4th Anniversary of the War On Iraq Time Capsule: March 19, 2003
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March 19, 2003, an American-led invasion crashed into Baghdad at dawn, as Americans back home navigated the Orange Alert issued by the Department of Homeland Security. Military leaders were confident of success. GI families feared for the worst. Here's how the war began, and what people back home had to say about it.
Missiles Descend on Baghdad
"Operation Iraqi Freedom" crashed into Baghdad at dawn, showering about two dozen cruise missiles down on the city. An F-117 stealth fighter struck what Pentagon officials described as "leadership targets" at 5.30 a.m. local time, some 90 minutes after the expiration of President Bush's deadline for Saddam Hussein to leave the county or face attack.
Bush addressed the nation 45 minutes later, announcing that the opening stages of the operation were underway and that US forces were striking selected targets to undermine Saddam's ability to wage war.
"I do not think that our potential adversary has any idea what's coming," Col. Gary Crowder, a top targeting strategist with the Air Force's Air Combat Command, said at a Pentagon briefing.
The goal, Col. Crowder said, would be to convince Iraqi troops "at the very outset" that they have "no real alternative here other than to fight and die, or give up."
Saddam's Last Act of Defiance, and Worries at Disneyland
Before the bombing began, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein -- defiant and dressed for battle -- rejected the U.S. demand that he flee into exile. The White House called it Hussein's "final mistake."
Back home, the United States faced an Orange Alert, the second-highest level of alert.
Officials issued the alert amid concerns over terrorist strikes against Americans at home and abroad, and the Agriculture Department told farmers and food processors to more closely monitor the nation's food supply.
"Iraqi state agents, Iraqi surrogate groups, other regional extremist organizations and ad hoc groups or disgruntled individuals may use this time period to conduct terrorist attacks against the United States," said Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge.
Security officials said terrorist targets ranged from nuclear power plants to food and water supplies to Disneyland.
Mayors and police chiefs from coast to coast warned residents to be on the lookout for suspicious people or packages.
GI Families Battle Emotions
Tracy Carrothers couldn't eat.
Karolina Smith couldn't sleep.
And Ari Harrison told the Denver Post he couldn't stop thinking about that day 25 years ago when he was 8 years old and stood at his grandfather's knee, asking about the photograph on the wall.
He pointed to the portrait in his grandfather's Denver home.
'Who is that man?' Harrison asked.
The man in the picture wore a crisp uniform from West Point. He was proud, good-looking. The man in the photo had dreamed of moving to Europe and starting his own heli-skiing business.
'That's your father,' Monty Greene told his young grandson.
Ellis David Greene, 24, was shot down over Vietnam in 1970. He left a wife and Ari, who was only 6 months old.
In the U.S. invasion, Ari Harrison's 26-year-old stepsister, Ashley, a 1998 Naval Academy graduate, will take to the skies over Iraq.
Tracy Carrothers' boyfriend, Marine Cpl. Steve Baca, 22, left for the Persian Gulf on Jan. 21.
Kindergarten teacher Karolina Smith, 24, of Colorado Springs, has a husband in the Army.
She's had trouble sleeping, but she isn't sure if it's from anxiety over war or from being seven months' pregnant.
Democrats Strike Back over "Unpatriotic" Label
After the White House accused Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle of being unpatriotic for criticizing the President failed diplomacy, Daschle fired back.
"I'm saddened, saddened that this President failed so miserably at diplomacy that we're now forced to war," he said.
Missiles Descend on Baghdad
"Operation Iraqi Freedom" crashed into Baghdad at dawn, showering about two dozen cruise missiles down on the city. An F-117 stealth fighter struck what Pentagon officials described as "leadership targets" at 5.30 a.m. local time, some 90 minutes after the expiration of President Bush's deadline for Saddam Hussein to leave the county or face attack.
Bush addressed the nation 45 minutes later, announcing that the opening stages of the operation were underway and that US forces were striking selected targets to undermine Saddam's ability to wage war.
"I do not think that our potential adversary has any idea what's coming," Col. Gary Crowder, a top targeting strategist with the Air Force's Air Combat Command, said at a Pentagon briefing.
The goal, Col. Crowder said, would be to convince Iraqi troops "at the very outset" that they have "no real alternative here other than to fight and die, or give up."
Saddam's Last Act of Defiance, and Worries at Disneyland
Before the bombing began, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein -- defiant and dressed for battle -- rejected the U.S. demand that he flee into exile. The White House called it Hussein's "final mistake."
Back home, the United States faced an Orange Alert, the second-highest level of alert.
Officials issued the alert amid concerns over terrorist strikes against Americans at home and abroad, and the Agriculture Department told farmers and food processors to more closely monitor the nation's food supply.
"Iraqi state agents, Iraqi surrogate groups, other regional extremist organizations and ad hoc groups or disgruntled individuals may use this time period to conduct terrorist attacks against the United States," said Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge.
Security officials said terrorist targets ranged from nuclear power plants to food and water supplies to Disneyland.
Mayors and police chiefs from coast to coast warned residents to be on the lookout for suspicious people or packages.
GI Families Battle Emotions
Tracy Carrothers couldn't eat.
Karolina Smith couldn't sleep.
And Ari Harrison told the Denver Post he couldn't stop thinking about that day 25 years ago when he was 8 years old and stood at his grandfather's knee, asking about the photograph on the wall.
He pointed to the portrait in his grandfather's Denver home.
'Who is that man?' Harrison asked.
The man in the picture wore a crisp uniform from West Point. He was proud, good-looking. The man in the photo had dreamed of moving to Europe and starting his own heli-skiing business.
'That's your father,' Monty Greene told his young grandson.
Ellis David Greene, 24, was shot down over Vietnam in 1970. He left a wife and Ari, who was only 6 months old.
In the U.S. invasion, Ari Harrison's 26-year-old stepsister, Ashley, a 1998 Naval Academy graduate, will take to the skies over Iraq.
Tracy Carrothers' boyfriend, Marine Cpl. Steve Baca, 22, left for the Persian Gulf on Jan. 21.
Kindergarten teacher Karolina Smith, 24, of Colorado Springs, has a husband in the Army.
She's had trouble sleeping, but she isn't sure if it's from anxiety over war or from being seven months' pregnant.
Democrats Strike Back over "Unpatriotic" Label
After the White House accused Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle of being unpatriotic for criticizing the President failed diplomacy, Daschle fired back.
"I'm saddened, saddened that this President failed so miserably at diplomacy that we're now forced to war," he said.
