Here in Kentucky’s First District, during the failed do-nothing 109th Congress and well before, Exxon Ed Whitfield served as a loving rubber-stamp to every failed policy of Mitch McConnell and George W. Bush. In Iraq, these three managed to send our troops into the wrong country on the wrong mission. Worse than that, they showed the ultimate in disrespect to our troops by sending them there without proper training, planning, and most important for the welfare of our troops, equipment.
Now it seems that Exxon Eddie is praising the failed efforts of himself, and his mentors Mitch McConnell and George W. Bush. From Ryan for Kentucky:
Paducah, KY – April 11, 2008 – Representative Ed Whitfield chose April 10th, 2008, just after General Petraeus was grilled by the Senate Armed Services Committee, as a convenient opportunity to remember Kentucky’s men and women in the military. He expressed his disapproval of any withdrawal plan to bring our troops home from the ill-conceived war in Iraq by repeating the administration’s talking point that “gains brought on as a result of the surge can just as easily be lost should Congress fail to give our commanders and troops the authority and tools they need to complete their mission”. Indeed, this Bush administration tag line is a strange “concern”, as our troops were never given the “tools necessary to complete their mission”.
Luckily for our troops, not everyone running for this office is too good to meet them personally and hear their concerns. I would like to share a story from our troops told to Heather on the campaign trail:
While on the campaign trail, I spoke with an Army Veteran who shared a story which exemplifies that our troops have been ill equipped from day one. Last summer this Army Veteran and his friends stopped at a gas station in Cadiz, KY on his way home from the Fancy Farm Political Picnic. There they met a woman and her husband, a 101st Airborne soldier from Ft. Campbell, KY. This soldier’s unit was preparing for their third deployment to Iraq while the soldier was leaving for his first tour. The veteran wished him luck and out of genuine concern, asked him if he and his fellow soldiers had all the equipment they needed to fight. The soldier laughed and said that that very morning his company had visited a civilian junkyard in order to scavenge donated scrap metal to weld to their Humvees. The 101st Airborne, an aggressive front-line unit on their third deployment, did not have enough uparmored vehicles to help their troops survive IED attacks. Remember, this was at a time when Congress was essentially giving the administration blank checks to prosecute the war. This is just one instance of the lack of respect that Mr. Whitfield and the Bush administration have for the safety of our troops in combat. These two entities are lock step in acknowledging armed service members when it is convenient to their agendas, but tend to forget their needs while in combat and after their service.
It is disgraceful that Whitfield, Bush, and McConnell are more than willing to stand in front of our troops for a photo-op while they deliver their empty talking points on Iraq, and respecting our troops. Unfortunately the truth they won’t admit is from day 1 this Administration, rubber-stamped by Whitfield and McConnell have disrespected our troops in every way possible. Whether or not you believe in the mission in Iraq, the fact of the matter is these men sent our troops into this country without the training, equipment and planning to do their jobs. While our troops have performed wonderfully, their leaders in Washington, including Whitfield and McConnell FAILED!!
Whitfield and McConnell were too busy being partisan hacks, and upholding every failed vision of the Bush Administration that they failed our troops in their most important solemn duty to them. They FAILED to provide any kind of oversight into the blank check they issued President Bush, and they FAILED in holding him accountable for his actions. They FAILED our troops and allowed our injured to come home and heal with cock-roaches in Walter Reed at the whim of the failed policies of this administration.
They were so busy with their partisan hackery, nothing, not even the welfare of our returning injured troops was more important than desperately attempting to validate the failed policies of President Bush, policies they had provided no oversight on, and ideed, policies they had rubber-stamped.
However, Whitfield’s blatant disregard and disrespect for our troops did not end there. It appears while praising the troops in Iraq, Exxon Eddie forgot some others:
In yet another gross act of disrespect, while praising the Ft. Campbell soldiers serving in Iraq, Whitfield completely ignored the 7,200 101stAirborne soldiers currently serving in Afghanistan. Today, on the 101st day of 2008, the headquarters of the 101st Airborne Division took command of NATO’s Regional Command East sector of Afghanistan from the 82nd Airborne Division. It is not surprising these brave soldiers slipped Whitfield’s mind. They are fighting a forgotten enemy, Osama bin Laden, in a forgotten war. They deserve our praise and support as well, and they deserve the leadership that will allow them to complete their mission and return home to Kentucky.
Now, this sort of spells out Whitfield’s view on this “War on Terror”. He stubbornly rubber-stamps partisan hackery, disrespecting our troops all along the way to desperately justify a failed policy. Then, he forgets the troops in Afganistan, who are actually trying to find and fight the entities that actually attacked us on 9-11. I have a message for Whitfield, McConnell and Bush. You may have forgotten Osama bin Laden and let him walk away scot-free, to make video tapes mocking our troops and their sacrifices, but Americans and Kentuckians surely haven’t.
The best way Americans can honor the sacrifice of our troops and veterans is to elect leaders that will respect them. Heather Ryan wants a sane policy in Iraq:
The War in Iraq:
As a veteran of the United States Navy, and an active member of the American Legion, my dedication to the men and women in uniform is unyielding. The current service member is highly skilled, highly trained and highly ignored by this administration. The American people
were duped into an ill-conceived war under false pretenses and the administration continues to over utilize a national guard system which was never intended to be used for sustained combat missions. Congress must insist that an exit strategy be planned and implemented immediately. By the Bush Administration’s own account, the nation will be forced to reinstate the draft system again should we continue to over-tax our National Guard with sustained combat. I am not a supporter of reinstating the draft for as history clearly shows us, the draft is merely for those of us who are not wealthy enough to buy our way out of
active duty. We must not allow this ill planned and ill executed war to continue to destroy the brave men and women in our armed forces while simultaneously placing our nation at a heightened risk with a limited national guard.
http://www.ryanforkentucky.com…
Better yet, Heather Ryan as a veteran believes we should respect ALL our district’s service men and women serving, and our veterans that have served:
So, to the Screaming Eagles of the 101st Division Airborne (Air Assault); to the 4th Brigade Combat Team, the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, Division HQ, and the 101st Sustainment Brigade, currently serving in Afghanistan as part of Combined Joint Task Force 101. And to the Division’s 1st, 2nd and 3rd Brigade Combat Teams, currently serving in Iraq: We keep you in our hearts and thoughts, always.
Being a veteran after proudly serving her nation in the United States Navy, this issue is not a talking point or a photo-op to Heather, it is personal.
We need Heather Ryan in the Congress to fight not only for a sane policy in Iraq, but to fight for the benefits and respect our troops and veterans have earned. We need sane voices that will provide oversight into any future wars and the funding for them, instead of blindly following in a partisan trance. We need REAL leaders in Washington, not the failed policies of rubber-stamping partisan hackery.
We can win this race in Kentucky’s First!!! All we need are the resources to introduce the 63% of registered Democrats to the horrible record Exxon Ed Whitfield has amassed in their names. A record of FAILURE for our troops, veterans, and citizens. Please help us get the resources we need to get the word out on our great candidate, Heather Ryan, and our FAILED Congressman Exxon Ed Whitfield.
I have set a goal of raising $1500 for Heather online by May 20, and am very close to halfway there. Won’t you please chip in and help us get our message out? Your generous contribution will go to work immediately to expand our Congressional majority with an awesome grassroots Democrat who isn’t afraid to fight for us!! Please go here and help, no amount it too small:
http://www.actblue.com/page/am…
With your help Heather Ryan will be fighting alongside our next President for a sane policy in Iraq, and will provide much needed leadership in our Congress!!!
