Martha Raddatz
December 15, 2004

Martha Raddatz joined ABCNEWS in January 1999 as State Department correspondent and began covering the Pentagon in May 2003. She has made frequent trips to Iraq to cover the conflict there since the war started in March, 2003. (Read Martha Raddatz's bio)

Q: Secretary Rumsfeld faced tough questions from the troops in Kuwait. Does it happen often in those "pep talks"? How would you describe the troop morale in Iraq?

Secretary Rumsfeld occasionally gets a tough question, but he seemed unprepared for the pointed and specific questions he received on this trip. This was a remarkably "Hollywood" event, with the Secretary speaking from a stage that had been set up in an aircraft hangar. An Apache helicopter had been positioned behind him and, ironically, some armored humvees. Soldiers were posed on all these vehicles with combat netting hung in between.

The event seemed a pep rally at first, with the Secretary speaking from prepared remarks (although he strayed from his notes a bit). When the questions began to get tough the Secretary's demeanor markedly changed. He seemed dismissive and impatient. He was clearly irritated after the event, with his irritation directed at the press. He said he didn't understand the interest that the session had created, and that more positive questions had been ignored in the news coverage.

Having made five trips to Iraq in the last year, I can honestly say that troop morale is better than one might expect. You will always hear complaints, that is natural, but the majority of the soldiers seem proud to serve. They get upset that the media does not report more good news. Since the civilians at the Pentagon routinely blame the media, it is not surprising the troops direct their anger at the media as well.

Q: Who are these so-called "insurgents"? Are they foreign or are they Iraqis?

Military officials believe that former regime loyalists make up the strongest element of the insurgency. But the overall commander of US forces in Iraq, General John Abizaid believes "the most dangerous is (Abu Musab) Zarqawi." The Jordanian born Zarqawi is believed to be responsible for the most spectacular mass casualty attacks as well as the kidnappings and beheadings. The US assault on Fallujah in November disrupted the Zarqawi network, but he may have moved his operation north to Mosul.

Foreign fighters have also played a part in the insurgency, but their numbers are thought to be far smaller than the former regime loyalists.

Q: Secretary Rumsfeld and General Myers both voiced some opposition to the intelligence reform bill proposed by the 9/11 Commission. What were their major concerns? How were those concerns resolved? What will be the relationship between the Pentagon and the DNI (director of national intelligence)?

Secretary Rumsfeld and General Myers felt that the original bill took power away from the Pentagon and would endanger the flow of intelligence to troops in the field. Their concerns were taken care of by one sentence added to the bill which said that guidelines would not abrogate the statutory responsibilities that officials already had. This means that the Pentagon will still have control over its units despite the new director of national intelligence.

Q: How did you get access to the troops? Could you name one or two things you wish to do, but couldn't due to limited resources or Pentagon rules?

If you are talking about the event in Kuwait with Secretary Rumsfeld, we had no problem getting access. As soon as the session ended we were free to speak to the soldiers. The only problem was that we had only a limited time, since we were traveling with the Secretary and he had a packed schedule.

As for talking to troops in Iraq, I have never had a problem with access. I usually visit various divisions when I am there and spend time out on patrol with the troops, in the dining hall, riding in convoys or just on the base.

It is extremely important to me to spend time with the troops in Iraq to understand this war. I try to go over every two or three months. It is enormously frustrating to cover the Pentagon from Washington, DC. Information is rarely given in a timely or thorough way. It is difficult to get the most basic fact.