WEBVTT 00:00.240 --> 00:02.351 Well , Governor Janet napolitano West 00:02.351 --> 00:04.184 to Arizona understand mysterious 00:04.184 --> 00:06.240 circumstances and now another reason 00:06.240 --> 00:08.407 why she went to Iraq and she's joining 00:08.407 --> 00:10.740 us now . Governor , Thanks for the time . 00:11.140 --> 00:14.530 You're welcome . Okay , I'd like to 00:14.530 --> 00:16.697 kind of follow chronologically through 00:16.697 --> 00:18.808 your trip . But first let me just ask 00:18.808 --> 00:21.030 you what was your overall impression of 00:21.030 --> 00:23.800 where things stand in Iraq ? Well , I 00:23.810 --> 00:27.170 think that things are in flux , but had 00:27.170 --> 00:29.170 a very good meeting last night with 00:29.170 --> 00:31.690 General Petraeus , who just took over 00:31.690 --> 00:34.080 command about a month ago and before I 00:34.080 --> 00:36.450 left at meetings , both with Secretary 00:36.450 --> 00:38.760 Rice and the new Secretary Secretary 00:38.760 --> 00:42.290 Gates . Uh , and so I think there's a 00:42.300 --> 00:45.140 renewed commitment to try to try to 00:45.150 --> 00:47.039 move this thing forward in such a 00:47.039 --> 00:49.039 fashion that the level of sectarian 00:49.039 --> 00:51.150 violence is reduced and our young men 00:51.150 --> 00:54.380 and women can get home . You mentioned 00:54.380 --> 00:56.491 the General Petraeus who were briefed 00:56.491 --> 00:58.491 by him . He's obviously the top man 00:58.491 --> 01:00.713 there , but beyond what we already know 01:00.713 --> 01:02.824 about the troop surge and 20,000 plus 01:02.824 --> 01:04.880 more troops coming in . What new did 01:04.880 --> 01:07.820 you go from there ? Well , I think he's 01:07.820 --> 01:09.931 got a very practical sense . Uh , you 01:09.931 --> 01:12.098 know , I think one of the things we've 01:12.098 --> 01:14.264 all been asking is , if we , if we are 01:14.264 --> 01:16.376 to have a surge , what is the overall 01:16.376 --> 01:18.376 strategy , how does that fit into a 01:18.376 --> 01:20.650 strategy ? What is the endgame ? Uh , 01:20.660 --> 01:22.604 he defined it , he said we need to 01:22.604 --> 01:24.660 dramatically reduced to the level of 01:24.660 --> 01:26.882 sectarian violence . And what sectarian 01:26.882 --> 01:28.938 violence is , is is violence between 01:28.938 --> 01:31.160 members of different religious groups , 01:31.160 --> 01:33.382 the Shia and Sunni in particular , uh , 01:33.382 --> 01:35.493 reduce that level of violence So that 01:35.493 --> 01:37.716 the civic institutions of governments , 01:37.716 --> 01:39.660 the parliament , the mayor's , the 01:39.660 --> 01:42.210 provincial officers can get to work at 01:42.220 --> 01:44.570 building building the country of Iraq 01:44.570 --> 01:46.626 and building the infrastructure that 01:46.626 --> 01:48.459 they're going to need to sustain 01:48.459 --> 01:50.737 themselves moving forward . Government . 01:50.737 --> 01:52.959 Can you tell us about your meeting with 01:52.959 --> 01:54.959 Arizona troops , understanding that 01:54.959 --> 01:57.126 specifically with some troops based at 01:57.126 --> 02:00.700 luke ? Uh , I saw some loop troops 02:00.700 --> 02:03.000 today . I've seen a number of our guard 02:03.000 --> 02:05.000 troops , the triple deuce the to 20 02:05.000 --> 02:08.470 seconds . Uh , I saw the transportation 02:08.470 --> 02:12.270 companies , uh , they 02:12.280 --> 02:14.970 are morale is good . Uh , they feel 02:14.970 --> 02:16.803 like they are contributing to an 02:16.803 --> 02:19.026 important mission , which they are uh , 02:19.026 --> 02:21.830 overall , they believe in the quality 02:21.830 --> 02:23.997 of their training and equipment . Uh , 02:23.997 --> 02:25.997 some improvements they suggested as 02:25.997 --> 02:28.052 well . They ought particularly those 02:28.052 --> 02:30.274 who have been there for a while and I'm 02:30.274 --> 02:30.080 glad to come get those suggestions so I 02:30.080 --> 02:31.913 can take them to the head of the 02:31.913 --> 02:33.969 National Guard Bureau and others and 02:33.969 --> 02:35.969 and make sure our men and women are 02:35.969 --> 02:38.024 getting the best that we can offer . 02:38.024 --> 02:40.080 Well , the key question that I think 02:40.080 --> 02:39.840 maybe we'll come out of this whole 02:39.840 --> 02:42.007 interview is what you're so much about 02:42.040 --> 02:43.873 the daily violence in Iraq , and 02:43.873 --> 02:45.780 frankly , not much more . What 02:45.790 --> 02:47.930 specifically did these troops say to 02:47.930 --> 02:51.880 you that makes you believe that they 02:51.880 --> 02:53.769 are in fact making a difference ? 02:53.940 --> 02:57.580 Well , I think that the news media 02:57.580 --> 02:59.750 basically covers Baghdad and and 02:59.750 --> 03:02.090 there's nobody that's gonna look at you 03:02.100 --> 03:04.156 square in the eye and say Baghdad is 03:04.156 --> 03:06.156 totally under control . It's not uh 03:06.156 --> 03:08.378 there's a lot of violence there just in 03:08.378 --> 03:10.433 the past few days . Uh , but that is 03:10.433 --> 03:12.656 just one part of a very large country . 03:12.656 --> 03:15.190 And there are many provinces that uh 03:15.200 --> 03:17.970 not only relatively safe , but uh where 03:17.970 --> 03:20.192 studies and she is are working together 03:20.192 --> 03:22.950 to uh reconstitute civil government , 03:22.950 --> 03:25.670 civic government , where parents are 03:25.670 --> 03:27.726 sending their Children to school and 03:27.726 --> 03:29.781 farmers are planting their crops and 03:29.781 --> 03:31.830 people are going to work and uh and 03:31.830 --> 03:34.460 resuming uh you know , ordinary daily 03:34.460 --> 03:37.600 life . And I think that if we can keep 03:37.600 --> 03:39.767 pushing that mission along and some of 03:39.767 --> 03:42.390 our men and women are helping with that 03:42.400 --> 03:46.300 with those efforts , uh that will , in 03:46.300 --> 03:48.430 a way speed the return of our troops 03:48.430 --> 03:50.680 home . So of course you're there 03:50.680 --> 03:52.736 representing Arizona as our governor 03:52.736 --> 03:54.902 that I'd like to just ask you , just , 03:54.902 --> 03:56.958 just as you've witnessed things just 03:56.958 --> 03:59.370 become your own eyes . Uh And I know 03:59.370 --> 04:02.190 this is almost like instant analysis on 04:02.190 --> 04:04.301 your part . You haven't just come out 04:04.301 --> 04:06.357 of Iraq , but what would you say was 04:06.357 --> 04:08.579 the biggest surprise to you in terms of 04:08.579 --> 04:12.520 what you saw going in come here . Well , 04:12.520 --> 04:14.610 I think , uh I don't know about 04:14.610 --> 04:17.210 surprised , but this was my first trip 04:17.210 --> 04:20.280 to Iraq and I've read books , I've read 04:20.280 --> 04:23.640 the articles I get regular briefings uh 04:23.650 --> 04:25.872 in terms of what the military situation 04:25.872 --> 04:28.039 is there , particularly as it pertains 04:28.039 --> 04:30.206 to the National Guard . Uh but none of 04:30.206 --> 04:32.428 that really substitute for being on the 04:32.428 --> 04:34.539 ground talking with people and seeing 04:34.539 --> 04:37.780 with my own eyes . Uh , geography , the 04:37.780 --> 04:39.947 topography , how things get together , 04:39.947 --> 04:42.113 the distances between one city and the 04:42.113 --> 04:44.280 other , where the highways are , where 04:44.280 --> 04:46.447 those match up with with mountains and 04:46.447 --> 04:49.340 rivers . Uh getting a sense of how 04:49.340 --> 04:51.562 destroyed this country was under Saddam 04:51.562 --> 04:53.784 Hussein , that , I mean , there's a , I 04:53.784 --> 04:55.784 think a belief in the United States 04:55.784 --> 04:57.896 that the war was what destroyed , you 04:57.896 --> 05:00.062 know , the electric utilities here and 05:00.062 --> 05:02.229 the water pumping stations and all the 05:02.229 --> 05:05.130 things that go into operating 05:05.130 --> 05:08.400 a government . The plain fact of matter 05:08.400 --> 05:10.567 is , is that those things were totally 05:10.567 --> 05:12.567 decrepit under Saddam Hussein . And 05:12.567 --> 05:14.567 really what's happening is building 05:14.567 --> 05:18.000 things a lot from scratch . You know , 05:18.000 --> 05:19.944 only true governor has got to come 05:19.944 --> 05:22.111 across the country , get to go on this 05:22.111 --> 05:24.333 trip . Did the new Secretary of Defense 05:24.333 --> 05:26.556 robert Gates , who invited you tell you 05:26.556 --> 05:28.611 specifically why you got to have the 05:28.611 --> 05:32.540 Governor of Arizona ? No , but I 05:32.540 --> 05:34.484 can only speculate , but I have to 05:34.484 --> 05:36.707 speculations , I'm with the Governor of 05:36.707 --> 05:38.984 Minnesota and the governor of Oklahoma . 05:38.984 --> 05:42.230 So the three of us are here . Uh all 05:42.230 --> 05:44.174 three of us have quite significant 05:44.174 --> 05:46.630 guard presence . Uh quite significant 05:46.630 --> 05:49.400 percentages of our guard deployed here 05:49.400 --> 05:51.622 are getting ready to be deployed here . 05:51.622 --> 05:53.770 So I think that went into it . Uh and 05:53.770 --> 05:55.937 then of course I'm currently the chair 05:55.937 --> 05:57.992 of all the Governors of the National 05:57.992 --> 06:00.214 Governors Association , the Governor of 06:00.214 --> 06:02.270 Minnesota is my vice chair . So that 06:02.270 --> 06:01.650 may have had some small part to do with 06:01.650 --> 06:05.410 it as well . Governor comes to it when 06:05.410 --> 06:07.521 you get back to a safe way to Phoenix 06:07.521 --> 06:09.799 here at Fox 10 . Have a safe trip home . 06:09.799 --> 06:12.077 Thanks for spending time with us today . 06:12.077 --> 06:13.460 Thank you very much .