The Hawaii Senate passes call to pull Hawaii troops from Iraq

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http://starbulletin.com/2006/04/06/news/briefs.html

http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/sessioncurrent/bills/SR128_.pdf

Senate passes call to pull Hawaii troops

The state Senate has passed a resolution asking Gov. Linda Lingle to remove Hawaii's Army and Air National Guard troops from Iraq.

The nonbinding resolution passed with all 20 Democrats voting yes and three of the five Republicans voting no. GOP Sens. Fred Hemmings and Bob Hogue were out of town and did not vote.

The resolution, SCR 193, notes that 3,000 soldiers have been deployed from the Hawaii National Guard.

The resolution condemns the use of "false information" regarding Iraq's involvement in the terrorist attacks in New York and the Pentagon in 2001 as a reason to invade Iraq.

"The majority of Americans are troubled by the direction the war in Iraq has taken since its inception and support the withdrawal of United States troops. ... Despite public sentiment against having troops remain in Iraq, there has been no exit strategy proposed by the Bush administration," according to the resolution.

It says that without a "credible threat" to the country or Hawaii, the National Guard troops should return to Hawaii.

There was no debate on the measure, which now goes to the state House.

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http://starbulletin.com/2006/04/08/news/story09.html

House kills measure seeking Guard pullout
Lawmakers note the governor lacks power to carry out the request

By Tara Godvin
Associated Press

A resolution urging Gov. Linda Lingle to take steps to bring the remaining members of the Hawaii Army and National Guard home from Iraq was halted in the House after passing the state Senate.

Though the last 60 Hawaii Army National Guard soldiers returned to the islands from Afghanistan on Tuesday, a dozen or so Guard members remain in Iraq, said Sen. Norman Sakamoto, chairman of the Senate Education and Military Affairs Committee.

Opponents said the governor wouldn't have the power to bring any remaining troops home anyway, making the resolution meaningless.

The resolution was in part meant to underscore Hawaii's distinction as having contributed a disproportionately high number of troops to the nation's conflicts abroad, said Sakamoto (D, Salt Lake-Foster Village).

About 2,200 Hawaii Air and Army Guard troops had been mobilized for active-duty deployment to either Afghanistan or Iraq. At one time, 88 percent of the Army National Guard was deployed, the highest percentage of any state in the country.

The measure said the joint resolution by the U.S. Congress authorizing the use of troops in Iraq was based on false information.

"The majority of Americans are troubled by the direction the war in Iraq has taken since its inception and support the withdrawal of United States troops; and ... despite public sentiment against having troops remain in Iraq, there has been no exit strategy proposed by the Bush administration ," according to the resolution passed by Hawaii's Democrat-dominated Senate on a 20-3 vote Wednesday, with two excused.

The dozen Hawaii guard troops that are still in Iraq volunteered for that duty, said Maj. Charles Anthony, spokesman for the Hawaii Guard.

"I can assure you that those that are in Iraq right now -- if they didn't want to be there, they wouldn't be there," he said.

Rep. Ken Ito, chairman of the House Public Safety and Military Affairs Committee, said the measure would not get past his committee.

"I'm not going to hear it," Ito said, because the issue is moot for the Legislature.

While the governor could possibly talk to President Bush about bringing home Hawaii's troops, he said, she does not have the power to bring them home herself.

"It's beyond our pay grade," said Ito (D, Heeia-Kaneohe).