By TARA COPP WASHINGTON (AP) — The first U.S. troops to deploy after the Sept. 11 attacks are suffering from radiation exposure that the government has yet to officially recognize 23 years later. They are a final group of 9/11 service members that comedian Jon Stewart, a champion for first responders, can’t leave behind. Special operations forces were sent to a former Soviet base in Uzbekistan in early October 2001, where they launched the first missions against the Taliban in Afghanistan, including the secret horseback operation depicted in the movie “12 Strong.” Over the next four years, more than 15,000 U.S.