Letter to the Editor

The following is a letter that I have sent today to our local newspaper the Bristol Herald-Courier.


To the Editor:

I applaud the Bristol Herald Courier’s decision to endorse President Bush for re-election on November 2nd (“Bush has Proved His Leadership”, October 27, 2004). However, your endorsement fails to address the most important issue our country faces: national security.

Your article suggests that President Bush has “acted unilaterally”, “offered little rationale for his decisions”, and “slipped into partisan politics”.

When the US was attacked on September 11, 2001, our President offered a clear vision not only for our country but also for the entire free world on how to combat the rising threat of global terrorism. It is time to stop using the word “unilaterally”. The United Kingdom, Australia, Italy, Poland, and many others have joined in this war with the United States. To say that we have acted unilaterally diminishes and denigrates the sacrifices of our allies.

For a brief period of time, this country was united. We were not Democrats or Republicans. We were Americans united in purpose. But it was not the President who “slipped into partisan politics”. It was the Democratic Party, seeking to make political hay of any negative news from Iraq.

To make matters worse, Democrats who supported the President’s decision to go to war in Iraq turned their back on the military when it came time to fund the war.

One of these Democrats is John Kerry who wants to be our next Commander-in-Chief. Another is Virginia Congressman Rick Boucher. Congressman Boucher voted in favor of the authorization of war (vote #455, October 10, 2002) and then voted against the supplemental appropriation for funding the war (vote #601, October 31, 2003).

Your endorsement of Congressman Boucher (“Boucher the best choice for region", October 25, 2004) outlines his accomplishments. But when the time comes to choose whether our national defense would be a top priority, he turned his back on our troops including those from our own region who are serving our country.

The Congressman’s record on defense has been miserable at best. In the past, such positions did not seem critical. September 11th changed that forever. Our national defense must be the priority for every lawmaker we send to Washington.

President Bush has daily made it clear that he will hunt and destroy the terrorists before they will destroy us. Our President needs a Congress that is willing to stand in support of him in the global war on terror.

Congressman Boucher has not supported our military. He has not supported our President in defending our country. For this reason, Congressman Boucher does not deserve to be re-elected.