Mother Fights for Son Who Said No to War

Tweet "Carolyn Ho is a mother on a mission.

"She came to Washington, D.C., in mid-December to build support for her son, Army 1st Lt. Ehren Watada, the first commissioned officer to refuse deployment to Iraq.

"Barring some kind of miracle, he will be court-martialed Feb. 5 at Fort Lewis. If convicted, he could be sent to military prison for six years.

"Like many Americans, she believed she could come to the capital and change the world. Or at least her small part of it.

"She was acting purely on instinct, wanting to do everything in a mother's power to protect her son. "I'm here to get what I can," said Ho, of Honolulu. "I'm going to put it out there."

"At the very least, she hoped for some kind of letter of support. She was in Tacoma Wednesday for a news conference when she received a letter from Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif. Ho read an excerpt over the phone:

"The issue that [Watada] has raised deserves to be publicly debated and considered. And I will use my platform as a member of Congress and chair of the 'Out of Iraq' caucus to highlight the failed policies of this administration and stimulate discussion. ... Your son has shown great integrity and dignity in his objection to the war in Iraq, and I commend you for working so hard on his behalf."

"Ho sighed and said she found the letter to be "disappointing."

"But it was something.