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War On Terror Creates Veteran Support For The President
By Thomas D. Segel
March 30, 2004

The presidential campaign is in full operational mode. George W. Bush is asking the American people for a second term in office. John Kerry looks to the same public as he fights to unseat the incumbent. Both are attempting to win over specific interest groups and both are targeting the country's veterans.

While it is known that career military personnel are conservative in their politics, those who served only a few years are a more diverse body. They have wide ranging political interests. It should be pointed out, however, that regardless of political orientation, these former uniformed men and women have given far more for their nation than most of their countrymen. They have also reaped little in the way of promised rewards for their exceptional service.

This is particularly true of those promised and earned benefits, which must be authorized by legislation. Congress, with only about one third of its members ever having served in the armed forces, has been extremely unresponsive to making good on promises to veterans. In fairness, it must also be argued that powerful staff members in the White House and the bureaucrats of the Department of Defense have failed to fight hard for veteran issues and in many cases have been in opposition to proposed legislation.

Because President Bush, in his initial campaign, pledged to support the men and women of our armed forces and because he is viewed as failing to keep his word to veterans, there has been some erosion of support in the military community.

John Kerry, seeking to capitalize on this perceived discontent, has tried to wrap himself in the flag of warrior, patriot and hero. Because we are engaged in a war on terror, he is also portraying himself as the more experienced military leader.

Identifying my politics as conservative, I placed the issue of selecting a wartime president to my reader network of more than 2,000 veterans. Retired Air Force

Brigadier General Robert Clements assisted me in my information gathering by sending the inquiry to his own 2,000-member network. These two requests resulted in a massive email response from hundreds of people in the veteran community. Though not a scientific survey, a full 98% of the retired military personnel responding show varying degrees of support for the current administration. Among those former citizen soldiers who answered the call to duty and the one or two tour veterans, support for President Bush was still close to 90%.

Retired Air Force Master Sergeant Floyd Sears may have best put in words what others are feeling at this hour. "I am disappointed that he did not keep his promises", said Sears. He was referring to the reported statement of President Bush that in order to make sure that morale is high with those who wear the uniform today we must keep our commitment to those who wore the uniform in the past....and the often repeated Bush quote "We will make sure promises made to our veterans will be promises kept."

Sears comments, "Maybe I just misunderstood or maybe George W. Bush simply misspoke. Maybe he meant to say something else. However, I will not let my feelings about that statement cloud my good judgment. I will back him, just as I would have backed any superior while I was on active duty."

Retired Army Staff Sergeant Philip Jones claims there is only one question to be answered, "Have we had another 911 or have our women and children been safe since 911?" He feels everything else is irrelevant for now. "Too many vets are just too selfish," he says. "They want everything they have coming and to hell with the rest of the country's needs. I say that if you think vets needs are top priority right now, you are being naïve. The vets I served with did not think like that - they were more selfless than the loudmouths on the Internet."

Jose L. Benavides came to the United States from Cuba, became a citizen, was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army and served three years on active duty as a Captain. He experienced service in Thailand; saw Khe Sanh and the Tet offensive of 1968. He expresses his feelings for Kerry in angry terms. "There is no question in my mind that if Kerry is elected all we have won against terrorism will be lost. Bush has the right approach against terrorism. Yes, I agree he does not have a good record with us. However, I would rather have him fighting against terrorism and have poor veteran issues performance than Kerry who will give us neither."

Byron D. Varner served in World War II, Korea and Vietnam before he retired from the Navy. His words touch on a theme, which was echoed throughout the email responses, "Veterans, of all people, should be the first to see the importance of reelecting Bush. Any grudges they hold because they aren't getting their 'fair share of the pie' must not color their thinking. When they went to war it was for the good of the nation, not for self. Frankly, no president has been successful in getting much in the way of benefits for veterans in recent years because Congress will not support them. There are too few veterans in Congress willing or ready to fight the fight."

There were a number of retired general officers that replied in support to the commentary sent to them by Brigadier General Bob Clements. Included in those responding were Lieutenant General Harry A. Goodall, Lieutenant General E. G. "Buck" Shuler, Major General William Hegland, Major General Henry B. Stelling Jr., Brigadier Generals Marc M. McClelland, Donald Barnhart, C. Schoeffler, and Dick Dean. Retired Air Force Major General Dave Gray generally expressed their observations. "I can understand why some veterans are unhappy with President Bush. However, before they help elect Kerry I suggest they study his voting record on defense issues very carefully, because he has supported few, if any, in his 18 years in Congress. No President can give all groups all they want, but President Bush has given us a lot."

The general also expresses his concern about the growing of socialism in America. "Senator Kerry plans to raise taxes to increase support of those things Democrats always support in their effort to buy votes from those who do not seem to be able to take care of themselves in a free society...Socialism has not worked anywhere it has been tried and it will not work here either."

The general officers also agree that when a country is engaged in a war, we should stay with a proven leader.

Everyone is not supporting the current administration. Retired Air Force Technical Sergeant Harvey Davis says, "It is truly amazing to hear from all the stars (generals) about their support for President Bush; and their statements that now is not a good time to stand up and fight for the benefits the military has been promised. Maybe they think a good time would be 2012, which is the date the VA figures World War II veterans will all be dead."

Veteran Thomas Dougherty thinks supporting Bush is "Hog Wash". He claims the President is in league with special interests and has given more to those groups than any other administration. Retired Major Billy J. Young says, "I just hope that God will step in and save America from the mistakes of the current administration."

Retired Marine Sergeant Major Bill Steigerwald feels the Bush team panders to Hispanic elements and outspends the Democrats. While at the same time Army retiree Earl B. Waddell, Sr. is angered that no administration has ever prosecuted Jane Fonda and Ramsey Clark as traitors. He "will vote for no president who allows those charges to go unprotected."

Leo Robert completed 30 years in the Marine Corps before retiring with the rank of Sergeant Major. He says, "I am for getting the truth out of Kerry. He and Fonda both told lies about the war. Can anyone believe that 60% to 80% of our troops were on drugs? I must have been in the wrong place. It was hard enough just getting hot chow and mail, let alone drugs. All these war atrocities that he claimed are also lies. Everyone says he is a hero. Can we see his citations for the Silver Star and Bronze Star? Any witness to those medals? Who wrote the citations? He received 3 Purple Hearts with no time lost. He's really lucky, isn't he? I smell a rat!

The Sergeant Major concludes saying, "The election should be about truth regardless of political party. Being a veteran and an American should be top priority. It should not matter if you are a Republican or a Democrat. The truth must be told. Kerry must be held accountable for his actions. We know it didn't happen in the 70s. Maybe we can make him accountable now."

From all available information it appears George W. Bush will continue to dominate in the military and veteran vote count. He will lose some supporters because of his failure to take strong action on promised benefits. He will retain some veterans because they view him as the least offensive of the two candidates. But, the vast majority of those who wore our country's uniforms will continue to support him because he is the Commander in Chief and they all march to the patriot's drum beat.

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Note -- The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, views, and/or philosophy of GOPUSA.