Gov. Bill Owens made a surprise visit Friday to Colorado National Guard troops in Iraq.
The governor talked with Colorado Army National Guard troops stationed in Ramadi, 70 miles west of Baghdad, Owens said Friday from Kuwait during a conference call to reporters.
“I am commander in chief of the Guard, and I think it’s good for the Guard to see me, and it certainly was good for me to see them,” said Owens, who ate breakfast and lunch with Colorado troops.
The trip had been a closely held secret for days because of the security involved.
It was not publicly announced until Owens had left Iraq on Friday.
Owens said the 60 or so troops he talked with told him they believe in what they are doing and have made significant progress. They’ve sealed the border with Syria and have cleared most of the provinces of terrorists, he said.
“I didn’t hear a discouraging word, and I was off with these guys by themselves a lot,” Owens said. “Colorado troops feel that the press only gives a negative account of what’s happening in Iraq.”
Owens’ trip started Tuesday when he left Denver with President Bush on Air Force One. On Wednesday, Owens said, he met with top Pentagon officials, including Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
He left for Frankfurt, Germany, on Wednesday evening and caught a connecting flight to Kuwait. He arrived in Kuwait on Thursday evening. Iraq is 10 hours ahead of Denver.
On Friday morning, Owens hitched a C-130 military transport plane to Baghdad and flew on a Black Hawk helicopter to the base in Ramadi. Troops showed him how they escort convoys and the techniques they use to clear improvised explosive devices.
Owens said he also visited one of Saddam Hussein’s palaces and met an Iraqi special-forces team.
The governor was on the trip with Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry. The trip was paid for by the federal government.
Maj. Gen. Mason Whitney, commander of the Colorado National Guard, said he got a call from the Pentagon three weeks ago to set up the trip.
Owens visited troops from the 947th Engineer Company, who are building a highway in the desert.
“When they go over and visit the troops, it’s a great morale booster,” Whitney said.
Staff writer Chris Frates can be reached at 303-820-1633 or cfrates@denverpost.com.
