By Associated Press
Frankfort, KY – Gov. Steve Beshear made surprise stops in Iraq and Kuwait on Tuesday to meet with Kentucky troops on a trip arranged more than two months ago by the U.S. Department of Defense.
Beshear, speaking with reporters by phone from Kuwait, said he has extended his personal thanks to troops from Fort Knox, Fort Campbell and the Kentucky National Guard.
Beshear took time off from his re-election campaign to travel with a bipartisan group of governors from Nevada, Tennessee and Utah, all of whom were invited because of the large contingents of soldiers from their states serving in the Middle East.
"I jumped at the opportunity, because it's a once in a lifetime experience to personally be able to be with our Kentucky soldiers here in the war zones and to personally thank them for what they're doing," Beshear said.
The tour will continue Wednesday, though Beshear said that, for security reasons, he couldn't yet disclose the locations he will be visiting. He said he expects to arrive back in Kentucky on Friday, one day before the traditional kickoff of Kentucky's general election campaign season at a western Kentucky church picnic.
More than 2,600 Kentucky troops are currently deployed to Iraq and Kuwait. Of those, about 1,000 are from Fort Campbell, 140 from Fort Knox, and nearly 1,500 from the Kentucky National Guard.
In Kuwait, Beshear visited Ali Al Salem Air Base and Camp Arifjan. In Iraq, the Democratic governor met with troops at Joint Air Base Balad, Taji Air Base, Camp Victory Baghdad, and Baghdad International Airport, where he said the temperature was 125 degrees.
"I know we all have some idea of the dangers that these folks are in every day, but I don't know that you can really appreciate it," Beshear said. "This morning, as we got ready to board a helicopter, we were issued body armor and a Kevlar helmet. That impressed upon me the real reality of what we're facing this week but more importantly what our folks face day after day and month after month, every single day, while they're out doing their jobs."
The trip was a boon for Beshear, who had been criticized by his Republican gubernatorial opponent, state Senate President David Williams, for not traveling to Fort Campbell earlier this year when President Barack Obama came to the state to meet with the Navy SEALs who killed Osama bin Laden.
Beshear said he hasn't thought about the governor's race since leaving on the Middle East trip on Monday.
"There are some things a little more important than politics," he said, "and the welfare of these troops over here is a lot more important."
University of Louisville political scientist Laurie Rhodebeck said the trip will play well among voters in Kentucky, a state with a strong military presence.
"That he's willing to give of his time in the midst of the general election campaign suggests he's a strong supporter of their efforts," Rhodebeck said.