Despite John Murtha, Troop Morale is High

“Despite John Murtha, morale is high.”

Wade Zirkle
Vets for Freedom
April 13, 2006

The Washington Post gives the other side some rare airtime in “Troops Support the War” by veteran Wade Zirkle from Vets for Freedom:

Earlier this year there was a town hall meeting on the Iraq war, sponsored by Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.), with the participation of such antiwar organizations as CodePink and MoveOn.org. The event also featured Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.), a former Marine who had become an outspoken critic of the war. To this Iraq war veteran, it was a good example of something that’s become all too common: People from politics, the media and elsewhere purporting to represent “our” views. With all due respect, most often they don’t.

The tenor of the town meeting was mostly what one might expect, but during the question-and-answer period, a veteran injured in Afghanistan stood up to offer his view. “If I didn’t have a herniated disc, I would volunteer to go to Iraq in a second with my troops,” said Mark Seavey, a former Army sergeant who had recently returned from Afghanistan. “I know you keep saying how you have talked to the troops and the troops are demoralized, and I really resent that characterization. The morale of the troops I talk to is phenomenal, which is why my troops are volunteering to go back despite the hardships…”

Murtha undoubtedly knows full well that the greatest single thing that drags on morale in war is the loss of a buddy. But second to that is politicians questioning, in amplified tones, the validity of that loss to our families, colleagues, the nation and the world.

While we don’t question his motives, we do question his assumptions. When he called for an immediate withdrawal from Iraq, there was a sense of respectful disagreement among most military personnel. But when he subsequently stated that he would not join today’s military, he made clear to the majority of us that he is out of touch with the troops. Quite frankly, it was received as a slap in the face.

John Murtha has been actively attacking our troops and their sacrifices in the War on Terror for months. His solution that he cooked up with pal Nancy Pelosi is to fight Islamic extremism from the hotbed of Okinawa or to just surrender like he proposed in Mogadishu. He continues to use bogus poll numbers and claims the troops are broken and worn out. It’s about time that this article snuck through the media filters and told the other side of the story. It’s about time Murtha got a good hard slap.

Democracy Project explains there is one thing that makes this war like Vietnam… that the Left is sapping America’s will to fight just like they did decades ago!

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Jim Hoft is the founder and editor of The Gateway Pundit, one of the top conservative news outlets in America. Jim was awarded the Reed Irvine Accuracy in Media Award in 2013 and is the proud recipient of the Breitbart Award for Excellence in Online Journalism from the Americans for Prosperity Foundation in May 2016. In 2023, The Gateway Pundit received the Most Trusted Print Media Award at the American Liberty Awards.

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