Who,Of All The 2008 Presidential Candidates/Prospective Candidates, Are Veterans?

[Dinger]

Besides mccain that is. If he's the only one, what does that mean? Please discuss.

[Tesla]

1. Hillary......haha

[elocs]

3. Great Stalin quote. Appropriate for our time. I've used it before. n/t

[Adelante]

2. There are more Repug candidates who are than Dem candidates

I don't have a link but on our side Dodd, Gravel, Biden; with five, I think it was, on theirs. I saw it here someplace.

[Dinger]

4. I Asked (Here-DU) Once About Biden & Someone Said He's Not A Veteran

I should know the answer to the question I've asked here. I feel guilty for not being more informed.

[Adelante]

6. National Guard, Ding nt

[Dinger]

8. O.K., Thanks

Now I know.

[elocs]

5. As time goes on, being a veteran will be less relevant. to people.

Since there is no draft, it will be doubtful that any candidate who is now maybe 53 years old will have served. And to the generations who never faced being drafted, having been in the military will mean less.

[Dinger]

7. Well, Isn't That Nice

:sarcasm:

[Adelante]

12. I don't see that, elocs

Veterans from Afghanistan and Iran are already taking political office all over the country. Even without a war or a draft, people with volunteer military service can always enter politics later.

[elocs]

16. The number of present veterans is small compared to years ago

when virtually every able-bodied man would have been in the service. Either he would have enlisted or have been drafted. I think a politician's veteran status is important to those over 60, but not to younger people. I was of draft age and was in the second draft lottery and I don't think any less of any candidate who is not a veteran, depending on their circumstances such as Cheney and Bush actively avoiding going to Vietnam.

[LiberalFighter]

9. It shouldn't be a matter of whether they were veterans.

They should be asked the questions...

Did you enlisted in the military?
If you enlisted when did you enlist?
If you were drafted when were you drafted?
Did you ever receive deferments? If so what were they?
What was your employment and education status at the time of your enlistment or draft?
How long did you serve active duty?
Where were you stationed?
In what capacity did you serve?

If you enlisted in the military why did you enlist?

What did you learn while in the military?
Why didn't you remain in the military?
(If someone has such high regards for the military then why didn't they remain in the military?)

[Dinger]

10. Excellent List, Thanks

Wow!:patriot: :patriot: :patriot: :patriot:

[sarge43]

11. Well, I'm still curious about why military service

should be a factor for presidential qualification, any more than a medical or educational background.

[Adelante]

13. It should be equal opportunity

If we talking about career background. It adds something in terms of public service to a resume, but I don't see it as a necessity.

[sarge43]

14. Nor do I and I put in 21 years in the service.

There's all kinds of public service.

I look at the whole bio and ask -- what did they give back to society; how unselfish were they with their gifts and abilities; how did they deal with the crisis in their lives; did they break and run or did they face them and overcome?

One other thought: 99% of the people in service are there for the same reason most people do most things -- they believe it's in their best interests to do so. That can range from a need to defend their beloved home from perceived threat to a need to avoid the wrath of an irate father to the very simple "I like it". It's seldom a test of character in itself.

[Adelante]

18. I agree on all of that

I don't like to see prejudice against the military over other professions, at the same time. It all very much depends, as you say, on the entire package.

[FrenchieCat]

20. I believe that military service could and should be taken under consideration......

and given weight with all other attributes of a candidate....and here's why:

Seeing War first hand does have profound effects on an individual (and to think otherwise is folly), which is why "War is Hell" is a cliche.

Those who enlist into the military clearly understand that they are being put in a position in where they may lose their life; which equals unparalleled personal courage. Enlisting means that they made this decision willingly (as opposed to being drafted). One of the reasons that Firefighter and Policeman are placed at high esteem (for the most part) in most society is the virtue of them taking on a job in where they could lose their life. It may be a small matter to some, but it actually is quite something.

On the other hand, education is something one does to enhance one's own life ....and is not the same thing as holding your hand up to be sent to war. Certainly, education should be taken into consideration when one is looking a who will be President, but it is not to be compared with enlisting in the army. Most veterans who run for office have actually done both; put themselves out as possible sacrifice for their country AND gone to college and earned a degree.

To discount the veteran status of any individual who stands for office is not logical nor should it be done. Certainly there are those who have never fought in any wars or enlisted who also understand that "War is Hell"......but the chances are lessened.

Also, it is harder to make timid a Veteran when it comes to dealing with the pentagon. Ask Bill Clinton about Rwanda, and why it was that he refused to do anything about it? I'll tell you that a lot of it had to do with his timidity for the priority of saving lives which was overriden by his larger concern for public opinion and what the public would think of him. A Veteran who understood the hellish nightmare that civilians go through in a war would not have been so hesistant as to do nothing due to polls.

In the end, if a voter wants to be led by an individual who understand that war is no small matter based on real life experience, than choosing one who is a veteran will give one that much assurance that this will be the case.

Service to our country in the military should not be so routinely undervalued by the left.....just like teachers should not be so by the right.

[TwilightGardener]

22. Very well said--I appreciate military service in a candidate--it shows

what they're willing to do for their country, whether or not we agree with the war they fought in. I sometimes feel I'm fighting an uphill battle sticking up for the military and veterans on DU.

[sarge43]

24. Well, first very few people in the military ever experience combat

or even run much of risk of experiencing it. For example, only one Air Force enlisted AFSC is designated combat related. A firefighter faces more danger in one hair raising day on the job than I ever did in two decades.

As far as the sympathy and empathy for those in combat, McCain experienced some of the worst that war can throw at a man, yet even knowing what he does, he still seems willing to pound our troops down that rat hole in Iraq. Adolph Hitler saw the hell of the Western Front for years as an enlisted courier, very nasty duty that. He was utterly indifferent to the welfare of his soldiers. Bush served albeit not well, but he too is indifferent. Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon all served, but that didn't stop them from dragging this nation into the Nam horror nor did it seem to affect any of Nixon's decisions about it.

As for dealing with the military, yes Clinton had problems at first, but he got his act together. Franklin Roosevelt never served a day, yet next to Lincoln he was the best CinC this nation ever had. On the other hand, there was US Grant, probably one of the most brilliant field commanders in our history; he wrote a fair share of the book on modern warfare. He was a freaking disaster as a president.

Finally, YMMV but I don't want a president who cringes from sending men and women into combat, because there are times s/he may have to. What I want is a president who doesn't do it lightly, without regard for the consequences. And worse, keeps on doing it in spite of the fact we're getting our head handed to us.

Some personal thoughts: First, there are as many reasons for serving as there are people who have served and placing one's self between war's devastation and beloved country is only one. Second, we are, surprise, individuals and contrary to popular belief we are not cloned in the bowels of the Pentagon. Nor are we all good guys, again we're individuals. I processed far too many disciplinary actions to have any illusions about mass military nobility or altruism. Like any other group we range across the whole moral spectrum. Military service is one facet of a person's life. All that may be asked is did this vet honorably do his or her duty as it was given to them to do or did s/he game the system as Bush did.

[Cobalt-60]

It isnt

No military service + warmongering = not acceptable for the job.
Chicken hawks need not apply.

[Cobalt-60]

27. It isnt

No military service + warmongering = not acceptable for the job.
Chicken hawks need not apply.

[Tejanocrat]

15. Is this another thread trolling for

McCain?

Please, we don't want (1) an ex-military "maverick" who's not even a real maverick and (2) who is widely known as a big Reagan fan and (3) who can't run an election campaign effectively and so what makes us think he'd run the government effectively and (4) who can't seem to make up his mind on key issues. We just don't want McCain.

[FrenchieCat]

21. I don't think this thread is about McCain.......who because he was

held captive for some time, may have suffered some derangement in his thoughts. I wouldn't judge the issue of Veterans based on one who has been so lauded for sitting in a cell year in, year out.

[SoxFan]

17. Very few

Dodd served in the Army Reserve. Since he was never activated during wartime, he's not a "veteran" by the VA definition, though he did serve in uniform.

Biden didn't serve in the military, but his son is an officer in the Army National Guard.


McCain and Hagel served in Vietnam.

I don't really know if any of the GOP munchkins (Hunter, Paul, et al) served in the military.

[TwilightGardener]

23. Here's what I know:

R's: McCain (Navy/Vietnam POW)
Hagel (Army Infantry/Vietnam)
Ron Paul (Air Force Surgeon in the 60's--don't know if he served in Vietnam)
Duncan Hunter (Army Airborne/Ranger, Vietnam

D's: I guess just Dodd, unless Richardson served. Gravel is really old (born in 1930's)--maybe Korea?

[SaveElmer]

19. I think Gravel was...

I may be wrong...Navy maybe?

[polichick]

25. A military background can be a good thing or a bad thing.

On one hand, the candidate who has served understands the cost of war. On the other hand, some vets are too gung-ho about military engagements for me.

Peace is the way...so we should have a Dept. of Peace and make our intentions about being a good world citizen clear, and we should have a well-equipped Dept. of "Defense" run by professional military people, not politicians.

[AlGore-08.com]

26. Al Gore served in Vietnam as an Army field reporter

[Hekate]

28. Gore asked for that assignment.He could have gone to a champagne squadron like Bush,& chose not to.

Like John Kerry, Al Gore was a "fortunate son" whose father could have pulled strings to keep him safe in the US. Like John Kerry, he didn't shirk. I admire both of them very, very much for their character and their service.

But I'm no great fan of the military, not after the Vietnam War chewed up so many of my contemporaries. I was all for my friends using their college deferments as long as they could, and if they had a lucky draft-lottery number, all the better. So I was not troubled when it came out that Bill Clinton, coming from a poor family, didn't volunteer when he didn't have to. I approved of the fact that he clearly agonized over his decision -- a person should agonize over something momentous. And as for college, my gods, the man got to be a Rhodes Scholar -- no slacker's C-average for him.

But what pisses me off no end are Chickenhawks like the men (and women) who populate the Bush administration at all levels. They are great fans of War -- they think War is nifty, a cakewalk, even -- as long as someone else or someone else's kid is in the line of fire. When given an opportunity to serve, they avoided it like the plague -- but they are warmongers now and many of them cheered on the Vietnam War from the safety of the American continent. They don't agonize -- and they happily cut funding for soldiers and their families and for wounded vets. (Just because Bill Clinton didn't serve, btw, doesn't make him a Chickenhawk.)

Veteran or not, I hope very much that any future American president will think long and hard before ever sending our troops to a foreign land to fight and die. I know General Wes Clark would, and I believe John Edwards would also.

Hekate