Bush, Republicans losing support of retired veterans

Monday, Jul 28, 2003

Posted on Sun, Jul. 27, 2003

Bush, Republicans losing support of retired veterans
By STEVEN THOMMA
Knight Ridder Newspapers

WASHINGTON - President Bush and his Republican Party are facing a political backlash from an unlikely group - retired veterans.

Normally Republican, many retired veterans are mad that Bush and the Republican-controlled Congress are blocking remedies to two problems with health and pension benefits. They say they feel particularly betrayed by Bush, who appealed to them in his 2000 campaign, and who vowed on the eve of his inauguration that "promises made to our veterans will be promises kept."

"He pats us on the back with his speeches and stabs us in the back with his actions," said Charles A. Carter of Shawnee, Okla., a retired Navy senior chief petty officer. "I will vote non-Republican in a heart beat if it continues as is."

"I feel betrayed," said Raymond C. Oden Jr., a retired Air Force Chief Master Sergeant now living in Abilene, Texas.

Many veterans say they will not vote for Bush or any Republican in 2004 and are considering voting for a Democrat for the first time. Others say they will sit out the election, angry with Bush and Republicans but unwilling to support Democrats, whom they say are no better at keeping promises to veterans. Some say they will still support Bush and his party despite their ire. (snip/...)

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/6392002.htm

A large section of his base getting pissed at him and sitting out the next election or voting for someone else, in concert with a piss-poor economy.

I often wonder what history books will say about these times. He'll probably be known as "The Accidental President" or "The Worst President", which would be refreshingly blunt and honest. :-)

we need those votes over in the 'D' column. But still, beggars can't be choosers, and I'd be happy with them sitting at home on election day.

if there was a "radical center" third party they could vote for, like the Perotistas in 1992.

It could take the votes of a lot of disaffected Republicans and hammer home issues like the looming deficit and the betrayed veterans. Third parties are good at raising issues like this that _have_ to be addressed by the major parties in the near future.

Arnold Schwartznegger (sp?) why don't you give it a try?

(Who says Bush has restored "honor and integrity to our nation")...

...is Tampa hidden under a rock? Get a clue, buddy. If Bush has restored "honor and integrity" I'd like to see your explanation and examples of lying, back-stabbing and money-laundering, sir. While our soldiers are fighting and dying for oil in Iraq, you might want to pay attention to what's being taken away from them, too, by your glorious leader.

people of their dignity.

Who thanks to W had his health insurance coverage for his wife cut. He went from paying about $100 per month to over $1000 per month for her insurance and he is pissed. When these folks signed onto the military and made a career of it, this was one of the perks. That you and your spouse would have good, cheap health insurance coverage for the rest of your life. Now that they are retired, they are finding out that they fulfilled their part of the deal, but that W could care less about such things and is more than willing to screw them. This particular couple were lifelong Republicans, who have vowed never to vote for W again.

Or are they just plain stupid?

Service has known that for years. Bush went after this group and lets hope they have woke up. I know one vet that thinks the man is nuts.

--MAB

The image of Uncle Sam should be replaced with a pointing Dubya, leaning on the podium in his cocky way, pointing his finger at the audience...Goddamn liar. (And this is waaaaaay more important than BJs!)

Pretty amazing! We've seen a lot of veterans at our Stand Up for Peace events. Many come with lots of questions, seeking information, and a number of them stick around to help. I've been surprised by the amount of support among vets and high school students.

Just north of Fayetteville, NC. (Home of Ft. Bragg and the 82nd Airborne Division)


--MAB

It won't be difficult either, because the Dems believe strongly in supporting veterans. Our candidate (whoever that may be), should meet with every influential veterans group and promise to restore benefits that were slashed so the Republicans could give money back to their campaign contributors.

This is a no-brainer for the Dem candidate...I hope.

Not their families, certainly.

rocknation

Not voting is as bad as voting for Bush. Dems not any better than Reps over VA benefits? WTF!?! The ones that vote for Bush deserve what they get.

and all the better if we can convert them Dem. Kerry could definitely do it if this is their SINGLE ISSUE!
Not voting for Bush is like a vote for us.
Converting to Dem is a double hit.
This is GREAT news.

The ones that vote for Bush deserve what they get.

but if their votes put Bush over the top, we ALL get stuck with him. and WE don't deserve that.

Stupidity reigns supreme.

He and his few surviving friends all think that they have been stabbed in the back by Shrub. And he calls him "snot face" when he refers to him. This from a man who not only served in two wars, but continued to work at Army research facilities for the rest of his career. He absolutely has more than a clue the way things work.

His biggest concern is for the Viet vets, who will suffer the most if Shrub and the maniacs in Congress get their way and gut the Veteran's Administration and budgets. His goal is to live long enough to see "snot face" evicted from the White House.

find the necessity to support "Chicken-Hawk-In-Chief" and his
gang of "chicken-hawks" in the first place? Don't think
it will serve much purpose to deny support to W when his gang
Cheney, Delay, Chambliss etc, etc, etc. are right there with him.
It will help little to deny W reelection if they continue to
support the likes of the present congressional leadership of
the GOP in the House and Senate.

is one of the most influential members of the largest Veterans organization in Maryland. I have photos of him with Clinton and Gore from a couple of years ago.

He's also a lifelong Democrat and hates Bush.

MANY veterans (he was WWII) hate this man and I wouldn't be suprised if the Vet vote goes 70-30 for whoever the Dem candidate is.

My aunt (my AUNT) retired from the USAF after a 23-year career, including three tours in Vietnam, two at SAC HQ in Omaha and two more at the Pentagon. She has always been a liberal Democrat and did not vote for * (nor Nixon nor Ford nor Reagan nor Bush I).
This story is spun so bad it's imploded. I'm a veteran too (under both Nixon and Ford) and, though I served honorably under each of them, I didn't vote for either one.
John
I don't know where the Media Hooers get this "Military is Republican" crap. Most blacks and Hispanics I knew in the Army were pretty standard Dems (if admittedly a bit more conservative than the party mainstream) and plenty of white troops were, too. IMHO, the military rank-and-file don't think all that much about politics per se -- they're sworn to protect the Constitution regardless of who the C-in-C is.

They're being proven wrong.

I rejoice at headlines like this - what it's talking about has been going on for a long time, but the fact that the corporate media actually acknowledges it means it's really, REALLY, bad.

The same holds true for current military personnel too - they can see that the Bushies don't give a shit about them. They're more than happy to let the Iraqis pick them off day by day, as long as they can make billions from oil and construction contracts.

It's treasonous - but really, what do we expect from this bunch of chickenhawks?

The momentum against Bush is spreading like wildfire. The neo-con artists can talk about Gray Davis and call our loathing of Dubya
"irrational" all they want - it won't change the fact that their days are numbered. They know it - that's why they're trying to grab as much loot as they can before they're kicked out.

Anybody else think Dubya will set a record for presidential pardons?

"Honor and integrity," my Aunt Fanny.

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Every time he spoke those words before a military group, they responded with a roar of approval.

They were lied to - just like the rest of us.

in bad shape due to Clinton? Would someone tell me how, after only TWO years and one Shrub military budget, could so bad a military become "the greatest fighting force the world has ever seen"?

More hype, more lies, more propaganda. And the lemmings in the press eat the bs up.

screwed by politicians of all stripes. But we hate seeing our comrades die for no good purpose. And what many of us predicted has come to pass; Iraq Nam...another meat-grinder war built on lies. Many vets, like myself, didn't vote for GWB in the first place. Many, many more will not vote for him again. The economy may improve over the next 14 months...the war won't.