VoteVets, the progressive veterans organization, has come with a statement expressing excitement over the possibility of retired Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez running for Senate in Texas:
"General Sanchez has such a compelling story, and already served this nation honorably and ably," said Ashwin Madia, an Iraq War Veteran, and Interim Chairman of VoteVets.org. "We're always happy to see veterans entering politics as a way to continue their public service, but it's especially encouraging to see one of our military's finest minds, like General Sanchez, considering a new life in public service. We could use more people like General Sanchez in public life."
As I wrote yesterday, a Senate Armed Services Committee investigation found that Sanchez' actions while overseeing military operations in Iraq "were a direct cause of detainee abuse." Vote Vets has been critical of torture and supportive of the effort to close Guantanamo Bay. They've also made it a point to support veterans running for office.
While Sanchez has since publicly rejected torture, how the various elements of the progressive movement line up for or against his candidacy when and if he decides to run, is going to be interesting to watch.
UPDATE:Vote Vets Vice Chairman Richard Allen Smith writes in: clarifies that the release was not meant to be an official endorsement saying:
I just wanted to send over a clarification regarding your headline and the use of the word "supporting". To be clear, we are not endorsing Sanchez and have not indicated an intent to endorse. As Ashwin has said, we are encouraged anytime a Veteran of Sanchez's stature decides to continue their public service is this venue.
