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September 08, 2008

ORP owes Kerry, Oregonians an apology

McCain made his experience as a veteran a central reason for electing him. On the stump and in his speech to the Republican National Convention last Thursday he and his fellow Republicans talked it up at length. Indeed, his own campaign website has a section entitled "why McCain" that relies exclusively on his service in Vietnam to answer that rhetorical question before getting to any other additional reasons.

So, it came as a sharp surprise when I was perusing my old hometown newspaper, The Medford Mail Tribune, and read this past Friday's post on the MT's "Delegate Diary" blog written by Oregon delegate (and Jackson County resident) Donna Cain gushing about McCain's speech. Ms. Cain noted a text message from an Oregonian serving in Iraq to his Delegate wife about how McCain's speech had moved him to tears.

I'll get to why it surprised me, but first, Donna Cain's creds: Secretary of Oregon Republican Party, RNC 2008 Platform subcommittee member, 2008 RNC Delegate from Oregon and 2004 RNC Delegate from Oregon.

Notice the "purple heart" bandaged wrist in the bottom right corner of that graphic? That's Donna Cain's arm.

Cain defended her wearing of the "purple heart" band-aid to a CNN reporter.

Kerry, she said, "has made the war that he served in far more important than his recent records of the last 18 to 20 years."

Challenged as to whether the bandage mocked veterans who were injured in the line of duty Ms. Cain responded with,

"It is not in any way defaming of them, because I know people who have received Purple Hearts and I know that they're not boasting about their war record.

McCain is ignoring his own "recent record of the last 18 to 20 years" about being one of the Keating Five... his steadfast opposition to any holiday honoring MLK Jr.... the lobbyists who are running his campaign and advising him. Did anyone at the convention mention his extraordinary record of policy and issue flip-flops? No! But both he and the RNC spent more than a little time talking up McCain's war record, including the fact that he too was awarded a Purple Heart. In fact, I would say that it forms the corner stone of his much-vaunted qualification to be Commander in Chief.

And how does Donna Cain's delegate diary characterize how she feels about having listened to all the talk and watching the video presentations about McCain's war record and his Purple Heart at the convention?

"Intense excitement," "great speech by John McCain," "feeling really good."

Dick Armey addressed the Oregon Delegates to this year's convention over breakfast saying that "When we’re like us, we win. When we’re not like us, we lose".

I'm a little confused. Was Oregon Republican Party secretary, RNC 2008 Platform subcommittee member and Oregon GOP Delegate Donna Cain being "like us" in 2004 when she objected to any mention of wartime heroism? Or in 2008 when she seems peachy keen with it?

Posted by Kevin at September 8, 2008 08:31 AM