Many of you are probably aware that Gen. Wesley Clark used to regularly vote Republican (although he was NOT, as some have suggested, a registered Republican). In fact, Clark himself admits that, as an Independent, he voted for Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan during the Cold War years out of concern for U.S. national security. Later, he learned that "the old myths were wrong" about the Democrats. That, as Clark says:
the people in the Clinton administration...were thoughtful, they were hard-working, they were dedicated, they were patriotic,.. it wasn't that the Republicans were tough and strong on defense and the Democrats were soft and blame America. It was really that the Republican Party had become shrill and partisan and isolationist and the Democrats were working mightily to craft a new strategy to take us into a new world.
Now, as the 61st anniversary of D-Day approaches (Monday, June 6), Clark has issued a statement blasting Republicans for their disgraceful treatment of our fighting men and women. Clark writes:
Last week, House Democrats, led by my friend Rep. Gene Taylor of Mississippi, attempted to do more to honor our Guard and Reserves for their sacrifice. The House Armed Services Committee passed a bipartisan amendment to provide full access to TRICARE - the military health program - to all members of the Guard and Reserves and their families, a gap in our military health system that is long overdue to be fixed.Yet despite the fact that 20% of our Reservists lack health insurance, Republican Chairman Duncan Hunter stripped this common sense amendment from the bill, denying our Guard and Reserve the health care benefits they deserve, claiming we couldn't afford it.
That's plain wrong. If we can afford tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, we can certainly afford health care benefits for our brave men and women in harm's way halfway around the world.
Yeah, the Republicans sure are wrong -- morally, ethically, and every other way. In contrast, General Clark has it exactly right: Republicans are thrilled out of their minds to give trillions of dollars in tax cuts to their corporate cronies and super-rich friends, yet won't provide one penny to care for the folks being wounded and killed in Iraq, fighting George Bush's war. It's stuff like this that send loyal, passionate, dedicated military men like Wesley Clark into a white-hot fury. It's also just this kind of garbage from the "pro-military party" that give people like Wesley Clark yet one more piece of evidence why they were right when they opted to become former Republicans.
Let's get this straight for a second: the Republican Party is the patriotic one, and the Democrats are the ones who are anti-military? Oh yeah, did I tell you that black has now been declared to be white, the earth to be flat not round, and the sky to be green not blue? Well, you might as well believe all that if you buy the "Republicans are strong on defense" line. Thanks to my favorite 4-Star General, Wesley Clark, for setting the record straight on this matter.