FederalDaily - May 9, 2007
DoD Names More Units Slated for Iraq Duty
DoD on May 8 announced additional major units that are scheduled to deploy to Iraq as part of the
rotation of forces there. The deployment includes 10 brigade combat teams consisting of about 35,000
personnel. The rotation of the troops will begin in August and continue through the end of the year.
Units receiving deployment orders include: 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, Fort Hood, Texas; 1st Brigade,
101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Ky.; 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Ky.;
2nd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Ky.; 4th Brigade, 10th Mountain Division, Fort
Polk, La.; 1st Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; 4th Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division,
Fort Stewart, Ga.; 2nd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii; 2nd Cavalry Regiment
(Stryker), Vilseck, Germany; and 2nd Brigade, 1st Armored Division, Baumholder, Germany. For more,
go to: www.army.mil/-newsreleases/2007/05/08/3024-remaining-2007-active-duty-army-iraq-rotation-announced-may-8/.
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Senators Question New Army Blog Restrictions
A number of senators are asking the Army to rethink its plans to tighten restrictions on soldiers’ blogs
and other Web site postings. The new rules, announced April 19, seek to extend restrictions already
in place on soldiers in war zones to servicemembers who have returned from combat and started blogs
about their experiences. Under the new directive, soldiers must consult with their immediate supervisor
and an officer responsible for operational security, or OPSEC, before posting any comments to any public
forum. The regulation applies to e-mail, blogs, message boards and other forms of digital communication.
However, a number of senators, including Sens. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., and Edward Kennedy, D-Mass.,
said on May 4 that the new regulations are too restrictive. In a letter to Acting Secretary of the
Army Peter Geren, Kennedy said the new rules “will have a chilling effect on opportunities for
the public to connect personally with these brave fighting men and women.” To see more, go to: http://kennedy.senate.gov/newsroom/press_release.cfm?id=90c21c75-7e52-4296-a15e-7b4989d9bb35
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Reed Named as New GSA Emergency Response Chief
General Services Administrator (GSA) Lurita Doan named a former Federal Emergency Management Agency
(FEMA) administrator to become GSA’s first chief Emergency Response and Recovery Officer. Richard
Reed, who worked at FEMA as well as at the Homeland Security Council at the White House, was named
to head the GSA’s newly created Office of Emergency Response and Recovery (OERR), Doan said in
a statement on May 7. OERR is responsible for coordinating all GSA resources in support of first responders,
emergency workers and recovery teams across all levels of government, Doan said. Reed holds undergraduate
degrees from Purdue University and Indiana University and a master's degree from Indiana University.
To see more, go to: www.gsa.gov
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Openly Gay Seaman Recalled to Navy
Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Jason Knight said that even though naval officials knew he was gay, he
was allowed to be recalled and has served as an openly gay servicemember for a year in a Kuwait customs
battalion. Knight, 23, was discharged in April 2005 after informing the Navy he was gay, and was forced
to repay a $13,000 military signing bonus, he said. Then nine months later, Knight said he received
an email from the Navy offering him a position with Naval Customs Battalion Bravo in Kuwait. He served,
and is due to be discharged again in June, he said. During his second tour of duty, Knight said he
hasn’t made any effort to hide his sexual orientation. Normally, openly gay servicemembers are
not allowed to serve nor return to service in the military. Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN),
a gay advocacy group, notes that Knight’s service illustrates the problems with the military’s “Don’t
Ask, Don’t Tell,” policy. “Knight’s story shatters the myth that openly gay
troops undermine unit cohesion or morale,” said Sharra E. Greer, SLDN director of law and policy.
To see more, go to: www.sldn.org
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