Gen. Franks talks about price of freedom

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MARK SCHLACHTENHAUFEN

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June 3, 2008

Franks, Starr, Boone appear during OC celebration of freedom

Mark Schlachtenhaufen

OKLAHOMA CITY — Retired U.S. Army Gen. Tommy Franks, who led the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, injected himself Monday evening into the 2008 presidential campaign — sort of.

Franks said he had a message for Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John McCain: The only demand he has for them is that they supply ideas and leadership “to move this country where it needs to go.”

Franks made the remarks during Oklahoma Christian University’s first “Heart of America Gala to Celebrate Commitment to Freedom,” which also featured Kenneth Starr, who knows a thing or two about Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton.

After delivering anecdotes about military life, generals and Donald Rumsfeld, the nation’s former defense secretary, Franks struck a more serious tone when he talked about freedom.

Franks told the story about where he was when he learned about the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, which took the lives of nearly 3,000 men, women and children.

On his way to Pakistan, during a refueling stopover in Greece, Franks was told to turn on the television and he watched as the second hijacked airliner hit the tower. He shared some of this thoughts at the time.

“I thought about southwest Oklahoma, I thought about running up and down those creek beds when I was a kid,” Franks said. “I thought about going skinny-dipping and getting caught.”

Franks said he was asked his opinion on who was behind the attacks.

“I said, well, you know, bin Laden, al-Qaida, Afghanistan, terrorists.”

Then, Franks said his boss asked him something he said he will remember all his life: “What are you going to do about it?”

Franks then recalled fielding a question about whether or not the campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq, in which more than 4,000 U.S. troops have been killed and many more wounded, have been worth it.

“I said, well, we’ve got 230 years of American history that tell me that freedom’s never free, never free,” Franks said. “Many of you in this room know freedom’s never free. But it is indeed worth whatever it costs.”

Regarding future generations of leaders, Franks said the country will be in good hands, that America is a nation that naturally produces good leaders. And OC is a university that also produces good leaders, he said.

“This is a great country and we’re in great hands,” Franks said.

During his introductory remarks, OC President Mike O’Neal read highlights from Franks’ biography. Franks was born in Wynnewood and grew up in Midland, Texas. Today, Franks and his wife Cathryn divide time between their home in Tampa, Fla., and their ranch in Roosevelt.

The night’s featured entertainer was singer Pat Boone, who rivaled Elvis Presley for success on the charts in the 1950s. Boone said he is the first artist in 50 years to record a comprehensive collection of patriotic songs including military anthems.

During the event at the Skirvin Hilton Hotel, S. Truett Cathy, founder of Chick-Fil-A, received the Libertas Award, first awarded to Sam Walton in 1987. The award recognizes exceptional business leaders who have upheld values consistent with principles of liberty and the free enterprise system.

OC is home of the Academy of Leadership and Liberty.

marks@edmondsun.com | 341-2121, ext. 108