Economy Issues Leading Veterans Away From McCain

Kevin E. Creed, a retired Army officer and Bronze Star recipient, is co-chairman of Connecticut Veterans for Obama. "John McCain is not going to get the majority of the veterans' vote, not in Connecticut and not nationwide," the Litchfield lawyer and former Connecticut state trooper says. (PATRICK RAYCRAFT / HARTFORD COURANT / October 23, 2008)

Economy Issues Leading Veterans Away From McCain
By RINKER BUCK The Hartford Courant
October 29, 2008

Even though he once voted for Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, Kevin E. Creed is co-chairman of Connecticut Veterans for Obama, an affiliate of Barack Obama's campaign that is dispatching volunteers to swing states and manning phone banks for Obama.

The strategists plotting war hero John McCain's electoral route to the White House have always been confident that they could count on the likes of Kevin E. Creed.

Creed, a Litchfield lawyer and former Connecticut state trooper, spent 17 years as an Army helicopter pilot before retiring from the military in 1996. After Sept. 11, 2001, Creed was one of 33 retired Army aviators who agreed to be recalled to meet the Pentagon's need for specialized officers during a national emergency.

At the age of 51, Creed left his prosperous Connecticut law practice, lost 40 pounds, dug his old logbooks and flight suits out of his attic and returned to duty as an Army major, traveling between Afghanistan, Iraq and Kuwait as the Army's theater aviation maintenance officer. In April 2003, Creed was shot down south of Baghdad and spent the night camping in the desert until he and his crew were rescued.

He retains one particularly strong memory from his service in Iraq.

The Powell endorsement has reverberated throughout the military establishment. For many undecided military voters, Powell's October surprise could legitimize a vote for Obama.

"It's a complete mistake to think that the Republicans will get the military vote," said Kim Brown, 48, of West Haven, an Air Force veteran who said she is planning to vote for Obama.

"Right now, the VA is either overloaded or cutting back on benefits like prescription drugs or physical therapy, and I have seen people coming back from Iraq paralyzed from their injuries, and they can't even get the wheelchair they need. A lot of us blame that on Bush policies — and McCain is very close to Bush."click link for more

This is one of the biggest reasons I am very angry with some of my Republican "friends" who cannot put politics aside when it comes to the way veterans have been treated by their own party. I don't make this stuff up and it's time they all paid attention to what is real and has been a nightmare for the troops and the veterans. kc