Bush calls up reserves, says they will play ‘essential role’
President George W. Bush said military reserve forces would play an "essential role" in a planned war on terrorism as he visited war planners at the Pentagon today.
"[The reserve forces] will help maintain our air defenses so they can stay on high alert. They will check shipping ports. They will help our military with airlift and logistics. They will provide military police. They will participate in engineering projects. They will help gather intelligence. And they will perform work as chaplains," Bush told reporters after meeting with senior Defense officials.
Recovery crews continue to search for and pull remains from the charred wreckage of a commercial airliner that slammed into the Pentagon last Tuesday following a terrorist hijacking. The Defense Department's latest casualty report states that 124 Pentagon workers were killed, while an additional 64 passengers and hijackers aboard the hijacked American Airlines flight died. Thus far, the remains of 88 of the victims have been recovered and sent to Dover Air Force Base, Del., for identification.
Bush said the Defense Department is in the process of calling up 35,000 reserve troops. Additionally, 10,000 Army and Air National Guard troops from 29 states have already been called to duty in New York, Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Maryland. Their efforts have focused on engineering, security and medical support and evacuation and debris cleanup missions in New York City, while at the Pentagon they have assisted disaster relief operations and provided security.
Bush thanked the employers of reserve troops for understanding that "there is more to corporate life than just profit and loss." Federal law requires that employers allow Guard and Reserve members to serve on active duty for up to five years and still return to their jobs at the same salary. The same rules apply to federal government employees in the reserve force.
Lt. Col. Jess Soto, director of ombudsman services for the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, said employers have been supportive of their Guard and Reserve employees since the mobilizations began last week. "No one is panicking," Soto said. "The $64,000 question is at what point does military duty become so overwhelming that it impacts too greatly on civilian business and enterprise?"
Bush told reporters reserve troops and their employers are making "a lot of sacrifice" in what he called a "long-term battle--war" against terrorists. The Bush administration has repeatedly stressed the war on terrorism will not be simple, will required sustained military operations and more than likely will be directed at more than one terrorist organization.
Bush also said the prime suspect behind last week's hijacking is Osama bin Laden and added he wants him "dead or alive."