Letter from Congressman Pete Stark Criticizing the Military

A class of senior Army War College officers (all of whom are either Iraq or Afghanistan combat veterans with multiple deployments) were taking part on a tour of Congress. All of this was officially approved and part of the Army War College curriculum.

The officers observing Congress hold multiple bronze stars between them; and other citations too numerous to mention.

Congressman Pete Stark observed them in the gallery, and below is his official letter of outrage.

LETTER FROM REP. STARK TO SECRETARY GATES ABOUT POSSIBLE ABUSE OF MILITARY OFFICERS' TIME

Below is the text of a letter sent today to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates by Representative Pete Stark (D-CA), regarding the possible abuse of military officers' time.

The Honorable Robert Gates
Secretary of Defense
1000 Defense Pentagon
Washington, DC 20301

Yesterday, while voting on the war supplemental spending bill in the House of Representatives, I couldn't help but notice a contingent of approximately 20 flag rank Army officers sitting in the House Gallery watching the debate and vote for a couple of hours. I was looking from below so I thought they were Army, but there could have been other branches present.

It's possible they were on leave time or vacation. If so, I obviously have no concern. However, if they were doing this on military time, I want an explanation of why they were there.

At a time when our nation is at war, our troops are over-extended, and the Administration is literally asking for emergency military spending, what good to the "war on terror" is having US Generals and other top ranked officers - who were likely accompanied by staff and escorted by their chauffeurs - spending hours sitting in the gallery of the House of Representatives?

Please provide for me the name, rank, branch, and duties of each of these officers, as well as the number of additional staff and drivers that were used to facilitate their attendance yesterday. I would like this information by Monday, May 19th.

If they were here on official duty, this was an abhorrent misallocation of our military resources at a time of war.

CC: The Honorable Jack Murtha, Chairman, Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Defense

Hey SkyPilot and All. The response should have been.

LETTER FROM PENTAGON TO CONG. PETE STARK

Hon. Pete Stark
Yada,
Yada,
Yada

Dear Congressman Stark,

Thanks for the input from you. Obviously, from the tone of your letter, you are not aware of who we are. We “collectively” (if that is a term you are more comfortable with) are known as the Joint Chiefs of Staff, perhaps you have heard of us?

We are charged with protecting the American Republic and ensuring that our brave Men and Women serving are provided the funds to carry out that mission.

We simply wished to see for ourselves how much pork you and your colleagues would vote for in the current appropriations bill. Money that might have been better spent ensuring the the success and safety of our mission, rather than being squandered on pet projects for an obvious military hater like you!

We at the Pentagon love to hear from the elected representatives in Congress. Please write again if you ever have anything significant or reassuring to say .

Sincerely,
The Pentagon (and the people we serve, the American People.)

PS - Please allow drilling for oil that we have in our country so we can be energy independent and not have to deal with the folks over there anymore.

PPS - Hoorah!

I’d forgotten that this country’s finest poets are its non-commissioned officers - until reading your missive to Rep. Stark (D-Al Qaeda), on his demand that the Department of Defense provide a list of several serving members of the US military because they dared darken the doors of Congress (while Congress was raping the defense budget on behalf of their lobbyists and their corrupt selves in the guise of voting on an appropriations bill).

God bless you and may your tribe increase, Sergeant. Like you, I don’t care if the military in question WERE flag-rank officers; my son was also a Sergeant in the Army (LA National Guard, to be specific) when one of Stark’s soul mates set three 155mm shells off under his squad’s Bradley.

It was the second time that month it had happened to my son’s squad; this time they had a full combat load, all their hatches jammed as the vehicle turned turtle, and this time they weren’t lucky. My son was buried in a closed casket, his beret covering his face because the guys at Dover AFB hadn’t been able to give him back his face.

As you said, even if the people Pete Candy-ass Commie loving Stark were upset about were officers, and even if they were playing hookey from their desks at the time, they were also serving members of the military that protects his sorry ass from having an airliner parked on top of it by one of his fans from Saudi Arabia.

I just wish Stark never showed up for what he calls “work.” His constituents might be better represented; the rest of us would DEFINITELY be better off. The left-wing polecats who put this POS in Congress term after term should simply secede from the United States and demand that they be defended not by the US Army, but by Reps. Stark and Pelosi from this point on. Should be entertaining.

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