What veterans want in a commander in chief
Mike Waltz remembers being in Afghanistan as a Green Beret when President Barack Obama announced badly needed troop increases – and, simultaneously, a timeline for withdrawal.
A colleague turned to him and said, “Sir, can you imagine Franklin Delano Roosevelt announcing to the world that we have just embarked on D-Day, but telling the Germans we would only be there six months?”
The frustration of that experience impelled him – like a growing number of other veterans – to enter politics, so he can help shape how America deploys its strength abroad.
“What do we value in a commander in chief? I would say, No. 1., it’s letting the military do their job, and not tying their hands from Washington, D.C.,” says Congressman Waltz, who now represents Florida as a Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives.
He is part of a new generation of veterans indelibly shaped
Patriots, rain or shineLeading with strength and humility