Politics

In bay area, viewers have mixed feelings

By JACOB H. FRIES and MICHEAL VANSICKLER, Times Staff Writers
Published September 14, 2007

Joe Jennings takes a break from doing maintenance at Oak Grove United Methodist Church to watch President Bush's speech. Jennings' son, Joey, is a Marine on his second deployment to Iraq. He should be home in October.
	[Melissa Lyttle | Times]

ADVERTISEMENT The speech Read the text of President Bush's speech [Willie J. Allen, Jr. | Times] Tim and Anne Shepherd and grandchild Lilly Smith, 2, watch President Bush's speech Thursday at their Dunedin home. The Shepherds' son Andrew is an Army staff sergeant serving in Iraq. Lilly is Andrew's niece. Andrew "said it's much busier over there this time around. That's our euphemism for 'fighting,'" his father said.

Joe Jennings stopped work and sat in a church sanctuary to watch President Bush on a flickering portable television. His 21-year-old son is Iraq, due home in a month.

Jennings, a maintenance manager at Oak Grove United Methodist Church in Tampa, stayed mostly silent through the 18-minute speech.

Then he quickly flicked off the TV so he didn't have to hear Democrats talk.

"He said all the right things," Jennings said. "This is about whether this fight is going to come to our streets again. If we lose, we embolden terrorists."

He was reassured when Bush echoed reports from his son. Gradual progress, just as his son witnessed in Fallujah.

"He's in a spot that was called the Wild, Wild West," Jennings said. "It's now a garden spot in relation to the rest of Iraq."

Is the war worth the cost?

"Do I want my son to be in Iraq? No. But that's what he's chosen to do," Jennings said. "I can't choose what my sons do."

Across the Tampa Bay area, Bush's eighth prime-time address on Iraq brought different responses. Hope. Relief. Disgust.

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In Spring Hill, Walter Dry wasn't going to miss the speech, even if it meant interrupting his fierce bowling league match at Spring Hill Lanes on U.S. 19. He opposed the war from the start, but feels it's important to support the troops.

"I think it's bogus," said Dry, a labor relations consultant in Spring Hill. "There was no real substantial reason to go over to Iraq."

He stood close to the television, straining to hear the speech over a casinolike cacophony at the bowling alley.

"Freedom ..."

Thud.

"... is not free."

Rattle.

Dry left the television briefly to roll a strike, coming back to ask: "Has he made any commitments yet about troop levels?"

More than anything, he wants the troops home. But, Dry cautions, he wants the decision made by the generals in Iraq, not politicians in Washington.

When Bush said he accepted the report of Gen. David Petraeus, Dry held out his hand for a congratulatory slap.

"That's a smart man," Dry said. "Is his vision achievable? Yes, if you leave it to the generals."

Nearby, Dry's teammate, Marty Schmidt of Spring Hill, didn't turn to see the president.

Schmidt, a retired military contract writer, said the president's stance on Iraq made him convert from an Independent to a Democrat.

"I don't even want to listen," said Schmidt, 66. "I'm just fed up with the whole administration."

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Dressed in a red polo shirt emblazoned with the phrase "We Support Our Troops," Jack Kinney sat on a black leather couch and flipped on C-SPAN. Kinney, 67, is a Navy veteran who served in Vietnam. His niece is an Army combat medic in Alaska. And in a few months, his granddaughter will join the Air Force.

Just before the president spoke, Kinney eased toward the edge of the couch and took a sip of iced tea.

Across the room, a tall wooden case with a glass door displayed Kinney's war medals and the names of two friends he lost during the war. A bookshelf filled with titles like A Nation of Heroes and Chicken Soup for the Veteran's Soul sat to Kinney's right, near purple and green Navy cigarette lighters.

When it was over, Kinney stood and muted the TV. He supports the Bush administration and the recommendation this week to slowly draw down some of the troops from Iraq.

"That's 30,000 that won't be casualties," he said. "We went over because of 9/11. It's going to go until it's done. If we walk away now, we give the message that they can get away with 9/11."

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Tim Shepherd watched from the comfort of his home in Dunedin, his 23-year-old son Andrew thousands of miles away in Iraq. Shepherd wondered if Andrew was watching, too, but figured the Army staff sergeant was probably busy with work.

Shepherd, 56, a mortgage and insurance broker, never dropped his gaze from the TV. When grandkids giggled, Shepherd's wife, Anne, shushed them, directing their attention to Bush.

"He's talking about where Uncle Andrew is," she said.

Born in Michigan, Andrew Shepherd enlisted in the Army at 17 and served in Kosovo and Bosnia and now Iraq.

"He said it's much busier over there this time around. That's our euphemism for 'fighting,'" his father said. "They're fighting every day. But we try not to think about that part."

When Bush finished speaking, Shepherd turned to his wife. Both seemed choked up. Maybe the president's words would comfort the soldiers, their son.

"The hope is that with the recent success, the American people can come together and beat this enemy," Shepherd said. "That's what we have out there. An enemy."

Times staff writers Mike Donila, Camille C. Spencer, Jan Wesner and John Frank and researcher Carolyn Edds contributed to this report.

[Last modified September 14, 2007, 01:13:20]