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Update from U.S. Senator Bob Corker
September 2007
It’s been a great month. I spent most of it in Tennessee, visiting 38 counties across our state to listen to the concerns of our citizens and to talk about some of the work we’re doing in Tennessee and Washington. I also made my second trip to Iraq to talk with our soldiers and commanders and see the situation on the ground firsthand.
It was wonderful seeing the hundreds of you who attended our events throughout the state, and I look forward to seeing many more of you in the near future. Until then, I appreciate you taking the time to read about what I’ve been doing over the course of the past month. And, as always, I would like to thank you for the tremendous privilege of serving you in the United States Senate.
Assessing Our Situation in Iraq
The Senate will spend much of September focused on our situation in Iraq and determining our course of action. As a member of both the Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees I’ll be particularly involved in committee hearings on the topic in addition to the activity on the floor. I have found that nothing replaces being on the ground and talking firsthand with our troops, our military leaders, and the leaders of the Iraqi government, so in mid-August, I took a four day trip to Iraq, Kuwait and Germany with Senator Alexander and several of our colleagues.
This was my second visit to Iraq in the past six months. In my first visit in February, I met with Commanding General David Petraeus and Lieutenant General Raymond Odierno. I met with them again on this trip, as well as with the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker and Iraqi Deputy Presidents Adil Abdul-Mahdi (a Shiite) and Tariq Al-Hashimi (a Sunni). We had lunch with a number of Tennessee soldiers, marines and airmen in the Green Zone and later flew by helicopter outside the Green Zone to the U.S. Combat Outpost (COP) near Taji, where we were able to see a street-level view of life for Iraqi citizens. We ate dinner at the Outpost that night with 70 U.S. soldiers and four Iraqi sheiks who are working with the U.S. military to help secure their villages.
I came away from the trip with several observations.
First, I continue to be tremendously impressed and emotionally overwhelmed with the professionalism and commitment of our men and women in uniform. It is incredibly moving to be in their presence and see the work they are doing on a daily basis on our behalf. All Americans are deeply indebted to our military men and women for their service to our country.
Second, there is no question that we've made some military gains over the last several months under the leadership of General Petraeus and General Odierno. We are, province by province, changing the mission on the ground in Iraq and it is having success. It seems as if a light has gone off, and that more and more, Iraqi sheiks now understand that we are there to support their security. More and more they are viewing us as enablers rather than occupiers. I also believe the terror that Al Qaeda and some of the other militant groups have wreaked on these villages has caused greater numbers of Iraqis to want to band together with us and do everything they can to create peace in their communities. For that reason, we are no doubt seeing gains on the ground as it relates to security.
Third, the Iraqi central government has not made the gains that we would have hoped. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is meeting with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani and the two deputy presidents on a daily basis to try to reach some type of reconciliation so they can move forward on these important issues, but the fact of the matter is that the benchmarks have not been met with the progress we expected.
And finally, I have great hope that when the Petraeus plan comes forth this week, it could go a long way towards bringing our country together around a way forward in Iraq. I hope my colleagues will listen to the report that General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker deliver and not to those people that wish to see us divided. I think we have an opportunity in the Senate to unite around a proposal that builds on our successes and implements gradual redeployments so that over time we are supporting the operations of the Iraqi people as they continue to move themselves towards a more secure Iraq.
Getting Home to Tennessee
When I was a businessman, my company had projects in 18 states. I found that nothing replaced being on the ground at those job sites, seeing and listening to my employees in person. It is very important to me that I’m in Tennessee as often as possible, seeing and listening to constituents and hearing about what concerns them most.
During this first year in office, I will be visiting all 95 counties across our state to listen to constituents’ concerns and to talk about the key issues we’re focusing on in Tennessee and Washington.
During August, we held 22 town hall meetings across the state in Henderson, Weakley, Henry, Benton, Humphreys, Houston, Stewart, Cheatham, White, Jackson, Macon, Clay, Overton, Pickett, Fentress, Scott, Union, Campbell, Giles, Marshall, Moore, Grundy and Lauderdale counties. These town hall meetings gave me an opportunity to discuss the comprehensive energy bill we passed in the Senate that will not only help Tennessee, but will enable our country to be more energy secure. It enabled me to discuss my Every American Insured Health Act, which will hopefully start a dialogue on the health care insurance crisis facing our nation. These meetings also gave me insight into people’s thoughts about immigration, the war in Iraq, and the problems some folks are having with Veterans Affairs.
In West Tennessee, I saw the scope of damage the April freeze and ongoing drought conditions have caused Phillip and Sandy Moore’s 3,000 acre farming operation in Carroll County. Also in West Tennessee, I attended a briefing and tour of the Ethanol Grain Processors facility under construction in Obion County, where ethanol production is expected to begin in the fall of 2008. This plant is another example of how our state is helping to lead the way in producing alternative forms of energy.Before travelling to Iraq, I made my second trip to Ft. Campbell since being elected to office and my first trip since being appointed to the Senate Armed Services Committee in July. There, I met the commander, General Schloesser, and received a briefing on troop deployments and a tour of the post’s medical facilities.
 I also attended the University of Tennessee football team’s practice one morning and shared a few thoughts with the players about my time at UT and some thoughts about their futures based on my own life experiences. I spoke to the Chambers of Commerce in Chester, Davidson, Putnam, Franklin, and Dyer counties, members of the Fayetteville Rotary Club, and a group of students and officials at Lake County High School. And finally, my August visits ended in Memphis where I attended a meeting of Shelby County Mayor A C Wharton’s Med Blue Ribbon Panel to discuss the long-term stability of the Regional Medical Center at Memphis.
It was a good month. I found that what all of these Tennesseans have in common is a mutual concern for moving our state and our country ahead in a positive way.
August Events Schedule in Tennessee:
Monday, August 6
Chester County Chamber of Commerce Breakfast in Henderson
Town Hall at the Henderson County Courthouse in Lexington
Carroll County Farm Bureau Drought Tour and Briefing in Westport
Town Hall Meeting at the Weakley County Courthouse in Dresden
Henry County Meet and Greet at the Paris Landing State Park in Buchanan
Tuesday, August 7
Benton County Meet and Greet at The Catfish Place in Camden
Town Hall Meeting at the Humphreys County Court House in Waverly
Town Hall Meeting in Houston County at Fitz’s Restaurant in Erin
Town Hall Meeting at the Stewart County Public Library in Dover
Fort Campbell Briefing and Tour of Medical Facilities
Town Hall Meeting at the Cheatham County Public Library in Ashland
Wednesday, August 8
Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce Luncheon
Wednesday, August 15
White County Meet and Greet at the Coffee Corner in Sparta
Town Hall Meeting at the Jackson County Courthouse in Gainesboro
Town Hall Meeting in Macon County at La Tia’s Restaurant in Lafayette
Town Hall Meeting in Clay County at the Community Center in Celina
Putnam County Chamber of Commerce Reception in Cookeville
Thursday, August 16
Overton County Community Coffee in Livingston
Town Hall Meeting at the Pickett County Library in Byrdstown
Meet and Greet in Fentress County at Miss Ellie’s in Jamestown
Town Hall Meeting at the Scott County Courthouse in Huntsville
Friday, August 17
Addressed the UT Football Team in Knoxville
Union County Town Hall Meeting at the Maynardville City Hall
Campbell County Town Hall at the Jacksboro Municipal Complex
Thursday, August 23
Lincoln County Luncheon with the Fayetteville Rotary Club
Giles County Town Hall Meeting in Pulaski
Marshall County Town Hall Meeting in Lewisburg
Friday, August 24
Town Hall Meeting in Moore County at Elk River Coffee Company in Lynchburg
Franklin County Chamber Luncheon in Winchester
Grundy County Meet and Greet at the Monteagle City Hall
Tuesday, August 28
Town Hall Meeting in Lauderdale County at the Halls Veterans Museum
Dyersburg Chamber of Commerce Luncheon at the Lannom Center
Lake County High School Leadership Talk in Tiptonville
Obion County Ethanol Plant Tour in Rives
Wednesday, August 29
Shelby County Mayor AC Wharton’s Blue Ribbon Panel Meeting in Memphis
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