Tom Bowman

From Battlefield To Boston: Marine Comforts Bombing Survivors

Tom Bowman — Fri, 03 May 2013 21:18:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hy_LNYR-MiI

U.S. Faces Fight At Intersection Of Crime And Extremism

Tom Bowman — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 07:20:00 +0000

A suspected drug kingpin from the tiny West African nation of Guinea-Bissau was captured on the high seas by agents from the U.S.

Pressure Builds On White House To Intervene In Syria

Tom Bowman — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 20:47:00 +0000

Transcript

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel.

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

And I'm Audie Cornish. The White House tried to clarify its message on Syria today, saying it is still studying evidence that the government there has used chemical weapons. Here's press secretary Jay Carney.

JAY CARNEY: We are continuing to work to build on the assessments made by the intelligence community.

With Eye On Budget, Hagel Seeks Pentagon Changes

Tom Bowman — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 21:19:00 +0000

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, in his first major policy speech, laid out Wednesday how to deal with threats in an era of tight defense budgets.

Hagel has ordered the Pentagon to take a hard look at how many soldiers and sailors it needs and what types of weapons it buys.

As Qualified Men Dwindle, Military Looks For A Few Good Women

Tom Bowman — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 15:02:00 +0000

When the Pentagon said earlier this year that it would open ground combat jobs to women, it was cast in terms of giving women equal opportunities in the workplace — the military workplace.

But the move has practical considerations, too. The military needs qualified people to fill its ranks, and it's increasingly harder to find them among men.

"It's fairly common knowledge that our population of military-age young men, who qualify for the military, is declining," Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen.

U.S. Troops Train For Possible Mission To Secure Syrian Chemical Agents

Tom Bowman — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 22:16:00 +0000

Several weeks ago, Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, said the U.S. is planning what to do about Syria's vast chemical weapons program once Bashar Assad's regime falls. The Syrians are believed to have hundreds of tons of chemical agents, including sarin, one of the deadliest chemical agents.

Review Of Deadly Attack On Base In Afghanistan Finds Troops Let Guard Down

Tom Bowman — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 23:17:00 +0000

A Marine Corps review of the deadly Taliban attack on an allied base in Afghanistan last September found that some guard towers were unattended, and the insurgents "got lucky" by cutting through the fence at a remote area of the base in Helmand Province, Capitol Hill sources tell NPR.

A House staffer briefed on the review said allied troops "let their guard down" at Camp Bastion and have now "vastly" beefed up security with sensors and more British and American guards, bu

Pentagon Will Brief Congress On Deadly Sept. 14 Camp Bastion Attack

Tom Bowman — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 21:09:00 +0000

More than four months after a deadly attack at a sprawling allied base in Afghanistan that killed two U.S. Marines, there are lingering questions about how it happened.

Capitol Hill sources say they've been pressing for answers since the Sept. 14^th attack in Helmand Province, and say the military has not been forthcoming.

Pentagon Remains Big Target In Likely Budget Cuts

Tom Bowman — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 23:22:00 +0000

The economy shrunk in the fourth quarter — for the first time in three years — and one of the critical reasons was a drop in defense spending. Apparently, contractors took precautionary steps and held onto money in case the federal government failed to avert the fiscal and tax crisis known as the fiscal cliff.

But there's now a new deadline — automatic budget cuts, known as sequestration, which may hit at the beginning of March.

The Effect On Contractors

Kevin Graybeal sells components for electronic systems.

U.S. Military Seeks Its Role In Troubled North Africa

Tom Bowman — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 22:12:00 +0000

The recent crises in northern Africa, from Libya to Mali to Algeria, have raised a host of questions about the role of the American military command responsible for the entire continent.

Founded in 2007, the United States Africa Command, or AFRICOM, was created to train African militaries so U.S. troops would not be called upon in times of crisis.

But the command was controversial from day one. When President George W. Bush visited Ghana in 2008, the command was barely up and running. During that visit, Ghanaian President John Kufuor told Bush bluntly that he would not allow the U.S.

U.S. Military Builds Up Its Presence In Africa

Tom Bowman — Tue, 25 Dec 2012 09:41:00 +0000

An Army brigade from Fort Riley, Kan., some 4,000, soldiers, will begin helping to train African militaries. The idea is to help African troops beat back a growing terrorist threat posed by al-Qaida.

The American troops will head over in small teams over the course of the next year. The Dagger Brigade returned to Kansas last year from a deployment to Iraq, where it trained and advised that country's security forces.

Now unit commander Col. Jeff Broadwater is preparing to do the same kind of mission but in a different place.

Hagel Would Be First Former Enlisted Soldier To Run Pentagon

Tom Bowman — Mon, 24 Dec 2012 21:29:00 +0000

Former Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska is said to be on President Obama's short list to be the next defense secretary.

U.S. Officials: Syria Has Prepared Several Dozen Chemical Bombs

Tom Bowman — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 20:06:00 +0000

U.S. and allied officials say the forces of embattled Syrian President Bashar Assad have prepared several dozen bombs and shells loaded with the lethal chemical sarin.

The number is a larger estimate than has previously been reported.

Farewell, USS Enterprise

Tom Bowman — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 10:43:00 +0000

Sailors, veterans and their families are saying goodbye in Norfolk, Va., on Saturday to the USS Enterprise, which was the largest ship in the world and the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier when it was commissioned in 1961.

In its illustrious history, the Enterprise served at the center of international events for a half-century — from the Cuban missile crisis to Vietnam to the Iraq War.

And it had a distinguished Hollywood career as well, playing a leading role in the 1986 film Top Gun, which starred Tom Cruise as a young naval aviator.

When the Enterprise slipped into the

U.S. Offers New Details Of Deadly Libya Attack

Tom Bowman — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 07:31:00 +0000

Once a mob began attacking the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, on the night of Sept. 11, officials in Washington, D.C., watched with alarm. Now, new details are emerging about their response to the deadly attack.

President Obama and his entire national security team monitored what was going on half a world away. Army Gen.

U.S. Eager To Step Aside; Are Afghan Forces Ready?

Tom Bowman — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 09:04:00 +0000

America's exit strategy in Afghanistan is to have Afghan forces take the lead in fighting for their country. But too often these days, the job still falls to U.S. troops.

A senior officer in Afghanistan tells NPR that Americans continue to coddle Afghan forces and that this must stop. Tough love is in, the officer says. He says the Afghan forces are far more capable than the U.S. estimates and have simply grown accustomed to the U.S.

Horses, Bayonets, And The Modern Military

Tom Bowman — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 19:40:00 +0000

President Obama said during Monday night's debate that the U.S. Army has fewer horses and bayonets than in the past.

That's true. Although Army Special Forces were on horseback in Afghanistan when they helped defeat the Taliban in 2001, the Army's horses are now used only for ceremonial occasions.

As for bayonets?

Second Female Marine Fails Grueling Infantry Officer Course

Tom Bowman — Tue, 16 Oct 2012 16:10:00 +0000

The second of two female Marines who tried to make it through the grueling Infantry Officer Course has failed due to medical reasons.

Marine General Expected To Be Next Commander In Afghanistan

Tom Bowman — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 18:52:00 +0000

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is expected to announce during a meeting of NATO defense leaders in Brussels Wednesday that Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford will be nominated to succeed Gen.

Afghanistan Deadline Awaits Next U.S. President

Tom Bowman — Sun, 07 Oct 2012 10:06:00 +0000

How does a president bring the war in Afghanistan to an end? There are 68,000 American troops serving in the country as the war enters its 12th year.

The war hasn't been a major issue in the presidential campaign, and polls show American voters are tiring of the war. But the next commander in chief will find the Afghan war among the most difficult of many foreign policy challenges.

Both President Obama and Gov. Mitt Romney appear to agree on a date: the last day of December 2014.

First Female Marines Take Combat Leadership Test

Tom Bowman — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 07:49:00 +0000

Women in the U.S. military have been flying warplanes for years, and recently began serving in artillery and tank units. But they're still barred from direct ground combat.

Now, for the first time in the course's 35-year history, the Marine Corps is putting the first women through its grueling Infantry Officer Course: 86 days crawling through obstacle courses, lugging heavy machine guns, navigating the woods at night.

Col.

Antietam: A Savage Day In American History

Tom Bowman — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 07:45:00 +0000

On this morning 150 years ago, Union and Confederate troops clashed at the crossroads town of Sharpsburg, Md. The Battle of Antietam remains the bloodiest single day in American history.

The battle left 23,000 men killed or wounded in the fields, woods and dirt roads, and it changed the course of the Civil War.

It is called simply the Cornfield, and it was here, in the first light of dawn that Union troops — more than 1,000 — crept toward the Confederate lines.

US Confronts Growing 'Insider Attacks' In Afghanistan

Tom Bowman — Thu, 23 Aug 2012 21:08:00 +0000

Gunmen wearing Afghan police and army uniforms have killed 40 U.S. and NATO troops so far this year, and the top American commander in Afghanistan says there is no single reason — and no simple solution.

Taliban infiltrators, disputes between NATO and Afghan security forces, and even the timing of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month, are all factors, according to Gen. John Allen.

"We think the reasons for these attacks are complex," says Allen, who spoke by video link from Kabul on Thursday.

Air Force Chief Leaves Legacy In The Sky: Drones

Tom Bowman — Fri, 10 Aug 2012 07:19:00 +0000

The top officer in the U.S. Air Force, Gen. Norton Schwartz, is stepping down Friday after four years on the job.

Schwartz got the job after his predecessor was fired for — among other things — clashing with his Pentagon bosses over how many fighter jets the military needs.

Schwartz is most likely to be remembered for pushing another kind of aircraft: drones.

At this moment, dozens of these unmanned aircraft are flying high above Afghanistan.

Just don't call them drones when speaking with Schwartz.

"Drones mischaracterize what these things are. They're not dumb.

U.S. Wages Sisyphean War Against Afghan Corruption

Tom Bowman — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 19:27:00 +0000

U.S. officials consider widespread corruption one of the main barriers to a stable Afghanistan. They say it undermines support for the government and helps fuel the Taliban insurgency.

The U.S. has trained Afghan investigators and assisted in high-level corruption probes, yet the U.S. has little to show for its efforts.

The U.S. has created several task forces, including a one that's currently being set up: the Illicit Activities Initiative for Afghanistan, based in Washington.

Gen. Rick Waddell, the American in charge of anti-corruption efforts in Kabul, told NPR in May that the U.S.

As Fighting In Syria Intensifies, U.S. Worries About Chemical Weapons

Tom Bowman — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 20:20:00 +0000

"Deathly afraid."

That's what one U.S. official says about the prospect that Syria's vast stockpile of chemical weapons might be used against rebel forces. From a U.S.

Grandfathers' Stories Inspire Military Service

Tom Bowman — Wed, 04 Jul 2012 07:29:00 +0000

A very small percentage of Americans are now serving in the military — fewer than 1 percent. Some are looking for direction. Others are inspired by a sense of patriotism or by a family member who served in an earlier war. On this Independence Day, we continue with an occasional series, Those Who Serve, a look at the men and women wearing their country's uniform during a time of war.

Capt. Jared Larpenteur is from Cajun Country in Louisiana. His family never expected he'd make the military his career.

Now, he's serving in eastern Afghanistan.

No. 2 U.S. Commander In Afghanistan Would Like 68,000 Troops Into Next Year

Tom Bowman — Wed, 30 May 2012 17:30:00 +0000

(NPR Pentagon correspondent Tom Bowman has been embedded with U.S. troops in Afghanistan this month. On Morning Edition, he reported from the eastern province of Ghazni about what's being called "the last major combat offensive of the Afghan War." Now, he tells us about his interview with the No. 2 U.S. officer in Afghanistan, Lt. Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti.)

One thing is certain. The number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan will drop by 23,000 by September.

For U.S. Troops, One More Big Push In Afghanistan

Tom Bowman — Wed, 30 May 2012 07:33:00 +0000

Several thousand soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division are taking part in what is being called the last major combat offensive of the Afghan War.

Their task is to clear Ghazni province in eastern Afghanistan, a Taliban stronghold and a key prize because it straddles the major roads to Kabul and the insurgent supply routes into Pakistan.

But the American troops are challenged by a stubborn enemy and a short time to finish the job.

The first casualty happened before the mission even started: An Afghan army soldier, Burhan Muddin, was standing watch at his combat outpost when a Taliban g

Former Taliban Stronghold Faces The Post-U.S. Future

Tom Bowman — Tue, 22 May 2012 20:03:00 +0000

If there was a place in Afghanistan synonymous with the Taliban, it was the district of Marjah in Afghanistan's southern province of Helmand.

Two years ago, thousands of U.S. Marines and British and Afghan forces descended on this checkerboard of villages, canals and fields. They pushed out the insurgents — but at a heavy cost.

Now, with U.S.