March 15 articles in the Fort Collins Coloradoan and The Denver Post regarding a public hearing over a Colorado Senate resolution opposing President Bush's Iraq troop increase misleadingly dubbed those protesting the resolution “pro”-troops. Similarly, a March 15 Greeley Tribune article about the hearing reported, “There also is a competing Republican-sponsored measure, which would affirm state support for the troops.” However, all three articles ignored the fact that the Democratic-sponsored Senate resolution explicitly “says Colorado honors the bravery of servicemen and women serving in Iraq and Afghanistan and will support making sure they have sufficient resources,” as a March 14 Associated Press article in the Montrose Daily Press noted.

Furthermore, while all three March 15 articles included comments from military family members who support the resolution, the articles did not explain why those people also would not be considered “pro-troop.”

The Coloradoan article by Jason Kosena reported that “Fort Collins City Council member Diggs Brown was among a handful of speakers at a pro-troops rally in Lincoln Park on Wednesday" and further noted that Brown “said he was at the state Capitol to let the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan know the people of Colorado support their sacrifice despite a Senate resolution asking President Bush and the U.S. Congress to stop the troop escalation in the Middle East.” The article's headline also claimed Brown “speaks for troops.”

The Post article by Capitol Bureau chief Jeri Clausing reported that “more than 50 people -- mostly Republican lawmakers and staff -- rallied in support of the troops. They gathered across the street from the state Capitol carrying signs that read 'Support the Troops. Support the Mission.'”

Similarly, the Tribune article by Rebecca Boyle reporting on the hearing stated that there also “is a competing Republican-sponsored measure which would affirm state support for the troops.”

None of the three articles noted, as the AP did, that the resolution sponsored by Democratic Sens. Ron Tupa (Boulder) and Ken Gordon (Denver) expresses support for the troops. The text of the measure, Senate Joint Memorial 002, reads in part:

The state of Colorado honors the bravery and sacrifice of the United States' armed forces in Iraq and Afghanistan and that of their families.

Further, all three articles featured comments from members of military families who support the resolution, but did not describe them as “pro-troop.”

For example, the Coloradoan dubbed “armed services veteran John Marvaliz” a “war protester[]” and quoted him as saying he was a supporter of the resolution because he supports bringing “our boys” home:

Holding anti-Bush signs and taking a barrage of comments from people calling him a traitor, Marvaliz said he had a personal interest in voicing his opposition to the war in Iraq.

“My son is getting ready to leave for Iraq tomorrow and he's my only son and so it adds to the worry I have,” Marvaliz said. “I think our boys have already done their job over there and now it's time to bring them home.”

From the March 15 Fort Collins Coloradoan article, “Rallying for Support: Councilman Brown speaks for troops, testifies on measure,” by Jason Kosena:

Fort Collins City Council member Diggs Brown was among a handful of speakers at a pro-troops rally in Lincoln Park on Wednesday.

Standing with many state legislators and former military personnel, Brown said he was at the state Capitol to let the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan know the people of Colorado support their sacrifice despite a Senate resolution asking President Bush and the U.S. Congress to stop the troop escalation in the Middle East.

[...]

If passed by the Legislature, SMJ 002 would send a message to Washington, D.C., that Colorado residents are unhappy with the direction of the war.

Across the street from the rally, standing at the bottom of the Capitol's famous west steps, was a group of about 20 war protesters, including armed services veteran John Marvaliz.

Holding anti-Bush signs and taking a barrage of comments from people calling him a traitor, Marvaliz said he had a personal interest in voicing his opposition to the war in Iraq.

“My son is getting ready to leave for Iraq tomorrow and he's my only son and so it adds to the worry I have,” Marvaliz said. “I think our boys have already done their job over there and now it's time to bring them home.”

[...]

Fort Collins area resident Tom Bender drove to Denver on Wednesday to participate in the pro-troop rally.

A Vietnam veteran, Bender said he believes the Senate resolution is not a good use of the Senate's time and sends a bad message to the troops.

From the March 15 Denver Post article, “War of words grips statehouse,” by Jeri Clausing:

Soldiers, veterans and some tearful parents crowded a state Capitol hearing room Wednesday to debate the horrors and merits of the Iraq war during a rare legislative hearing on foreign policy.

While one mother denounced the war as “immoral, dishonest and disheartening,” a 22-year-old Iraq veteran bluntly declared that “freedom is not free.”

Such exchanges dominated nearly four hours of emotional testimony before the Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee voted 3-2 to endorse a nonbinding memorial to oppose President Bush's plan to send more troops to Iraq.

[...]

Before the hearing, more than 50 people -- mostly Republican lawmakers and staff -- rallied in support of the troops. They gathered across the street from the state Capitol carrying signs that read “Support the Troops. Support the Mission.”

At the same time, a handful of war protesters held up signs along Colfax Avenue that read “Disarm Bush” and “We are Not Safe/Occupation Breeds Hate.”

Republican Sen. Mike Kopp, a Persian Gulf War veteran from Littleton, and Rep. David Balmer of Centennial, who served in Bosnia and Afghanistan, led the pro-troop rally.

[...]

Parents of service members, meanwhile, lined up at the hearing to tell horror stories their children have relayed.

Gaye Lowe-Kaplan of Wheat Ridge said her son, a Marine, was sent to Iraq at age 19.

On his first deployment, she said, he “had to kill puppies to prevent the spread of disease. He lost some of his hearing and he watched wild dogs eat the faces of dead civilians and insurgents.”

A month later, she said, his convoy was ambushed and he spent “three hours in the middle of the night alone with a friend, Sean, whose brains were coming out.

”This has been an immoral, dishonest, disheartening war from the beginning, and the ones who have truly paid the price are troops," she said.

From the March 15 Greeley Tribune article, “Coloradans debate Iraq resolution at Capitol,” by Rebecca Boyle:

More than 170 people packed the Capitol's largest hearing room to testify in relatively equal numbers before the Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee. Others filled an overflow room to listen to the four-hour debate.

[...]

The full Senate will eventually vote on the resolution. There also is a competing Republican-sponsored measure, which would affirm state support for the troops and the mission overseas.

[...]

Ken Bennett of Loveland, 58, whose 22-year-old son is a Marine, said Colorado lawmakers should agree with the findings of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group, which recommended the country plan to withdraw troops. He said his son was set to set to be discharged soon, but because of Bush's escalation plan, he will instead go to Iraq for a third tour.

Bennett praised the resolution and defended the hearing.

“This is not about my son, and this is not about me. This is about what is best for the country,” he said. “There is nothing more American than having a conversation and a debate about issues that affect all of us.”