hukarez
07-25-2006, 12:38 PM
I'm not too familiar with the whole process and all...but is it actually possible for illegals to join the military??
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/15115716.htm
Bush helps wounded soldier become U.S. citizen
<!-- begin body-content --> By Richard Sisk
New York Daily News
(MCT)
WASHINGTON - President Bush paid tribute Monday to a badly wounded soldier with the Brooklyn brass to get in his commander in chief's face about becoming a citizen.
"He grabbed my hand, and he said, `I'm not a citizen of the U.S. and I want to be one,'" Bush said of Army Spec. Noe (Lito) Santos-Dilone.
"Now, here's a man who knows how to take it directly to the top," Bush said with a grin.
Bush later presided at the swearing-in ceremony for Santos, 21, originally from the Dominican Republic, and Mexican-born soldiers Spec. Sergio Lopez, 24, of Bolingbrook, Ill., and Pfc. Eduardo Leal-Cardenas, 21, of Los Angeles, at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
Speaking later from a hospital bed, where he was being treated for his wounds, Santos recalled his friendly confrontation with Bush after the president spoke to the National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast in May.
As Bush glad-handed guests, Santos said, "I leaned in and told him I wanted to be a citizen. I was wearing a suit and I was sort of behind a pole so he couldn't see that I lost my leg."
Santos said Bush "looked confused. He was like `What?' He asked if I was a soldier and I said, `Yeah, I'm a soldier.'"
Bush quickly summoned aides to work on the problem, leading to Monday's ceremony.
In his remarks, Bush pressed for breaking the logjam on immigration reform, noting that currently "33,000 people who weren't born here serve in our military" and after Sept. 11 he made them eligible for citizenship.
Santos proudly recalled the date he arrived in the U.S. at age 10 - July 8, 1995 - to join his parents in Brooklyn.
He was still a student in Queens when the World Trade Center towers come down on Sept. 11, inspiring him to join the Army. "I didn't even know who Osama bin Laden was then," Santos said.
While he was serving as a Humvee turret machine gunner last Sept. 6, Santos' vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb set off by a laser outside Baghdad, the Army said.
Just before the explosion, "It was eerie. There was nobody on the streets. We thought it was strange," Santos said.
Two other soldiers were killed by the blast. "It took both doors clean off," Santos said, and the Humvee flipped three times. "I remember a loud explosion, I remember flying and I remember laying on the ground," Santos said.
Santos lost his left leg near the hip and faced months of rehabilitation. Once he's recovered, Santos said, "I'll go to college," adding with a laugh, "Maybe I'll get a job at the White House."
---
© 2006, New York Daily News.
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/15115716.htm
Bush helps wounded soldier become U.S. citizen
<!-- begin body-content --> By Richard Sisk
New York Daily News
(MCT)
WASHINGTON - President Bush paid tribute Monday to a badly wounded soldier with the Brooklyn brass to get in his commander in chief's face about becoming a citizen.
"He grabbed my hand, and he said, `I'm not a citizen of the U.S. and I want to be one,'" Bush said of Army Spec. Noe (Lito) Santos-Dilone.
"Now, here's a man who knows how to take it directly to the top," Bush said with a grin.
Bush later presided at the swearing-in ceremony for Santos, 21, originally from the Dominican Republic, and Mexican-born soldiers Spec. Sergio Lopez, 24, of Bolingbrook, Ill., and Pfc. Eduardo Leal-Cardenas, 21, of Los Angeles, at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
Speaking later from a hospital bed, where he was being treated for his wounds, Santos recalled his friendly confrontation with Bush after the president spoke to the National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast in May.
As Bush glad-handed guests, Santos said, "I leaned in and told him I wanted to be a citizen. I was wearing a suit and I was sort of behind a pole so he couldn't see that I lost my leg."
Santos said Bush "looked confused. He was like `What?' He asked if I was a soldier and I said, `Yeah, I'm a soldier.'"
Bush quickly summoned aides to work on the problem, leading to Monday's ceremony.
In his remarks, Bush pressed for breaking the logjam on immigration reform, noting that currently "33,000 people who weren't born here serve in our military" and after Sept. 11 he made them eligible for citizenship.
Santos proudly recalled the date he arrived in the U.S. at age 10 - July 8, 1995 - to join his parents in Brooklyn.
He was still a student in Queens when the World Trade Center towers come down on Sept. 11, inspiring him to join the Army. "I didn't even know who Osama bin Laden was then," Santos said.
While he was serving as a Humvee turret machine gunner last Sept. 6, Santos' vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb set off by a laser outside Baghdad, the Army said.
Just before the explosion, "It was eerie. There was nobody on the streets. We thought it was strange," Santos said.
Two other soldiers were killed by the blast. "It took both doors clean off," Santos said, and the Humvee flipped three times. "I remember a loud explosion, I remember flying and I remember laying on the ground," Santos said.
Santos lost his left leg near the hip and faced months of rehabilitation. Once he's recovered, Santos said, "I'll go to college," adding with a laugh, "Maybe I'll get a job at the White House."
---
© 2006, New York Daily News.