doing, sir? (Inaudible.) I have force protection questions, sir.

SEC. RUMSFELD: You have what?

Q Force protection.

SEC. RUMSFELD: General Myers. (Laughter.)

Q Sir, my unit, the 2nd Brigade -- (inaudible) -- Cav, we have five out of the six red zones in this country. And with the up- armored humvees, the new -- (off mike) -- humvees they're bringing over with the -- (inaudible) -- those doors are not as good as the ones on the up-armored humvees -- (inaudible). We even lost quite -- we lost some soldiers due to them, and we're trying to make a change -- (inaudible). The question is, are we going to get more up-armored humvees?

And the second question I wanted to ask is, they have the new -- (inaudible) -- vests out that covers your -- (inaudible). We need those because we have taken some casualties due to the shrapnel from IEDs going through the side. The front parts are good, but the sides are not.

Thank you.

GEN. MYERS: Good points. Excellent points. You can imagine we spend a lot of time on force protection, and our responsibility, I think, is to ensure we have the resources and protection lines and all that cranked up to get the equipment we need.

You mentioned the vests and now the part for the armpits and the sides that are not covered with the SAPI plates and not covered adequately by the vest. They're -- we producing them and sending them over here as fast as we can.

You do not have all the up-armored humvees you need. You got about -- around 3,000 out of the 4,400 roughly that they want over here, that your leaders want. Production is ramping up this month. I think it's around 220, 225 per month. We've gathered them from all other services that had them except for a few we held back for a nuclear security role back in the United States. The rest of them shipped over here. We're trying to get them to you as fast as we can. We understand the difference they can make, and for that matter we're shipping some armor over as well. You know, some of the units came over lighter, and you're probably one of them, and so you're going to get some of your stuff back to do the job that you have to do.

But that's something that I have a chance to talk to Congress about a lot. Congress is -- will provide any amount of resources. They've been very good about this issue, in fact about all issues when it comes to our efforts here, (also) in Afghanistan, and in the global war on terrorism. But specifically on force protection, many members of Congress are very, very serious about this.

It's not a matter of resources, it's a matter of how fast can we build these things and get them over here. And I review that probably daily, the status of those machines and that equipment that can help.

And we've got to do better. I mean, we've got a lot of folks looking at the improvised explosive device problem. And to date we have not found any magic remedy for those devices, but I'm not convinced there's not something out there. So we've got a lot of money going towards that effort. I think there are 130-some different organizations that are looking at it from all different angles, led by the United States Army.

So we're trying. We're trying hard. And we understand -- I understand exactly everything you said, and we'll do our best. And that's our responsibility. (Applause.)

[MichiganVote]

1. They haven't done dick and they know it.

[Erika]

2. And the Bush Administration Could Care Less

They put our kids there to aid corporate globalists. They want infrastructures destroyed. "All the better to feed corporatism"

Those Guardsmen really showed a backbone in questioning Rummy. My husband used it as an example to our granddaughter as to how one person can change everything. That guy from Tennessee is now responsible for finally getting armor on the vehicles.

[MichiganVote]

5. Yeah well, dream on. Its not on all the vehicles or the trucks.

Not to mention the fact that body armor has also been in short supply. Its impossible to fuck up this much unless you just don't give a damn and BushCo. doesn't. Americans are just expendable to this administration.

[Old and In the Way]

3. "And I review that probably daily"

Meyer's is a slow learner, I guess. That was 7 months ago, General Dick.

[sandnsea]

4. December 2003

Body armor.

"Norwood said that an investigation into the quality of off-the-shelf armor is not being planned at his level. Currently, he is working with a number of vendors to speed production of the Interceptor. He said that production has increased from 3,350 vests per month in January to 25,000 in November. The number of vendors supplying the Army has increased from three to six.

Production has been accelerated and “at some point in December,” the shortfall should be filled, Norwood added."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,101061,00.html

[For PaisAn]

6. 7 months later...

f'ing liars.
I'll check the media tomorrow, I'm sure they're right on this story, not.

[DeepModem Mom]

7. Good find!