McCHORD AIR FORCE BASE — On his way to raise money for Republican Rep. George Nethercutt’s bid for the Senate, Vice President Dick Cheney had lunch with soldiers and airmen bound for Iraq, telling them he and President Bush "tremendously appreciate" what they do.
On his first visit to Washington since the 2000 campaign, Cheney handed out medals and praise before dining with troops at a base cafeteria. After about two hours, he boarded Air Force Two to fly to Boeing Field in Seattle, before heading to Bellevue for the Nethercutt fund-raiser.
Troops from McChord and nearby Fort Lewis have been involved in U.S. operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.
"You’ve done some tremendous work here," Cheney told hundreds of service members gathered at McChord, a major transport hub for the Air Force. "You guys have performed some tremendous missions."
He cited McChord’s 62nd Airlift Wing for dropping 1,000 troops into northern Iraq.
Cheney presented medals to eight airmen. He pinned the bronze star on Air Force Maj. Brian S. Robinson for helping plan more than 1,400 air missions over Iraq, including the air drop.
Cheney also presented the Air Medal to the crew of a C-17 transport whose engine exploded Dec. 9 as they flew out of Baghdad. The crew managed to make an emergency landing and saved the plane.
Receiving the medals were Capt. Paul P. Sonstein, of Mililani, Hawaii; and crew mates Capt. Anne R. Lueck, 1st Lt. Andrew D. Oiland, Technical Sgt. James S. Alexander and Staff Sgt. Eric M. Olson.
Monday evening, Cheney headlined a $500-a-plate dinner at the Hyatt Regency Bellevue hotel for Nethercutt, who is seeking the GOP nomination to challenge Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash.
Cheney spoke for about 25 minutes to a crowd of several hundred.
Nethercutt, 58, was a Spokane attorney before toppling then-House Speaker Tom Foley for the congressional seat in 1994.
Cheney is due back in Washington state Jan. 13 for a fund-raising luncheon in Seattle for the state Republican Party.
President Bush attended a $2,000-a-person lunch in suburban Hunts Point in August, raising $1.7 million for the Bush-Cheney 2004 re-election effort.
Copyright ©2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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