Iraq veteran who supports war running for Congress (Republican)

The AP via pressofatlanticcity.com ^ | March 28, 2006 | Rebecca Santana

[new yorker 77]

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) - Saying he was angered by calls to pull American forces out of Iraq, an Iraq war veteran who says the U.S. should stay the course in the Middle East announced Tuesday he was running for Congress in a northern New Jersey district currently represented by a strong opponent of the war.

Vince Micco, 34, a reservist who served in Iraq for a year, will face five-time Democratic incumbent Steve Rothman, 53, in the 9th Congressional District in Bergen, Passaic and Hudson counties.

"I'm an Iraq war veteran, and it really bothers me the way the war is being portrayed by the president's critics," said Micco, a former Army sergeant who was a counterintelligence specialist in Iraq and an Army reservist for nine years.

"I am running because the American people can and should be proud of what we're accomplishing in Iraq, and throughout the Middle East," Micco said.

Micco, who has been active in Bergen County Republican politics for years and served two terms as the head of the Bergen County Young Republicans, said he has the endorsement of the county Republican organization.

The Republican candidate, who works as a mortgage banker and lives in Rutherford, said he decided to run after Rothman called for a rapid pullout of U.S. troops from Iraq, saying that the war had hurt the military, the war on terrorism and the economy.

Rothman, who voted in favor of the Iraq invasion three years ago, has said he was acting on incorrect information from the Bush White House that Saddam Hussein posed a threat and he now regrets the vote.

"To just cut and run like some people in Congress are advocating is a disservice to the thousands of military people that I served with," Micco said.

Rothman, speaking from Washington D.C., said while he respects Micco for serving his country, he disagrees with the Republican candidate about the war.

"He supports President Bush's policy of staying the course for a number of additional years in Iraq, exposing our servicemen and women to death and grievous injury and further deepening our financial problems here at home," Rothman said.

Micco will face an uphill battle to win the seat, said Rider University political analyst, David Rebovich.

He said Micco's background could be a plus to voters in the district which was greatly impacted by 9/11 and where national security issues and the war on terrorism are important. But his support for President Bush wouldn't play well in a state where people went strongly Democratic in the last presidential election, Rebovich said.

"Is he a cheerleader for the Bush White House or does he have some alternatives to the situation in Iraq?" Rebovich said.

Finances could also pose a problem, he said.

In order to launch a competitive campaign, Micco, who was holding his first fundraiser Tuesday night, would have to air television ads in the expensive New York media market, said Rebovich.

[zoomie81]

LOL...sounds like New Jersey. Luckily we have conservatives that aren't afraid to go against party line. John Ginty will be challenging party favorite Tom Kean Jr. for the Senate race. Vince Micco is another name that is willing to go against the RINO Republicans.

[rlmorel]

I don't think he has to worry. I think we, as citizens are free to use that material as we see fit...we paid for it, after all! I could be wrong though. "Any Lawyers in the House?" (Said in best Eddie Murphy voice)

[Coleus]

Kean Is Challenged From the Right in U.S. Senate Race

ex-Navy, supports the president

[boxerblues]

bump for later

[NorthEastRepublican]

Who is running for senate?

[new yorker 77]

Hiram Lewis - West Virginia

http://www.hiramlewis.com/

[qam1]

Vince Micco, 34, a reservist who served in Iraq for a year,

What we need, More Conservative Gen-Xers and fewer baby boomers

Xer Ping

Ping list for the discussion of the politics and social (and sometimes nostalgic) aspects that directly effects Generation Reagan / Generation-X (Those born from 1965-1981) including all the spending previous generations (i.e. The Baby Boomers) are doing that Gen-X and Y will end up paying for.

Freep mail me to be added or dropped. See my home page for details and previous articles.  

[LibertarianInExile]

As much as I dislike boomers sticking us with their bills, I don't care if more Gen Xers or Boomers or Gen Yers are elected--as long as they are conservative, pro-Constitution, Gen Xers or Boomers or Gen Yers. If you're a liberal, I don't care if you were born on my f'in birthday and in my hometown and in the exact same situation as me. You ain't getting my support.

[Clemenza]

Heavy Hispanic presence in south Bergen County and north Hudson. The Arabs Muslims are largely to be found in Pascrell's district, as they are mostly in Clifton and Patterson.

The district has a large Jewish (Orthodox and Reform) presence, as well as sizeable black populations in Teaneck, Englewood and Hackensack. In other words, the district is intentionally split, so that the bulk of Bergen's white population is in Garrett's district, while the immigrant and "people of color" areas are in Rothman's.

My advice to Vince is to reach out to the Koreans in Fort Lee, Englewood, and Palisades Park. They have supported GOP candidates locally in the past, and have been all but ignored by Rothman. Ethnic politics being a reality in this districts and all.

[LucyJo]

http://www.billspadea.com/micco-letter.php I disagree with your March 2, 2006 editorial, entitled “Exit strategy.” A cut and run strategy in Iraq is wrong. What we need is unity and resolve when our nation is at war. Remember the smiling, photo-op seeking politicians standing side by side in front of the U.S. Capital, singing patriotic songs for the cameras after September 11, 2001? That national unity was invaluable during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. It is sorely missed and our country is paying a heavy price for its absence in Operation Iraqi Freedom. I spent yearlong military deployment in Iraq as a sergeant in the U.S. Army. My job was counterintelligence. The Iraqis risked their lives week after week to pass actionable intelligence to people like me. Their children look up to American servicemen like we’re celebrities. They’re grateful that we liberated them from Saddam Hussein. Now they need us to help them pick up the pieces and move forward like the United States did for Germany and Japan after World War II. The vast majority of Iraqis are benevolent people who appreciate us Americans but are getting frustrated with the trouble-makers who are funded and agitated by Iran and Syria. To abandon Iraq would be an insult to the service of the thousands of American I served with in Iraq and would paint a shameful picture of American resolve. One need only remember the attacks on the Khobar Towers, which begot the attack on the USS Cole, which begot the attacks on September 11, 2001 to realize that American resolve is something our adversaries make calculations about when they consider attacking us. Our military is equipped to destroy any enemy on the earth, but it’s no match for faint-hearted politicians pushing timetables. If we can’t rely on our elected leaders for unity and resolve when the going gets tough, then I feel a moral imperative to my fellow servicemen, my President and to the American people to carefully consider seeking a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Vince Micco- Rutherford

[LucyJo]

http://www.billspadea.com/micco-letter.php

Sorry about this link in previous post.