Just finished reading Heart of a Patriot: How I found the Courage to Survive Vietnam, Walter Reed and Karl Rove by former United States Senator Max Cleland. Prior to reading this I was already a Max Cleland fan, but after reading this I can without reservation call Max Cleland a hero.
Warning: This is not a book about a politician. This is not a book about military policy. This is a book about a son, a veteran, a neighbor, a friend who faces his demons, failures and regrets. This is about a person who shows his true courage in repair his shattered life more than any person should endure. This is a book that if you are human will tug at your heartstrings.
cross posted at The Progressive Electorate and Left in Alabama
I met Max Cleland in May of 2002 at a Roy Barnes for Governor fundraiser. He rolled up to me and introduced himself simply as "Max". I remember it like yesterday. One of the nicest and most sincere elected officials I've ever met. About six months later I was shocked watching election returns when finding out that Max Cleland had been defeated by by Saxby "bum knee deferment" Chambliss victory will forever be remember by running the following ad that even GOP Senators were outraged by
After being defeated by Chambliss, Max describes the darkest period in his life since Vietnam when he lost three of his limbs. Until going back to Walter Reed in 2004, Max discloses that he had never been properly treated for his PTSD. There were two moments in the book that I found particularly touching.
1. Max in his second stay at Walter Reed became "fast friends" (his words) with Tammy Duckworth who you might remember ran for Congress in Illinois for Henry Hyde's old seat in 2006. Tammy Duckworth, now an Assistant Secretary for the VA, lost her legs and had her right arm mangled from her service in Iraq. Just like Max from Vietnam he says.
"That Afternoon, she told me that I had been her inspiration. I was blown away. Then she said she was a female Max Cleland . . . Tammy became my hero"
2. Max watched Obama's inaugural address at home in Georgia. Max discusses what this mean to him. Obama mentioned Khe Sanh - the battled that changed Max's life - and Max feels that for the first time this battle was equated with other famous battles. So many of our Vietnam Veterans felt like Max Cleland that they were the most ignored and mistreated group of Veterans in American history.
I will not give away any more of the book, I've offered enough teasers. I promise it is a page turner. This is a review not a report or synopsis. I hope you read this book because it will give you a new appreciation for not only Max Cleland, but our Veterans.