PA Vet Tossed Out of Clinton Rally

Human Events ^ | 22 March 2007 | Robert Maginnis

[radar101]

An army veteran was hauled away by secret service agents from a Clinton rally for disputing former president Bill Clinton’s claim that his wife, Hillary, would make a “great commander-in-chief.”

Last Wednesday, Rick Brown, a Pennsylvania resident and a 1973 graduate of West Point, attended a Hillary Clinton town hall meeting in Bethlehem, PA, a community 70-miles north of Philadelphia. Former president Bill Clinton was the featured speaker who arrived an hour and a half late to promote his wife’s credentials for the presidency. That state’s presidential primary is scheduled for April 22nd.

Twenty-minutes into Clinton’s speech Brown, a five-year army veteran, said he had heard enough and shouted his question. Clinton had claimed that there were 34 general officers who endorse Hillary for president and that she would make a “great commander-in-chief.”

Brown, whose son is a junior at West Point, interrupted Clinton to ask whether Hillary, if elected, would gut the military. Brown later explained that he wanted to dispel the myth that Hillary would make a “great commander-in-chief.” After all, Brown explained, “Bill Clinton had gutted the military during his term in office” which left the nation unprepared after the attacks on September 11, 2001.

“And you gutted our military. You’re a liar,” shouted Brown as he was escorted from the packed hotel ballroom. Brown, 56, explained, “It’s good the secret service got me out of there.” The room was filled with “Hillary lovers” and it could have “gotten ugly.”

Clinton made light of Brown’s remarks: "You know, whenever you find somebody screaming, it's normally because they don't have the facts on their side."

"I thought they'd let me be quiet (and sit down) and [Clinton would] answer the question," Brown said. But "I got my point out; he didn't answer."

Local press reports indicate that Clinton responded to Brown’s question by claiming that "In every respect, military readiness was greater when I left office than it is today." "The Republicans gutted the military,” Clinton asserted.

Brown says that he “cringes that the Clintons might once again be in charge of the military.” “Military personnel can’t trust the Clintons to represent the facts to the public,” claims Brown. He fears the Clintons will put the military in dangerous situations and then blame the generals if things go wrong.

His only regret, Brown explained, is that what had been a lukewarm reception for Clinton became a “stirred up and passionate crowd” after the confrontation. ___________________________________________________

Mr. Maginnis is a retired Army lieutenant colonel, a national security and foreign affairs analyst for radio and television and a senior strategist with the U.S. Army

[Intolerant in NJ]

Local press reports indicate that Clinton responded to Brown’s question by claiming that "In every respect, military readiness was greater when I left office than it is today."...military budget was cut 30% under Clinton - remember the "Peace Dividend" that was shuffled into leftwing spending - one of the reasons we've been running a deficit under Bush is that we've had to rebuild what Slick neglected - but what more than lies can you expect from a convicted perjurer........

[art_rocks]

Under Bush 41, the military went from 18 to 10 divisions. This is what most people remember from the 90s.

Here is what Clinton did: Out of the remaining 10 divisions, he took out another 25%. For example, with an armor battalion with 4 companies, he took out one company plus the associated support personnel in the battalion HQs and the Forward Support Battalion. This means you lost a company of tanks, plus the mechanics, medics, and commo people who would support that company. This what most people don’t know.

[xmission]

I was asking about the person being a General. I know that clinton gutted the military.

[jmaroneps37]

Mr. Maginnis is a retired Army lieutenant colonel, and still doing his duty as an American Army officer. God bless you colonel Maginnis.

[radar101]

FREDERIC J. BROWN (Lt. Gen., U.S. Army, Retired) is currently Senior Mentor for establishing Knowledge Management in the U.S. European Command. He received his doctorate, as a West Point Olmsted Scholar, from the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva, Switzerland. As a military officer he commanded army units at virtually every level in the United States, Germany, and Vietnam, including as Chief of Armor and Cavalry where he was deeply involved in rebuilding the American armored forces prior to Desert Storm. He has also served in the Office of the Army Chief of Staff, the Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the National Security Council Staff and the West Wing White House staff. He is co-author, with Zeb Bradford, of United States Army in Transition and author of the subsequent The United States Army in Transition II: Landpower in the Information Age.