Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/national-guard-troops-face-early-redeployment-to-iraq Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Transcript More than 14,000 National Guard troops will be redeployed to Iraq next year, shortening their off-duty time, as the Defense Department implements President Bush's troop increase. The New York Times reporter who broke the story explains the development. Read the Full Transcript Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors. RAY SUAREZ: The Pentagon has alerted National Guard units in several states their soldiers may be returning to Iraq sooner than expected. The New York Times reported today that as many as 14,000 Guard troops could be involved.For more, I'm joined by David Cloud of the New York Times, who broke the story today. And, David, who's being told to be ready to go back to Iraq? DAVID CLOUD, New York Times: Well, there are units in four states — Arkansas, Oklahoma, Ohio and Indiana — combat brigades in all four of the states, which are being told they may have to go back to Iraq early next year. Many of them have already been to Iraq one or Afghanistan one or even two times. RAY SUAREZ: Now, when would they have expected to go back? When, under the normal rotation, would they have gone back otherwise? DAVID CLOUD: One of the units wasn't scheduled to go back until 2010. The other three were supposed to go back in 2009. So this is a significant shortening of the time that they're going to have at home between deployments.