UPDATE 5/8/2012 5:14 pm:  Let’s look at the arguments against Warren’s heritage.

1. The son gained no advantage by claiming his mother was Indian.
2. The area where O.C. Sarah Neoma Smith was born was Indian land.
3. The census records are only a valid proof if the census taker had the option to put Indian down for race. One of the comments states that assimilated Indians were listed as white at the time.
4. The Jonathan that is claimed to be the militia member is not Warren’s ancestor but a distant  cousin. There are two Jonathans in the family tree. The report linked below only covers her direct ancestry.

Everyone is forgetting that the Cherokee were one of the “civilized” tribes. They had adopted the English way of life to a great extent, including keeping slaves. They were as civilized as any white settler in the area at that time and cannot be differentiated based on occupation or residence.

UPDATE 5/1/2012 10:19 pm: Child is correct in his research. Neoma or Sarah Smith, born 1794 in North Carolina, seems to be Warren’s Cherokee ancestor. Two caveats. The family is not enrolled with the tribe. The sole reason to believe that she was Cherokee was her son, William’s statement upon his marriage. Clearly it would seem that Warren can claim to be 1/32 Cherokee.

I can find no support for the story that Warren told to the Boston Globe about her pioneering grandmother. While she was the oldest child at the time of the Oklahoma land rush, research appears to show that her mother was still alive.

UPDATE 5/1/2012 7:38 pm: A good Boston Globe article titled Document ties Warren kin to Cherokees. It reports the Chris Child finds but points out that it is not the end of the story. I continue to explore my findings, which are based on a 1880 Census report. Which John H. Crawford married Palina Bowen?

UPDATE 5/1/2012 noon: I sent this link to Hillary Chabot from the Boston Herald. She passed it on to Chris Child. Genealogist of the Newbury Street Press, New England Historic Genealogical Society, who believes that he has discovered the Cherokee link. He believes that I have the parents of John Huston Crawford (1858-1924) incorrect. Child feels that Crawford’s paternal grandmother was Cherokee.

Elizabeth Warren is the Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate seat from Massachusetts currently held by Republican Scott Brown. During her career, she was identified repeatedly as a member of a minority. She is currently claiming that family lore says that her ancestry includes Delaware and Cherokee blood, making her part Native American.

Her life story is compelling. Small town Oklahoma girl rises from poverty to make good. However, has any part of her success resulted from affirmative action programs and policies designed to assist minorities? The record is clear. Employers and colleagues considered her a minority.

Elizabeth Herring Warren is the daughter of Donald Herring and Pauline Reed. The claim is that her Native American heritage comes through her mother. The tribes involved are the Delaware and the Cherokee.

Pauline Reed was the daughter of Harry Gunn Reed and Hannie Elvira Crawford.

Harry Gunn Reed married Hannie Crawford on June 2, 1893, in Sebastian, Arkansas. Reed was born in 1873, in Illinois or possibly Ohio. Crawford was born in Missouri in 1875 or 1876, according to Warren in a February 2012 Boston Globe interview.

Warren’s family came to Oklahoma at the end the 19th century, part of the land rush that preceded statehood.

Her grandmother, Hannie Crawford Reed, who had already lost her own mother, drove a horse-drawn wagon from Missouri to the territory at the age of 13, according to family lore. Hannie’s father rode ahead on a horse.

“Her little brothers and sisters were bouncing around in the back of a wagon,” Warren said of her grandmother, who lived to age 94. “That woman made life happen.”

Harry Reed’s parents were Joseph Reed, born in Ohio, and Charity Gorman, born in Illinois.

Hannie Crawford’s given name was, apparently, Bethanie Elvina. Her parents were John Huston Crawford, born in Missouri, and Palina Ann Bowen, also born in Missouri.

Warren’s story falls apart. Grandmother did not lose her mother at an early age. Palina Crawford died in 1905, in Arkansas. Hannie was born in Missouri. She had siblings that were born after her, in Texas 1883, Arkansas in 1889 and finally Oklahoma 1894, 1896 and 1897.

Incorrect: John Houston Crawford was a druggist in Missouri. His father was a physician, born in Kentucky. His mother came from England.

Palina Bowen’s father was born in Indiana. Her mother was born in Kentucky. Both outlived Palina and both died in Clarksville, Arkansas, where Palina also died.

Incorrect: Nothing in Warren’s maternal ancestry leaps out as Native American. Her mother’s family was raised in the Indian Territory, and that is the most that can be said about Warren’s minority status.

The story in the Boston Globe just is not possible given the other records that seem to exist.

Here is the current report on Elizabeth Warren’s maternal ancestry.

The word “gerrymander” means

to divide (a territorial unit) into election districts to give one political party an electoral majority in a large number of districts while concentrating the voting strength of the opposition in as few districts as possible

according to the Merriam Webster dictionary. New York’s 28th Congressional District was carefully crafted to illustrate that definition. Actually, it was crafted to ensure that the inner cities of Buffalo and Rochester would always be able to elect a liberal Democrat.

New York's gerrymandered 28th Congressional District

The current occupant of this Democratic seat for life is Louise Slaughter. We have criticized Louise in the past for her ultra-liberal views and anti-military stances. And, for the fact that she retains her Texas accent after have been an area resident for decades.

The New York Republican Party routinely offers sacrificial lambs for Louise to slaughter in each Congressional election. We’re hoping that the current candidate can do much better.

Jill Rowland is a practicing dentist, wife and mother. Her name will be appearing on both the Republican and Conservative Party lines on November 2.

Jill Rowland - Click image for more information.

Jill Rowland for Congress

Twitter: @JillforCongress
Facebook: Jill Rowland
Website: http://jillrowland.com/

One list can be found by clicking on the image in the upper left or by going to Tea Party Patriots.

A second list may be found at Tea Party Day.

Be sensible. These parties are both a grassroots movement and the efforts of a number of regional and national groups with agendas. The followers of Ron Paul are heavily involved in some areas. The Libertarian Party is also an organizer in places. If Barry Obama’s “real” birth certificate is not something you worry about, or the actions of the Tri-Lateral Commission bore you, you might find some of the people at a Tea Party just a little off-putting.

A large number of people with a variety of beliefs are joining together for this movement. Bite your tongue or keep it firmly planted in your cheek if you must, but the overarching message of the movement must come through to the media and those undecideds. We are tired of graft, corruption, taxation and the lack of control over our own lives and our own earnings.

Play nice for the cameras. If interviewed, be concise and direct. Taxes, pork and government out of control. A, B and C.

Here are the eight Republican congressmen that went against their party and all common sense to vote for the largest tax increase in history.

Bono Mack (CA) (202) 225-5330
Castle (DE) (202) 225-4165
Kirk (IL) (202) 225-4385 (And he’s seriously considering running for Senate!)
Lance (NJ) (202) 225-5361
LoBiondo (NJ) (202) 225-6572
McHugh (NY) (202) 225-4611
Reichert (WA) (202) 225-7761
Smith (NJ) (202) 225-3765

Michelle Malkin

From Stimulus Watch, this list of projects for the Rochester New York area. My comments in bold.

• Brighton: $3.6 million for Senator Keating Blvd. This street is less than a mile long and lined by medical office buildings. I was there last week and it is in great shape.
• Rochester: Broad Street tunnel rehab: $10 million. An old subway runs under Broad Street. Due to lack of attention over the decades, it is now creating problems overhead. Full of winos most of the time.
• Rochester: Mt. Hope Ave. reconstruction $5 million. Busy street near University of Rochester Medical Center. Narrow, poorly marked, lots of driveways for businesses and many pedestrians.
• Rochester: Art Walk 2. $3.3 million. To extend an “urban art trail” and improve a key intersection. Intersection sucks. WTF is an “urban art trail” and how is it different than a sidewalk?
• Rochester: Milling and resurfacing. $3 million. Doubles the City’s existing program for street repairs.
• Rochester: Jefferson Ave revitalization. $2.5 million. Moving the hookers, gangbangers and drug deals to another part of the city?
• Rochester: Genesee River Crossroads Park Plaza Deck $2.2 million. Fixing the place up for the four people who use it yearly.
• Rochester: East Henrietta Road Reconstruction $2 million. Same dealio as the Mt. Hope work. Road is wider and not as full of pedestrians.
• Rochester: 2009 Hazardous Sidewalk Replacement Program $2 million. Doubles the City’s program. Guns don’t kill people, sidewalks kill people.
• Rochester: Genesee Riverway Trail Rehabilitation $2 million. It’s a nice walk in the summer, but in Rochester it’s unbearable a good part of the year.
• Rochester: Brooks Avenue Reconstruction $1.775 million. Another street project. Heavy truck traffic.
• Rochester: South Clinton/Mount Hope $1.25 million. Improve intersection for hookers, gangbangers and drug dealers.
• Rochester: Cultural District Sidewalk Replacement. $1.1 million. They failed to raise enough money for a performing arts center, but they can fix up the sidewalks for the theater goers at the Eastman, etc.
• Rochester: La Avenida Streetscape Improvements. $1.1 million. Ensuring that the rioters at the annual Puerto Rican festival have a nice area to enjoy their random acts of violence.
• Rochester: 2009 Bridge Maintenance Program. $1.1 million. Doubles the City’s program.
• Rochester: Stutson Street Reconstruction. $400,000. How this did not get down when they put the new bridge in several years ago is beyond me. Part of the “Port” revitalization. Will be just as empty of tourists after it’s completed.
• Rochester: Orchard-Whitney Brownfield Site. $200,000. Obviously unable to make original polluters pay.
• Rochester: Durand Eastman Beach Water Quality Improvements. $1.6 million. To filter the water being discharged from the water treatment facility into Lake Ontario. Apparently water treatment doesn’t mean what I thought it meant.
• Rochester: Charlotte (West) /Summerville (East) Pier Safety Enhancement. $1 million. To keep drunken boaters from running into the damn piers and killing people.
• Rochester: 425-435 Mount Hope Site Environmental Remediation Project Erie Harbor on the Genesee River. $1 million. I don’t have a clue. Sounds like it might be intended to support a private development on the river.
• Rochester: Rundel Library HVAC Upgrades. $2.2 million. They have a new library building. This is for the old building. I have no idea why the building is in use.
• Rochester: Revitalizing Vacant Properties with Clean Energy Systems Grant. $1.5 million. Will this be before or after the drug addicts and arsonists set the places on fire?
• Rochester: Edgerton Recreation Center Upgrades. $1.315 million. It might keep some at-risk kids out of trouble.
• Rochester: Mercury Vapor Streetlight Replacement Project. $1.1 million. More light with less electricity.
• Rochester: Blue Cross Arena Energy Efficiency Upgrades. $831,000. Ice making made more efficient to support pro hockey team at no cost to the team.
• Rochester: Chestnut Street Firehouse HVAC Upgrades. $575,000. 70 year old firehouse. Worth all the trouble?
• Rochester: City Facilities Energy Efficiency Program. $500,000. You’re gonna love this. Change exit signs to more efficient lighting. Tint windows. Improve insulation in 18 buildings. Change exit sign lights????
• Rochester: Rochester Riverside Convention Center Energy Upgrades. $400,000. The Convention Center, where there is no place to park but it gets $$$.

New York Governor David Patterson has appointed two term Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand to fill the remaining Senate term of Hillary Clinton who has been selected to be the next U.S. Secretary of State. Gillibrand is not a national name, though her family and background have certainly led her to a position of some political power in New York State.

Gillibrand grew up the the Albany, New York area and attended private schools. She is a Dartmouth graduate and an alum of the UCLA law school. She worked under Andrew Cuomo at the Department of Housing and Urban Development in the Clinton administration and worked at several well connected law firms.

Her family has ties to both the Republican and Democratic parties, as well as the Erastus Corning political machine that ruled Albany for nearly 40 years.

Kirsten Gillibrand was elected to the House of Representatives in 2006 from New York’s 20th Congressional District. Running north and south between the Hudson River from the Adirondacks into the Catskills, the district was represented by a four term Republican congressman. She is the first woman elected to Congress from the district.

Gillibrand is married and has two sons. She is a Roman Catholic.

Gillibrand has served on the Armed Services committee and the Agriculture committee, both areas of interest to her rural constituency and those voters working for the Watervliet Arsenal.

Gillibrand is considered a “Blue Dog” Democrat, a group of moderate and conservative Democratic members of Congress. She has supported the National Rifle Association on issues but has also supported more liberal initiatives such as withdrawal from Iraq. The New York Times describes her approach, declaring she “has married a relentless political and fund-raising style to a centrist brand of politics”.

The appointment of Gillibrand comes shortly after Caroline Kennedy withdrew from the race. Kennedy was considered a frontrunner but withdrew under heavy criticism from the right and amidst potential problems with her taxes and employees. Andrew Cuomo was also a candidate, the son of a former governor and Secretary of HUD under Bill Clinton.

The American Association of Retired People remarks on her pledged to work in a bi-partisan manner to solve the problems of the elderly in their congratulatory release. The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence has voiced disappointment at the appointment. President Obama released the following “At this time of great challenge I know that Kirsten has the integrity, character and dedication to public service to help us achieve our greatest goals.”

Here is a list of poll closing times for 2008, by time and state. All times are Eastern Standard. Some states have multiple closing times based on time zone or local option.

If you find this post useful, please help us continue our work with a donation, below.

POLL CLOSING TIME EST	STATE	EV	SENATE SEATS	HOUSE SEATS
6:00 PM	Indiana (East)
	Kentucky (East)
7:00 PM	Florida (Peninsula)
	Georgia	15	1	13
	Indiana (West)	11		9
	Kentucky (West)	8	1	6
	South Carolina	8	1	6
	Vermont	3		1
	Virginia	13	1	11
7:30 PM	Ohio	20		18
	West Virginia	5	1	3
8:00 PM	Alabama	9	1	7
	Connecticut	7		5
	Delaware	3	1	1
	D.C.	3
	Florida (Panhandle)	27		25
	Illinois	21	1	19
	Kansas (East)
	Maine	4	1	2
	Maryland	10		8
	Massachusetts	12	1	10
	Michigan (East)
	Mississippi	6	1	4
	Missouri	11	1	9
	New Hampshire	4	1	2
	New Jersey	15	1	13
	Oklahoma	7	1	5
	Pennsylvania	21		19
	South Dakota (East)
	Tennessee	11	1	9
	Texas (East)		1
8:30 PM	Arkansas	6	1	4
	North Carolina	15	1	13
9:00 PM	Arizona	10		8
	Colorado	9	1	7
	Kansas (West)	6		4
	Louisiana	9	1	7
	Michigan (West)	17	1	15
	Minnesota	10	1	8
	Nebraska	5	1	3
	New Mexico	5	1	3
	New York	31		29
	Rhode Island	4	1	2
	South Dakota (West)	3	1	1
	Texas (West)	34		32
	Wisconsin	10		8
	Wyoming	3	2	1
10:00 PM	Idaho (East)
	Iowa	7	1	5
	Kansas (West)
	Montana	3	1	1
	Nevada	5		3
	North Dakota (East)
	Oregon (East)
	Utah	5		3
11:00 PM	California	55		53
	Hawaii	4		2
	Idaho (West)	4	1	2
	North Dakota (West)	3		1
	Oregon (West)	7	1	5
	Washington	11		9
1:00 AM	Alaska	3	1	1
		538	34	435

]]> http://northshorejournal.org/2008-poll-closing-times/feed 1 http://northshorejournal.org/2008-election-poll-closing-times http://northshorejournal.org/2008-election-poll-closing-times#comments Wed, 29 Oct 2008 03:38:18 +0000 Chuck Simmins http://northshorejournal.org/?p=8956

Here is a list of poll closing times for 2008, by time and state. All times are Eastern Standard. Some states have multiple closing times based on time zone or local option.

POLL CLOSING TIME EST	STATE	EV	SENATE SEATS	HOUSE SEATS
6:00 PM	Indiana (East)
	Kentucky (East)
7:00 PM	Florida (Peninsula)
	Georgia	15	1	13
	Indiana (West)	11		9
	Kentucky (West)	8	1	6
	South Carolina	8	1	6
	Vermont	3		1
	Virginia	13	1	11
7:30 PM	Ohio	20		18
	West Virginia	5	1	3
8:00 PM	Alabama	9	1	7
	Connecticut	7		5
	Delaware	3	1	1
	D.C.	3
	Florida (Panhandle)	27		25
	Illinois	21	1	19
	Kansas (East)
	Maine	4	1	2
	Maryland	10		8
	Massachusetts	12	1	10
	Michigan (East)
	Mississippi	6	1	4
	Missouri	11	1	9
	New Hampshire	4	1	2
	New Jersey	15	1	13
	Oklahoma	7	1	5
	Pennsylvania	21		19
	South Dakota (East)
	Tennessee	11	1	9
	Texas (East)		1
8:30 PM	Arkansas	6	1	4
	North Carolina	15	1	13
9:00 PM	Arizona	10		8
	Colorado	9	1	7
	Kansas (West)	6		4
	Louisiana	9	1	7
	Michigan (West)	17	1	15
	Minnesota	10	1	8
	Nebraska	5	1	3
	New Mexico	5	1	3
	New York	31		29
	Rhode Island	4	1	2
	South Dakota (West)	3	1	1
	Texas (West)	34		32
	Wisconsin	10		8
	Wyoming	3	2	1
10:00 PM	Idaho (East)
	Iowa	7	1	5
	Kansas (West)
	Montana	3	1	1
	Nevada	5		3
	North Dakota (East)
	Oregon (East)
	Utah	5		3
11:00 PM	California	55		53
	Hawaii	4		2
	Idaho (West)	4	1	2
	North Dakota (West)	3		1
	Oregon (West)	7	1	5
	Washington	11		9
1:00 AM	Alaska	3	1	1
		538	34	435

]]> http://northshorejournal.org/2008-election-poll-closing-times/feed 1 http://northshorejournal.org/why-do-we-pay-these-people http://northshorejournal.org/why-do-we-pay-these-people#comments Thu, 16 Oct 2008 02:28:42 +0000 Chuck Simmins http://northshorejournal.org/?p=8812

Here is a list of the top slackers and shirkers in the United States Senate. We elected them to represent their state, and to be ‘about the people’s business”. If you and I took this amount of time off, especially if it was to look for another job, we’d be fired.

The Washington Post has a list for the Senate and for the House. Fire Congress!

Please note the irony that the top five lousy Senators include four who ran for President and a brain damaged guy. Maybe I don’t understand the meaning of the word “irony”.

then he paid his mistress $121,000 to go away.

ABC

West Palm Beach Congressman Tim Mahoney (D-FL), whose predecessor resigned in the wake of a sex scandal, agreed to a $121,000 payment to a former mistress who worked on his staff and was threatening to sue him, according to current and former members of his staff who have been briefed on the settlement, which involved Mahoney and his campaign committee.

Mahoney replaced Republican Mark Foley who used Congressional e-mail to write dirty notes to men who used to be Congressional interns.

To Democrats Republican gay = BAD , Democrat adultery = GOOD

Tom Rooney is running against the adulterer.

See: Allen West for Congress 2010

Lt. Col. Allen West Stands With Gov. Palin: Sen. Obama Is “Not One of Us”

In response to the inflammatory racial statements made by Congressmen Meeks D-NY, Towns D-NY, and Jackson D-Ill. in the Jason Horowitz New York Observer article, “Black Congressmen Declare Racism in Palin’s Rhetoric,” (Ret.) Lt. Col. Allen West, congressional candidate for Florida’s district 22, wrote the following:

“I have just finished reading an article written by Jason Horowitz in the New York Observer, “Black Congressmen Declare Racism in Palin’s Rhetoric,” and I am absolutely appalled. I refute the inflammatory comments of Rep. Meeks, Towns, and Jackson and I challenge them to debate me on the issue of race. Yes, I am a black conservative congressional candidate from district 22 in South Florida. This is a congressional district that is approximately 92% white. The tremendous support I’ve received in district 22, and throughout the country, doesn’t jibe with Rep. Towns’ claim that, “racism is alive and well in this country.”

With that said, I reiterate the comment made by Governor Palin: Senator Obama is “not one of us”. We are freedom loving Americans that believe in the Constitution, and shun marxist/socialist dogma. Sen. Obama’s political and social allegiance with William Ayers proves he is, “not one of us.” Let me bring to mind a simple maxim that my mom and dad taught me growing up in Georgia, “folks will know you by the company you keep.” And as a retired Army Lieutenant Colonel I shall share a simple point: because of Senator Obama’s associations, he would not be able to pass a background investigation in order to receive a security clearance. Yet, he seeks to be the Commander-in-Chief of our Armed Forces?

It has become apparent that any person taking a stand against Sen. Obama’s campaign will face the “Brown Shirt” intimidation tactics of individuals seeking to stoke racial fires.

I am sick and tired of the 21st century version of plantation overseers that pass themselves off as black leaders but only keep the black community hostage. When I win this congressional race it will be interesting to see if the Congressional Black Caucus will open their doors to me. I suggest that the door be opened, but then again, would they be racist for not allowing me membership?”

Best Regards,

Lieutenant Colonel Allen B West (US Army, Retired) Candidate, Florida’s US Congressional District 22

Allen West For Congress

Via Gateway Pundit

#dontgo is the Twitter broadcast of the House Republicans action to pressure Pelosi and the Democrats to return to deal with an energy bill.

Day three and the media is beginning to notice that the Republicans are serious.

Patrick Ruffini explains the situation, and, rightly I believe, suggests that this may be a turning point for the right in this country.

The Democratic majority went into recess for five weeks today over the objections of the Republicans. Many Republican Congressmen are refusing to leave.

CSPAN has been shut off. The lights turned off. The sound system was down until they managed to discover the password to turn it back on.

A number of Republican Congressmen are on the floor of the House of Representatives, calling for action on energy policy. The only media broadcast is coming from Twitter and Qik messages sent by Blackberry.

• We are fighting to give the american people a vote on drillig for more oil! Rep. Mike Pence
• Congressman Michael Burgess of Texas here. We are trying to keep the House of Representatives open to force a vote on energy production.
• I’m Adam Putnam of Fl, on the House Floor to stand up for more American energy! Congress can’t go home without solving this!
• Cong Virginia Foxx speaking now – says Speaker Pelosi telling America “Let them eat cake”
• Cong Bill Sali speaking now
• I am Roy Blunt, the GOP Whip, and it an outrageous move the Democrat Leadership has adjourned the House for 5 weeks.
• Cong Ted Poe now speaking – just give us a vote to drill here drill now
• Now Cong Tom Price of Georgia – congress has gone on vacation while America is suffering w high gas prices
• Am Congressman John Shimkus of Illinois. We need American Energy and American Jobs. We are fighting for a vote on supply.
• Min Whip Blunt speaking now describing our bill to drill here drill now to get us through the next 10 to 15 years till we can get new tech
• Cong Mike Rogers says every day Pelosi wastes America sends 50 million to Putin 200 million to Saudi Arabia 180 million to Hugo Chavez
• This Cong mike rogers. Please stand up for an american made energy!! For our national security and our economic security!! Your voice counts
• Cong Rob Bishop says we have to solve energy problem for poor Americans who cannot afford 4 dollar a gallon gas

Saddam seems to have found out. The cost of an all-expense paid trip to Iraq, for example.

Federal prosecutors say Saddam Hussein’s intelligence agency secretly financed a trip to Iraq for three U.S. lawmakers, including Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., during the run-up to the U.S.-led invasion.

An indictment in Detroit accuses Muthanna Al-Hanooti of arranging for three members of Congress to travel to Iraq in October 2002 at the behest of Saddam’s regime. Prosecutors say Iraqi intelligence officials paid for the trip through an intermediary.

In exchange, Al-Hanooti allegedly received 2 million barrels of Iraqi oil.

Examiner

See: Allen West for Congress 2010

Navy Times

Retired Lt. Col. Allen West thinks the good people of Florida respect a leader who takes bold action to get results. He’s confident they’ll vote for him in November because of — and in spite of — an incident in which he took the law into his own hands in Iraq to protect his troops.

“It’s about individual accountability and responsibility, and that’s what people want,” said West, 46, who is running on the Republican ticket in Florida’s 22nd Congressional District. The district stretches from northern Broward Country through to Palm Beach County and includes the areas of Boca Raton, Deerfield Beach and Coconut Creek.

In trying to reclaim a seat that had been held by a Republican for more than a quarter-century, West is running against Rep. Ron Klein, a first-term Democratic incumbent who defeated Rep. Clay Shaw in 2006.

A political novice with a campaign chest of about $50,000, West is taking on a much more politically connected and well-funded foe. Klein served in the Florida House of Representatives, then the Florida Senate, where he was minority leader. The 50-year-old lawyer and lobbyist has raised some $1.8 million in campaign funds.

But Klein has no military service and West considers his own character and track record as a military officer unassailable.

His goal is to land a seat on the House Armed Services Committee, where he believes he’s uniquely qualified to be an experienced voice for the troops.

Still, even with a solid 22-year Army career to back up his claims, he suffered a significant setback in October 2003, when he was relieved of command of 2nd Battalion, 20th Field Artillery, 4th Infantry Division for his illegal treatment of a detainee in Iraq.

He was punished after admitting that two months earlier, he fired a shot from his 9mm pistol as he held it next to the head of a recalcitrant detainee who West said had been stonewalling interrogators at a base near Taji, just north of Baghdad.

But the cop quickly caved in after West’s phony death threat.

After the gunshot, West recalled, the detainee screamed “ok, OK, OK!” and gave up the names of three individuals who were then taken off the streets, ending a cycle of roadside bomb attacks on West’s men that had been escalating the previous three weeks.

West said he knew firing the gun would probably end his career but nevertheless did it to protect his soldiers.

I’ve set up a series for this topic and I will be following the campaign.