Legislator finishes boot camp

After spending 11 weeks in boot camp at Fort Jackson, House Minority Leader James Smith thinks drill sergeants are a lot tougher to deal with than his Republican rivals.

“I’ve got no power with drill sergeants,” the Democrat said Thursday, after graduating from basic training. “I went from being a member of the Legislature, running a law firm, being head of a household to, basically, a maggot.”

Smith, an eight-year veteran of the S.C. Army National Guard, said the 9/11 terrorist attacks prompted him to volunteer for the infantry. Smith had received an appointment as an officer to serve as a military lawyer. But before he could lead soldiers into battle, the Army wanted him to go to boot camp. So Smith resigned his captain’s bars for a sergeant’s stripes.

At 36, Smith found himself training with soldiers half his age. That meant pre-dawn runs, sleeping in freezing tents and enduring the gas chamber used for chemical warfare training.

The toughest part, Smith said, was being separated from his wife and four children. Smith’s home is less than 10 miles from Fort Jackson, but he saw his family only during a two-week break at Christmas.

Smith distinguished himself during basic training, being selected by Army trainers as the “Outstanding Soldier Leader” of Company A of the 3rd Battalion, 13th Infantry.

Smith’s next military stop will be Officer Candidate School. He will take classes at Fort Jackson’s McCrady Training Center.

If he passes, Smith will be recommissioned as an officer. He will remain in the Guard’s 218th Infantry Brigade, headquartered at Newberry.

Smith’s public life resumes Tuesday, when he returns to the House. He also has some catching up to do with Tuesday’s Democratic presidential primary. Smith is S.C. chairman for U.S. Sen. John Kerry’s campaign.