JOINT TASK FORCE PHOENIX An American Odyssey This is a story about the threats America faces from outside our borders and from within. It begins with the recon team’s military freefall infiltration into Syria and ends with in a fight for survival in our nation’s capital. We follow Harris Norton and his team through the complex and harrowing operation to thwart an evil plot to take down our country. Feel the icy blast at 35,000 feet as the team exits a CIA aircraft to infiltrate into Syria. Feel the heat of battle in the desert and in our Capitol. Get to know the patriots who support the task force throughout its’ odyssey. Experience self-serving politicians who sell out their country for political and ideological advantage. Experience the phases of special operations from planning, rehearsal, infiltration, reconnaissance, execution, adjustment to reality, and finally to post-operations exploitation. See how military, intelligence and special operations personnel form bonds and values that carry through long after retirement. Get a sense of how the women of clandestine and military intelligence contribute to mission success. Feel the betrayal of traitors and the exhilaration of mission accomplishment. Recognize the nature of the special people we can count on when the going gets tough.

Iraq in 2009 was a strange netherworld, not quite war but not yet peace. The country teetered on the threshold of great change with the impending national elections and the promised withdrawal of all US combat forces. These changes would usher in either an era of irreversible stability or a return to the sectarian carnage that nearly destroyed Iraq in 2006. It was during this period of uncertainty that Task Force Patriot arrived to take over as the last US combat force to occupy Saddam Hussein’s hometown of Tikrit. In this gripping first-hand account of the final months of combat operations, author Pat Proctor brings his unique, insider perspective to reveal the circumstances that put this battalion in a position to turn the tide of the Iraq war. Despite resistance from insurgents, intransigent Iraqi politicians, and, occasionally, the US interagency team, this artillery-turned-infantry battalion found itself in a position to not only improve conditions in its area, but solve the last unsettled problem of the Iraq war, the sectarian divide. Task Force Patriot, through the confluence of lucky circumstances and innovative thinking, had stumbled upon a unique approach—a combination of hardball politics, economic investment, and a nuanced application of force—that could potentially end Sunni separatism in Iraq. This book tells the untold story of this critical period during the second national elections, which, eight months later, was only beginning to yield a government. More importantly, however, this book tells the story of the last crucial days of the Iraq War.

This book recounts an unique chapter in the National Guard's efforts to keep America's borders secure. Starting in June 2006 and lasting until July 2008, Operation Jump Start exhibited unprecedented cooperation and teamwork among federal agencies engaged in protecting the homeland. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the U.S. Border Patrol and the National Guard created a cooperative, operational environment that will endure as an example on how to do things right. Based in Arizona, California, New Mexico and Texas, the Operation's mission was not to close the nation's border with Mexico but to make it more secure for legal immigration and commerce. By the time Operation Jump start ended, criminal activities of all types had declined along the border, and physical improvements made by Guard engineers along the border seemed certain to reduce illegal activities for the forseeable future.

Field manual 3-90.6 provides the commander and staff of the Brigade Combat Team (BCT) and subordinate units with doctrine relevant to Army and joint operations. It applies to the Heavy Brigade Combat Team (HBCT), the Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT), and the Stryker Brigade Combat Team (SBCT). The doctrine described in this manual applies across the full spectrum of military operations - offense, defense, stability or civil support. This publication: Provides BCTs with a framework in which they can operate as part of a division or independently as part of a joint task force; Provides doctrine for BCT commanders, staffs, and their subordinate commanders and leaders responsible for conducting major activities performed during operations; Serves as an authoritative reference for personnel who: Develop doctrine (fundamental principles and tactics, techniques, and procedures), materiel, and force structure; Develop institution and unit training; Develop unit tactical standard operating procedures for BCT operations.