NP film/reality/The War that never ends

[Doug Millison]

http://www.drudgereport.com/matt.htm



XXXXX DRUDGE REPORT XXXXX SUN JUNE 24, 2001 18:03:48 ET XXXXX 

PENTAGON DEPLOYS ELITE FIGHTING FORCE TO OVERSEAS MOVIE SHOOT; RUMSFELD
ADVISORS SPLIT OVER MILITARY FIRST

**Exclusive Details**

The Pentagon has ordered a dozen Black Hawk combat helicopters and nearly
three dozen elite Army Rangers to Morocco -- to the set of SONY's new action
flick BLACK HAWK DOWN!

The first-ever deployment of U.S. forces to foreign soil for cinema has
caused a split among military officials, according to sources.

At a time when the Pentagon's budget is being carefully reviewed by
Congress, and the Defense Department is doing a top-down review of the
entire U.S. military, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld cautiously signed
off on the role over objections of senior staffers. 

"I do not believe sending forces to a movie set is in the national interest,
or in anyway helps the nation's defense," one top source tells the DRUDGE
REPORT.

GLADIATOR's Ridley Scott directs the elite Army Rangers and combat
helicopters. The studio is expected to reimburse the United States Treasury
for the costs associated with the action. 

BLACK HAWK DOWN is based on the events surrounding the military's nastiest
firefight since Vietnam: Somalia, Oct. 3, 1993, when 19 soldiers died.

Last month the Pentagon came under criticism for sailing the John C.
Stennis, the Pacific Fleet's largest aircraft carrier, from San Diego to
Pearl Harbor -- for a DISNEY movie premiere.