Governor-elect Terry Branstad is in Washington, D.C. today for a meeting with the top Republican leader in the U.S. House as well as a military briefing.
“Iowa has more National Guard deployed right now than any time since World War II so this briefing on national defense I think is very important and it certainly affects our state very dramatically because of the number of men and women that are presently deployed,” Branstad says.
Branstad met Tuesday with the brigadier general of the Iowa National Guard to prepare for the trip.
“I want to be as knowledgeable as I can be,” Branstad says. “And I certainly want to represent the families of the people who are defending our country, who are in harm’s way today.”
About 2,800 Iowa National Guard soldiers went on active duty and started training this spring for their mission in Afghanistan. They’re now training Afghan security forces how to protect civilians and fight insurgents. Branstad’s other meeting in D.C. is with House Speaker-designate John Boehner.
Fifteen “new” governors, including Branstad who just won a fifth term after being out of office for 12 years, will discuss job creation and budget cutting with the Republican leader.