Posted on 10/17/2007 9:55:53 PM PDT by traviskicks
WASHINGTON — Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul, the congressman from the Houston area who opposes the Iraq war, has gotten more contributions than any other White House contender from donors identified as affiliated with the military.
According to a Houston Chronicle analysis of campaign records from January through September, Paul received $63,440 in donations from current military employees and several retired military personnel.
Democrat Barack Obama, another war critic, was second in military giving. The Illinois senator got $53,968 during the nine months.
He was followed by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz, a decorated Navy pilot and former Vietnam prisoner of war, who received $48,208 in military-related giving. McCain has been one of the most vigorous defenders of President Bush's decision this year to increase U.S. troops in Iraq.
The military contributions — nearly 1,000 of them are listed in Federal Election Commission records for this year — represent a small fraction of the overall contributions to the candidates.
Paul, whose campaign Web site notes his military service as a flight surgeon in the Air Force in the 1960s as well as his opposition to the current war, raised a total of $5 million from July through September alone. Also, many contributors do not disclose their occupations, making it difficult to determine the total extent of military contributions to any one candidate.
Nevertheless, analysts said the ability of Paul and Obama to rake in as much money from military employees as they did suggests there is a certain degree of dissatisfaction with the Iraq campaign among veterans and those in uniform.
One of the contributors to Paul's campaign was Lindell Anderson, 72, a retired Army chaplain from Fort Worth, who donated $100 to the Texas lawmaker.
"As a Christian, I think he speaks to a theme that the United States shouldn't be the policeman of the world," said Anderson.
Anderson said he strongly disagrees with Republicans who call Paul anti-military: "He spent five years in the military. People in the military have to respect his integrity" whether or not they agree with him on the war.
But an official with the American Legion, the veterans' service organization that has supported the Iraq war, said she didn't know why military employees support Paul.
"I don't know the rhyme or reason behind it," said Ramona Joyce. "It's America. Anybody can throw their money at who they want to."
At the Texas headquarters of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Austin, state adjutant Roy Grona said military personnel do not vote as a bloc.
"There's probably a lot of veterans that aren't happy with the war in Iraq," he said.
Grona said Paul has been endorsed by the VFW in his congressional races in part because of his support for veterans' benefits.
The average size of Paul's contributions from military sources is $500, with donations ranging from $50 to the maximum $2,300.
More than a third of Paul's military-related contributions came from Army affiliates; a third came from the Air Force; and a fourth from Navy donors. The rest came from affiliates of the Marines and other branches.
Jennifer Duffy, an analyst with the non-partisan Cook Political Report, speculated that Paul might be an attractive candidate for military personnel who oppose the war, "but don't want to cross the line and vote for a Democrat."
Paul has made withdrawal of troops from Iraq and a criticism of aggressive U.S. foreign policy central themes of his maverick campaign.
Kent Snyder, Paul's campaign chairman, said the contributions were evidence that many in the military agreed with the candidate's position.
"I guess they want to get out of Iraq, too," said Snyder.
Texas A&M political science professor George C. Edwards III attributed support for Obama among the military to the factors that he attracts support from many black voters, and blacks are a bigger proportion of the military than their overall share of the national population.
Edwards, who was a guest professor at West Point for three years, said "an awful lot of people in the military just think this war has been a disaster for the Army."
He said they believe the war has "stretched it thin, used its supplies and has been bad for morale."
"They may be quite upset and this is a way they can do something about it," he said.
Obama's support came from across the military, including a squad leader in the Army, a member of the Navy stationed at the U.S. embassy in Iraq, and state Rep. Juan Garcia, a Democrat from Corpus Christi.
Garcia, a retired Navy pilot, serves as an instructor at the Naval Air Station Corpus Christi with the Naval Reserves.
"The men and women of the military are looking for a leader like Barack Obama who will turn the page on foreign policy and national security issues," Obama spokesman Bill Burton said.
Edwards attributed McCain's backing to his being "a former military guy." McCain received the largest number of supporters from Navy, in which he served.
"John McCain has extremely strong support among veterans, especially in the early primary states," spokesman Brian Rogers said. "He's a veteran himself and he's been there for them on the issues for over 20 years."
ping
Self-identified, unverified military affiliations. The statistic proves nothing.
ping
You just responded to yourself my man. It’s OK to talk to yourself and mumble stuff, as long as you don’t start arguing with yourself. Then it’s time to call the guys with white lab coats and nets. :-)
These weren’t military donations; they were donations from para-military Neo-Nazis < /S >
shoot, maybe you’re right, i gotta get to bed. lol
My completely unreliable sources tell me that C.C. Sabathia, Fausto Carmona and Travis Haffner are all big Paul contributors and supporters.
What do you think of them now?:-)
I can’t stop giggling uncontrollably at your new tagline.
 |
  Ron's weekly message [5 minutes audio, every Monday] • Podcast • Weekly archive • Toll-free 888-322-1414 • |
       |
| Free Republic Ron Paul Ping List: Join/Leave |
No, I cannot find it now (very busy), but I imagine some of these guys can get links.
I do know that I work with several active military and interact with many more and not one of them supports Ron Paul in any way, shape or form.
Oh, and Houston is my hometown. I've read the Chronicle for years. They're not exactly the most objective or unbiased source of "news."
I’m very impressed. A legitimate news story from a major American newspaper gets kicked to the RLC backroom, but individual FReepers who make up their own posts detailing all the reasons why they hate Ron Paul get to stay in News/Activism. The mods here are really starting to amuse me. So blinded by hatred and bigotry against Ron Paul that they are making a sham out of the site whose rules they are supposed to enforce. Nice going.
I am now just ignoring it. Facts is facts.
This was originally posted under ‘extended news’, ‘Foreign Affairs’ (armed forces news falls under there), and ‘Politics/Elections’, but it was removed from all of those, so I added it to RLC.
Perhaps this is why we are called ‘liars’ on other threads when we state Paul has rasied more money from the military than other candidates... :)
The money sent in wasn’t really money, it was really just spam by two hippie shrimp boat captains located in mom’s basement. Nothing to see here.
I do not hate RP. It is a fantastic technique that RP and MR supporters use to say if you disagree with the candidate that you hate them. I do not even know RP.
I am sicken by his policy actions. I am disgusted by his continual alinement with the dems over the defense of the USA. I am angered by his anti-semitism.
I do not hate him. I do not believe his assertion or the assertion of his supporters that he gets more military donations than any other candidate. It just does not pass the smell test.
You really need to ping those you mention. Yes, even when you're insulting them.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.