Should veterans endorse candidates Part II
Chief Tango sends us a link to the Military Times which has become nothing more than a mouthpiece of the Democrat Party in the closing weeks of the election. Anyway they report that the Romney campaign announced a list of flag officers who have said that they support Romney. VTWoody sent us the link to the list, which he says seems a bit like overkill. And it does…I didn’t bother to count them.
But the Military Times goes out to find someone who will criticize the officers for their support, they turn to the previously mentioned Center for New American Security;
The Center for New American Security conducted a survey and found that Romney’s level of support remained unchanged when respondents were told that “most members of the military and veterans” support him.
According to the study, the opposite was true for Obama, whose support ticked up significantly when a different group of respondents were told that “most members of the military and veterans” support Obama.
The study’s authors say this is probably because many voters already associate the military with Republicans.
“Since voters might already expect veterans to support the GOP candidate, Republicans may not benefit much by the additional endorsement,” the study concluded.
Make up your mind, is it that our credibility is eroding, or because we’re doing what everyone expects? Dinguses.
And then a parting shot, after quoting Dempsey once again;
Some experts worry that senior officer endorsements threaten to politicize the military.
“There has been a lot of talk in the national security community about [how] this harms the reputation of the military as the neutral servant of the state,” said Richard Kohn, who teaches military history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
“It also sends a very partisan message to the active-duty force that it is OK to be partisan.”
It is OK to be partisan while you’re on active duty, douche-nozzle. These peckerwoods, including Dempsey have scared the active duty force away from voting with their incessant blather about being non-partisan. Gee, I wonder why. Where were they when Jon Soltz, Wesley Clark and Paul Rieckhoff were endorsing candidates?
And the Military Times machine wasn’t critical at all when they wrote this article when a purported former Army Ranger who supports Obama this year spoke at the Democrat convention asking for active duty support for Obama.
Category: Military issues
I want to hear everyone’s opinion on this. I’m a civilian but some of my best friends are vets.
Well that is quite a list of stars. Saw a few names I recognized. Was surprised to see General Shelton’s name on that list since he was a Clinton appointee as CJCS and he supported John Edwards’ campaign in 2004. Politics do make for strange bedfellows.
I’ve never subscribed to the Military Times and won’t. I did have a subscription for the Army Times and I dropped that when I found out they were owned by the Gannett Corporation. They speak for the military about as much as I speak for Dodo bird conservation.
“Politicize the military”, indeed.
It is highly politicized already. Part of the Oath of Enlistment/Service has to do with why one is there to begin with – ie, “to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, both foreign and DOMESTIC, …”
It’s rather evident to me that because of politics, a bunch of flags aren’t doing their damned job, making excuses for their supposed “CIC”.
@#2, Trent – I ended my sub to the Navy Times for the exact same reason.
Jonh, and everyone who knows me, have no doubt as to where I stand. For those that don’t know me, it is NOT to the left!
I really am sick of the way the democratic/liberal parties have had their way with the media and the military. Of course we can be partisan, hell, that’s one of the freedoms we protect. I do not believe we should go out rallying while in uniform or use our positions in interviews (active duty anyway). I really vaguely seem to remember that it was not authorized in uniform anyway.
It is tiring to here the crap that is spoke about the military. It seems that we are just banging our heads against the wall, at times, trying to get our views and opinions heard.
I know where I stand, I know how I will vote and I know how I’ll conduct myself if certain options are taken away from me.
“Some experts worry that senior officer endorsements threaten to politicize the military.” Experts at what, Constitutional law? Bwahahahahahaha. Those who want to silence the endorsements had better consult with one.
There is no regulation about Active duty endorsing a political party as a citizen. The only remote regulation I’ve heard is that you can not attend or speak at a political rally in uniform. As far as Military support of Obama…. We have to remember that our military is very diverse, and ethnic, racial identity and religious beliefs often take prevalence over the common occupation of being a military member.
If you speak for yourself, out of uniform, you’re fine. Once you put on the uniform, you represent the U S Gubbment and its policies, therefore you’re not supposed to publicly endorse any one candidate or party.
As for the threat of the military being politicized, TOO LATE!! With all the PC weenies being promoted to upper rank just because they can fill out paperwork correctly, not because of any real leadership; with DOD budgets being cut instead of wasteful non-Constitutional entitlements; with the repeal of DADT; I’d say the time to worry about politicizing the military is a little like shutting the barn door AFTER the horse has gone missing.
Idjits, every one.
If veterans are not supposed to be partisan, does it then follow that veterans should not run for office under a political party?
You know what annoys me, when I was waiting to vote last presidential election there was a firefighter handing out the firefighters union endorsements. It is okay for firefighter and police “unions” to endorse candidates. Strictly speaking the fire departments and police departments are not endorsing candidates, but firefighters and police endorse candidates by virtue of their “unions” or brotherhoods all the time. At best we have veteran organizations endorsing candidates. I can honestly say, at least in the community of veterans and current soldiers, I find my self around are predominately conservative in their views. Asking us to surrender our voice after sacrificing our liberty to defend it is simply ridiculous. If anything I am much like Heinlein and believe that we have the most skin in the game because we have sacrificed the most to gain it. At times I even think that soldiers shouldn’t have to be apolitical the loyalty to the president and those appointed over me was only added to the oath of enlistment in the last 40-50 years. I believe again that because soldiers have the most skin in the game in many cases they should have the most say in the election….but of course you always run int the “good order and discipline” argument.
Joe Walsh(R) and Tammy Duckworth(D) are running against each other in northern Illinois. They are both squabbling over women’s reproductive issues. Tammy is saying that she never experienced sexual assualt in the military because she was (quote) “a tough chick officer”. Joe is says that this implies that women get raped “because they are weak”.
I’m so tired of this infantile crap I could scream.
It’s bad enough to have to listen to a smarmy, whiny little princess from Georgetown who wants me to cough up taxes to pay for her birth control pills. Nobody ever paid for mine except me, so where does she get off?
So if Ms. Tammy asked me for an endorsement, and I were still on active duty, I’d tell her ‘go get your tubes tied, you silly broad, and quit bothering me.’ Ditto Joe Walsh: ‘get a damned vasectomy and quit bothering me, you moron.’
But they harp on these things until it’s enough to make you want to knock their silly heads together.
I think we should shut down Congress for about three years, let the budget ease up a bit, just keep enough people in DC to issue military paychecks, VDC, retirement checks, and Social Security, and send everyone else home.
I’m sick of this crap. And I already made up my mind who I’m voting for, so if I get one more phone call about the elections, I’m going to start using unpleasant language and vituperative vitriol.
EX-PH2 I want to say something really really bad but I won’t because someone will read it then take it completely out of context and get mad and accuse me of being a sexist pig…yadda yadda yadda…
I wouldn’t vote for Tammy Duckworth for dog catcher…
Hell I am being forced to vote for Todd Akin…that is how BAD claire is.
What is the big deal? They are all retired. They are civilians again and have a right to support whatever candidate they choose.
@11 Jason, you can say whatever you want to. I think you’re thinking the same things I am, which does not make you a sexist pig, IMHO. I will certainly not take offense, and if anyone else does, they can stuff it where the sun don’t shine.
But you do see what imbeciles are getting into office now.
It must be the gene pool. It’s a damn pity that some of these people weren’t drownd at birth.
Oh! I think I’m getting it out of my system now. 🙂
And if we’re going to talk about being sexist, this just showed up on the net news:
http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/10/19/14559025-newlywed-afghan-beheaded-for-her-refusal-to-become-prostitute?lite
When those slimy pigs over there in that idiocracy, where the goats and donkeys are smarter than the people in charge, someone let me know. OK? Thanks.
@8. Well, so long as the Veteran seeking office does not endorse himself, I guess that’s fine. Similarly, if a Veteran is married to a non-Veteran who seeks office, the spouse would be prohibited from endorsing the office seeker. Ditto a son or daughter who is a Veterean or whose mother or father is a Veteran. Silliness begets silliness.
Why is not okay for active duty to support an individual but it’s okay for active duty to march in an I’m Queer as a Three Dollar Bill Parade? Is it because there is no dissent regarding GLBT in the military. Sure, that must be it!
@15
Makes sense. The hypothetical veteran candidate should also refrain from any positive campaigning, and stick to ads attacking his or her opponent. Of course, given the nature of politics today, I don’t think that would really be an issue.
Since the nineties, the Military Times as well as the Stars & Stripes newspaper have only been good as shite paper.