Some veterans wary of GOP frontrunners’ tough talk on foreign policy

Some veterans wary of GOP frontrunners’ tough talk on foreign policy

By Zac Anderson
Tallahassee bureau
Published: Friday, January 27, 2012

JACKSONVILLE — After spending two tours in Iraq and losing two friends in combat, Army veteran John Fails listens with skepticism to the tough foreign policy talk coming from the GOP presidential frontrunners.

“Every deployment has a cost,” said the 27-year-old, who served in Iraq from 2003 to 2004 and now studies public policy at the University of North Florida.

From covert operations against Cuba to confronting Iran over nuclear weapons, the Republican candidates — with the exception of Rep. Ron Paul — are largely pushing a hawkish approach to conflicts overseas.

In the past, such bellicose talk may have been guaranteed to win over support in this generally conservative region, with a heavy concentration of retired and active duty service members.

But Fails and other veterans interviewed on the campaign trail expressed the weariness of a segment of the population asked to bear the brunt of nearly 10 years of war in two countries, conflicts that killed more than 6,000 American soldiers and cost the country at least $1 trillion.

Florida has 19 military bases — including the Central Command for Iraq and Afghanistan — and more than 1.6 million veterans, so perceptions about who would make the best commander in chief can play a big role in presidential contests. Veterans’ support helped seal Sen. John McCain’s victory in the state’s 2008 Republican primary.
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