Patrick McHenry, Republican member of the house of Representatives, is a notorious chickenhawk. He didn't serve in the U.S. military, despite being a vocal cheerleader for the Iraq occupation at every opportunity, and he's a relentless propagandist who questions the patriotism of those who question the Iraq invasion and occupation.
But he recently showed his true colors, and bad luck for him, it's on tape.
You see, Patrick McHenry is happy to show his contempt for soldiers who actually ARE serving in Iraq.
Please read on, for yet another tale of what Republicans really think of our troops. And the tape to prove it!
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McHenry was in Iraq, and a soldier guarding him in the Green Zone had the nerve to question him -- question Patrick McHenry, a member of Congress!!!
From Thinkprogress:
We spent the night in the Green Zone, in the poolhouse of one of Saddam’s palaces. A little weird, I got to be honest with you. But I felt safe. And so in the morning, I got up early — not that I make this a great habit — but I went to the gym because I just couldn’t sleep and everything else. Well, sure enough, the guard wouldn’t let me in. Said I didn’t have the correct credentials.
It’s 5:00 in the morning. I haven’t had sleep. I was not very happy with this two-bit security guard. So you know, I said, “I want to see your supervisor.” Thirty minutes later, the supervisor wasn’t happy with me, they escort me back to my room. It happens. I guess I didn’t need to work out anyway.
Here's the tape:
McHenry talks big about war and security, but his contempt for U.S. soldiers actually serving is obvious here.
In fact, he doesn't even consider Iraq an issue worth discussing, unless he's trying to score cheap political points. Look at McHenry's "issues" page in on his House website:
Crime, Drug Policy, and the Courts
Education and School Choice
Environment
Federal Budget and Government Efficiency
Gas Prices and Energy Policy
Healthcare
Higher Education
Homeland Security
Immigration/Border Security
Jobs, Economy, Financial Services
National Security
Sanctity of Human Life
Sanctity of Marriage
Second Amendment
Small Businesses
Strengthening Social Security
Tax Relief
Trade
Transportation and Roads
Veterans' Affairs
Don't look for talk of Iraq under "Homeland Security" or "National Security" -- all McHenry has there are cheap shots at Democrats, cheerleading for George W. Bush, and lots of stuff about scary immigrants.
As Iraq vet Brandon Friedman pointed out here at Daily Kos, McHenry is a particularly nasty brand of chickenhawk, who despite being of military age refuses to serve himself. He does want to use the sacrifice of others to score petty political points, however:
- Patrick McHenry, age 31
Time left to enlist: 10 years, 4 months, 18 days
Patrick McHenry is perhaps the smarmiest, smuggest member of the U.S. House of Representatives. On February 7, 2007, as a member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, McHenry vehemently defended Blackwater USA—whose home state of North Carolina he represents. Patrick is primarily suited for the military because of his youthfulness and his penchant for vomiting up stupid Republican talking points:
They're advocating a policy called cut and run. They're advocating a policy of waving the white flag to our enemies. It is a policy, Mr. Speaker, make no mistake about it, that the left in this country are advocating. But we are fighting a war. We are fighting a war against Islamic extremists that hate the very fiber of our being as Americans.
We? We who? And would that be the Sunnis or the Shia? It is very rare, even in this day and age, to find someone so young, so passionate about defending this nation, and so willing to lead the nation on the path to war, who has no desire to fight it himself.
McHenry is a chickenhawk of the worst kind, who wants to glorify himself through the blood and sacrifice of real heroes.... but then, when he actually has to deal with one, calls him a "two-bit security guard."
He should be drummed out of office for this. Certainly, it should rise to the level of outrage that was worked up over MoveOn.org's silly "Betray Us" ad.
Please recommend, in order to get this out there. And even if not, please write to your newspapers, the cable shows, your representatives, and let's make McHenry political poison for his next election. This moral midget doesn't deserve to represent the people of North Carolina.
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(P.S. The ThinkProgress item also says that he lied about someone dying in the Green Zone when he was there:
McHenry also claimed that a person died from rocket attacks during his stay in the Green Zone. A U.S. embassy official, however, said “that there were no fatalities from that rocket attack.”)
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UPDATE: 1) Some commentors below wonder whether the guard was actually a contractor -- Blackwater, for example. I can't find any reliable information either way, but invite others to clarify. But since McHenry himself has been a big supporter of the privitization of the military (see Brandon Friedman's comment above), it hardly matters. McHenry bitterly insulted a soldier -- the very people he hides behind to make ugly political points against others.
- This is already getting some play in North Carolina. McHenry's Republican opponent in the May primary is all over it:
“The more McHenry talks, the more I like it,” said Sigmon, McHenry’s opponent in the May 6 Republican primary for Congress. “When he belittles others publicly and attempts to bolster his image through these kinds of exaggerations, voters can see his true character.”
“Besides his obvious contempt for a guard’s assigned duties, his belief that being a congressman makes him immune to the rules and his exaggerated claim of exposure to hostile fire, what really bothers me is the Iraq trip itself,” Sigmon added.
“According to McHenry’s own quotes in the media,” the challenger observed, “he only spent a few hours with the soldiers and, suddenly, he now understands their deep commitment to their mission.”
“I don’t have to spend thousands of taxpayer dollars traveling to Iraq to understand our troops’ sacrifice and commitment. I spent 21 years on active-duty; I know from personal experience the sacrifices my comrades-in-arms and their families make both at home and abroad.”
“This level of understanding cannot be acquired while staying in Saddam’s former palace within a fortified 10-square mile area during a two day ‘photo-op’ tour,” he said.
Sigmon missed the Lincoln County GOP event, instead speaking at both the Catawba County Reagan Day Dinner in Hickory and the Caldwell County Republican Party’s Lincoln-Reagan Day Dinner in Lenoir.
Now let's see some Democrats go after McHenry with equal enthusiasm.