ABC Good Morning America - Transcript
ABC News Transcripts
SHOW: GOOD MORNING AMERICA (07:00 AM ET) - ABC
October 5, 2004 Tuesday
HEADLINE: PRICE OF DUTY SOLDIERS COERCED TO REENLIST?
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CHARLES GIBSON
(Off Camera) The Army, I should mention, is denying these allegations, which first surfaced last week at Fort Carson in Colorado. Lawmakers will meet with Pentagon officials this week to look into the claims. And joining us now is Congresswoman Diana DeGette, a Colorado Democrat, and she is calling for a House investigation. Congresswoman, good to have you with us. How many people have contacted your office?
graphics: price of duty
graphics: u.s. soldiers forced to reenlist?
REPRESENTATIVE DIANA DEGETTE,
DEMOCRAT, COLORADO
Good morning. We've now been contacted by about 17 people from three or four bases, as you said.
CHARLES GIBSON
(Off Camera) And the stories are all the same?
REPRESENTATIVE DIANA DEGETTE
The stories are all the same. As we just heard, people are saying that they're being told if they don't reenlist, they're going to be sent back to Iraq.
CHARLES GIBSON
(Voice Over) You, you said you've heard from three Army bases, Fort Carson, primarily, in Colorado. We -understand also Fort Riley and Fort Lewis.
REPRESENTATIVE DIANA DEGETTE
That's right.
CHARLES GIBSON
(Voice Over) And we have contacted someone at Fort Hood who told us the same story. Might this be ...
REPRESENTATIVE DIANA DEGETTE
Right.
CHARLES GIBSON
(Voice Over) ... Congresswoman, simply a case of miscommunication?
REPRESENTATIVE DIANA DEGETTE
Well, when you hear these soldiers talk, they don't sound like they're confused. They sound very clear that what they're being told is if they don't reenlist they're going to be sent back to Iraq. What I'm concerned about is -some kind of a, a coercive way to get people to stay in the military in these, these times of, of fighting and war. I think that's terrible. We've never done that in this country before.
CHARLES GIBSON
(Off Camera) The Army says it is not policy to do this. Is it possible that what you have here is a series of just overzealous Army recruiters? Because, after all, they're judged on the, on the percentage of reenlistments.
REPRESENTATIVE DIANA DEGETTE
Well, it could be possible that it's over zealousness, but the thing that's disturbing is, is now over three or four bases, and it's the same story that's being told by everybody. I'm concerned, really, that it, it could turn into a back door draft if we're coercing these people to re-up by threatening to send them back to Iraq. That's why I've requested a Congressional investigation.
CHARLES GIBSON
(Off Camera) Do we know if any soldiers who have declined reenlistment have, indeed, been sent over to Iraq in, in the wake of their refusing to reenlist?
REPRESENTATIVE DIANA DEGETTE
I don't know if that's happened or not and that's one reason why I've asked for the investigation, so we can see the extent of this, the scope of it, and if anybody actually has -if they've carried out this threat.
CHARLES GIBSON
(Off Camera) I was interested also that a couple of those soldiers that we saw on tape wanted their voices or their faces obscured in some way. Do we know if there have been recriminations against soldiers who may have called you or spoken out?
REPRESENTATIVE DIANA DEGETTE
The people who have been calling me are saying they're afraid of recriminations. After all, they are active duty enlisted personnel. And that's one thing that has struck me about the courage of the number of people, or their immediate families, who have come forward, because they are afraid. I don't think there have been recriminations and I, I, I would hope there wouldn't be, but I would also hope there wouldn't be this kind of threat to send people back to Iraq.
CHARLES GIBSON
(Off Camera) Yeah. All right. I appreciate your being with us, Congresswoman.
REPRESENTATIVE DIANA DEGETTE
Glad to be with you.
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