Senate candidate Noriega, military wives discuss Democratic support for military--Sunday 2pm CST
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Show details at MOMocrats Blog Talk Radio.
On Sunday, October 26, 2008 at 2 p.m. U.S. Senate candidate Rick Noriega will join Stephanie Himel-Nelson and Vivian Greentree along with host Julie Pippert on MOMocrats Blog Talk Radio. On this show, experts Noriega, Himel-Nelson and Greentree will discuss Democrat support, plans, and policies for military personnel and their families.
Mainstream patriotic military families are coming out to support the Obama-Biden campaign in an unprecedented manner this election, despite claims of the McCain campaign that military families and veterans uniformly support him. Recently, General Wesley Clark (ret.) and former Secretary of State Colin Powell endorsed Barack Obama for President. Still, however, many do not equate support of the military with the Democratic party.
Greentree and Himel-Nelson---both members of Blue Star Families for Obama---disagree, and state that Democrats are friends to military personnel.
"The Obama campaign pays attention to the issues and concerns of military families," said Greentree, "They meet with family members, include our issues in their platform and proposals - this is the first time we've seen this kind of attention."
Noriega, who is currently running for U.S. Senate, has an extensive background in the armed forces and in public office. In 2004, as a Lieutenant Colonel in the National Guard, Noriega was deployed to Afghanistan. Since then, he’s been a leader on many military and veterans’ issues. He’s also a Democrat from Texas. Noriega will discuss how the Democratic party and leaders like him can support members and spouses of the military as well as civilians.
Himel-Nelson and Greentree will discuss the issues members of the military and their families face, and why they believe Democrats can meet these needs.
“A lot of the issues in the military and civilian world are the same, only they're a bit more amplified in the military because of the constant moving,” said Himel-Nelson, whose brother is currently serving in the Middle East with the Ohio National Guard and previously served in the Army; her husband recently retired from the Navy after 20 years of active and reserve duty; her father was a career Air Force officer; and her grandfather flew in the Berlin Air Lift.
For example, she said, foreclosure rates are four times higher for military service members, and families often take a financial hit when they have to sell and relocate during a housing slump. She also said that education, health care and veterans funding are concerns.
Greentree is a Navy veteran and spouse. She is currently using her GI Bill and is on a fellowship for her Ph.D. in Public Administration and Urban Policy, in which her areas of research include leadership, public-service motivation, and reproductive health care policy.
Both Himel-Nelson and Greentree support Barack Obama, and believe he is the best leader for military and civilian citizens alike. They belong to Blue Star Families for Obama, a grassroots organization of military family members supporting Barack Obama for President. They have chapters in 24 states and regularly communicate with tens of thousands of supporters. Himel-Nelson is the BSF4O Deputy Director- Outreach and Greentree is the BSF4O Leadership Co-Director. Both are Virginia based.
Callers may call in to the show with questions and comments.
Click here to get more details about the show!
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