Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Cindy McCain: as detached from war veterans as her husband


Certainly, you've seen the video: a very stern looking Cindy McCain, backed by Gov. Palin, surrounded by acolytes, chastising Sen. Barack Obama's support of the troops (specifically, Cindy McCain's son in Iraq): "I'm proud of my sons, but let me tell you, the day that Senator Obama cast a vote not to fund my son when he was serving sent a cold chill through my body. I would suggest that Senator Obama change shoes with me for just one day, and see what it means." Of course, as with everything that the McPalin campaign puts out, take that statement with a Morton's container of Salt. From The Huffington Post, Cindy McCain's Attack On Obama's Record Offends Military Spouses:
Cindy McCain was referring to a single 2007 Senate vote: Obama voted for a war-spending bill that included language calling for withdrawing troops from Iraq; but later he voted against a version of the same bill because it no longer included the withdrawal language. "We must fund our troops, but we owe them something more," Obama said at the time. "We owe them a clear, prudent plan to relieve them of the burden of policing someone else's civil war."

In other words, Sen. Obama wanted to fund the troops, he just didn't support the flawed military strategy this particular bill would enable. (Previously, Obama had voted YES on at least 10 other war funding bills. For a lengthy list of John McCain's NO votes on military funding, click here.)

"It ruffles our feathers when someone claims that Barack Obama doesn't support the troops, because the Obamas have gone out of their way to understand the military, its families, and its veterans," Stephanie Himel-Nelson, deputy director of outreach for Blue Star Families for Obama, told OffTheBus. "In fact, Michelle Obama has adopted military families as one of her causes."
Considering her irritation that soldiers aren't getting the proper funding, she should have a conversation with her husband who hasn't been very supportive of the veterans, according to non-partisan veterans groups Disabled American Veterans and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.

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