CRAPO: DEATH OF SPEC. FRENCH HARD TO TAKE

Washington, DC â?? Idaho Senator Mike Crapo, who recently returned from visiting soldiers in Baghdad and Fallujah, Iraq, said the news of the death of 19-year old Specialist Carrie French of Caldwell is especially tough to take because she was just beginning her adult life. French, an ammunitions specialist with the 116th Brigade Combat Team, died Sunday when her vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb. Crapo sent his sympathies to Frenchâ??s family and friends in Idaho. He issued the following statement regarding her untimely death: "I am deeply saddened to hear about the death of Specialist Carrie French. My heart goes out to her parents and all the families who have lost loved ones during the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. When someone so young dies, the only comfort that can be drawn is that she made the ultimate sacrifice for her country, to protect all of us in the war on terrorism. â??When I was recently in Iraq, I personally saw what a tremendous job our troops are doing and the positive difference they are making in the lives of the Iraqi people. It is not always reported this way, but I want Carrieâ??s parents to know that she not only left her mark on the State of Idaho and the United States, but her spirit will long live in the lives of Iraqi children who will now have the opportunity to attend school, or Iraqi youth who will have opportunities to follow their dreams without the oppression of having their choices made by a cruel dictator. â??Carrie and all our military members will be part of the new constitution in Iraq and the birth of a democracy, while preventing further acts of terrorism against the citizens of the United States. I hope that this knowledge will bring some measure of comfort to Carrieâ??s parents. They will always have my sincere appreciation for her service to our country.â??