Political Quotes

“soldiers of the 218th Brigade Combat Team of the South Carolina Army National Guard, under the leadership of Brigadier General Bob Livingston, are successfully returning to South Carolina. For the past year they have been in Afghanistan as part of Task Force Phoenix working to build the Afghan military and police. As a 28-year veteran of the 218th, I know firsthand of their competence and patriotism. These citizen soldiers have built one Afghan military battalion to be fully independent with 13 additional battalions to be operational by this summer. After overhauling the Afghani police forces to eliminate corruption, the 218th helped build an Afghan police force of 79,000. Additionally, the 218th provided humanitarian relief, including the construction of schools, hospitals and roads. They conducted 200 medical assistance missions and delivered 300 tons of food and supplies to the 37,000 Afghans. At this time, we also remember the fallen. Staff Sergeant James D. Bullard, Sergeant Shawn F. Hill and Sergeant Edward O. Philpot lost their lives during the year-long deployment. These patriots gave the ultimate sacrifice in defense of American families by defeating terrorists overseas. Our thoughts and prayers are with their families. In conclusion, God bless our troops, and we will never forget September the 11th.”