This page was last updated on September 20, 2012.
Question of military service; James Augspurger; Beaver County Times; September 20, 2012.
The only previous Augspurger letter of which I’m aware is “What makes America great.”
Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.
“I will not be able to attend the visit by Mitt Romney’s son Josh on Thursday, so I need a favor:
“I would appreciate it if a veteran in the audience could please ask why Josh’s father needed four draft deferments. I would also like to know why Josh or any of his four brothers have never thought it was important to serve their country in the military.”
[RWC] Why a Democrat would go down this road is beyond me. I can only assume Mr. Augspurger messed up or assumes readers are ignorant regarding this topic.
I covered Mitt Romney’s deferments in my critique of “No doubt about it now, Mitt Romney has no shame.”
I don’t know Mr. Augspurger’s age, so some of the following questions may not apply to him personally.
Did Mr. Augspurger question why then-candidate Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) “never thought it was important to serve [his] country in the military?” Remember, Mr. Obama’s opponent, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), was a Vietnam War veteran held as a POW for about five-and-a-half years and whose wartime injuries impaired the use of his arms.
Did Mr. Augspurger question why Mr. Obama’s VP, Joe Biden (D-DE), had five education deferments during the Vietnam War and then was disqualified from service in 1968 (at age 25 or 26) because he allegedly had asthma as a teenager?
Did Mr. Augspurger question why then-candidate Bill Clinton “never thought it was important to serve [his] country in the military?” In both of his elections, Mr. Clinton ran against World War II combat veterans, President George H.W. Bush in 1992 and Sen. Bob Dole (R-KS) in 1996. Wounded in combat, Mr. Dole’s injuries left his right arm paralyzed. As for Mr. Clinton, he actually evaded (an illegal act) the Vietnam draft.
Did Mr. Augspurger question why FDR (His paralysis didn’t occur until his late thirties.) “never thought it was important to serve [his] country in the military?”
Did Mr. Augspurger question why Jimmy Carter obtained a draft deferment and chose to attend college and then the Naval Academy during WWII and never served in WWII? In contrast, though he was only about four months older than Mr. Carter, George H.W. Bush (President Bush #1) enlisted and became the youngest naval aviator to that time. While Mr. Carter was attending college during WWII, Mr. Bush flew 58 combat missions for which he received the Distinguished Flying Cross, three Air Medals, and a Presidential Unit Citation.
Did Mr. Augspurger question why Chelsea Clinton “never thought it was important to serve [her] country in the military?”
Will Mr. Augspurger question why Malia and Sasha Obama “never thought it was important to serve [their] country in the military” if they don’t enlist when they become eligible?
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