Ms. Boxer’s office said she remains proud of the VFW PAC’sendorsement. “California veterans know that no one fights harder for them,” said Rose Kapolczynski, Ms. Boxer’s campaign manager
We cannot allow the marxist Boxer to use our veterans in this fashion!
Twana
_______________________________________
Wall Street Journal
VFW Shuts Off Campaign Arm
By Jim Carlton
The political arm of the Veterans of Foreign Wars has largely shut down operations amid a member
backlash after it endorsed a slew of Democratic incumbents, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, California Sen. Barbara Boxer and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
Effective last Friday, VFW Commander-in-Chief Richard Eubank removed all 11 board directors of the group’s political action committee, after they refused a request by him and other VFW leaders to
rescind this year’s congressional endorsements following complaints from veterans who view many of the incumbents as anti-military.
In a memo Thursday, Mr. Eubank said he would also move to dissolve the PAC altogether at the group’s annual convention next August, saying that “the recent endorsement decisions have, in fact, harmed the VFW’s reputation and future ability to fulfill our mission.”
Mr. Eubank was traveling overseas and not available for comment Monday.
Tyrone Benson, chairman of the now-defunct PAC board, said that in the wake of his board’s ouster, all fund-raising for the 31-year-old PAC had been terminated nationally and that the committee had just one staff member working in its Washington office.
Mr. Benson added that while he still stands by the endorsements, he doesn’t question the VFW commander’s authority to disband his board. The directors are appointed by the commander of the veterans group, based in Kansas City, Mo.
“I can understand the feelings of the people who didn’t like their congressmen,” said Mr. Benson, who lives in Alamogordo, N.M. “We just endorsed them based on the bills that they supported for veterans.”
In an Oct. 13 statement defending its endorsements, the PAC said it used a rigid methodology under which it would only endorse incumbents on Capitol Hill who sided with the VFW’s position on seven of nine bills in the Senate and 10 of 13 in the House. Those included measures such as authorization for defense spending and to improve job opportunities for veterans.
But many veterans were furious when they learned of some of the endorsements. Ms. Boxer, for instance, has drawn widespread scorn from veterans after she upbraided a brigadier general for calling her “ma’am” in a 2009 Senate committee hearing.
Support for the military has become an issue in the California Senate race. Ms. Boxer trumpeted her VFW endorsement at an Oct. 10 event in Pasadena, Calif., with a veteran, Democratic Den. Daniel Inouye of Hawaii. Her Republican opponent, Carly Fiorina, appeared Saturday at a veterans rally in San Diego with another veteran, Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona, to attack Ms. Boxer’s record on veteran’s issues.
Ms. Boxer’s office said she remains proud of the VFW PAC’s endorsement. “California veterans know that no one fights harder for them,” said Rose Kapolczynski, Ms. Boxer’s campaign manager.
Replies
Some people live too damned long.