Crossposted at www.AndrewHorne.org
As a candidate for U.S. Senate in Kentucky and a 27 year veteran of the Marine Corps I find the national Republicans' disregard for our troops to be appalling.
In his latest State of the Union address, George W. Bush once again called on Congress to "fully fund our troops." This, less than a month after he vetoed a reasonable and well-deserved pay increase for these same men and women. Seven times last year, the President and his top ally in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, rejected funding proposals for our troops because they came with actual exit strategies attached. If they viewed our troops as people, instead of props for political theater, they might realize the damage they’ve done to our military and our ability to successfully defend America.
And hard as it might be to believe, the situation could get considerably worse. A McCain presidency would be a disaster for our men and women in uniform. If Senator John McCain becomes the Republican Party’s nominee, we must fight tooth and nail to ensure that he isn’t elected.
What astonishes me most about McCain—himself a veteran who served honorably and sacrificed greatly—is how casually he’s treated many of the issues arising from the Iraq War. He was certainly wrong to co-sponsor the authorization to invade, and the flippant way he sings about bombing Iran is downright spooky considering he wants to be Commander-in-Chief. But to just recently say that he’d be comfortable with our troops being in Iraq for a hundred years is beyond explanation. Why stop short, John--why not a thousand? Why not run as "Million-Years" McCain?
This election is about changing the status quo in Washington, but we all know that getting rid of George W. Bush doesn’t mean a thing if his policies survive another four years (or if Mitch McConnell can filibuster a Democratic President’s solutions for another six). We need to be presenting a contrast to the Republicans on national security issues. If someone can’t see that we should be getting our troops out of Iraq ASAP, they shouldn’t be running a bake sale, much less serving in the Senate or the White House. As someone who served in this unnecessary war and a 27-year veteran of the Marine Corps, I’m more than happy to take the fight to them any day, and stack their Washington double-talk against my experiences in Al Anbar province.
We can be grateful that this State of the Union will be George Bush’s last, but we must also ensure that John McCain doesn’t give the next one. The well being of our brave men and women in uniform and the safety of our nation depend on it.