It never ceases to amaze me how low desperate candidates will go in attacking their opponents.
But the slimeball Republican gubernatorial candidate Dan Schwartz reportedly tossed at fellow Republican gubernatorial candidate Adam Laxalt this week is beyond being beyond the pale and should disqualify him from consideration for so much as dog catcher.
Meet Ken Gray…
Mr. Gray is an elected member of the Lyon County (NV) Board of Commissioners. But that is a side note for the purposes of this discussion. The more relevant aspects of his background, culled from his campaign website, are…
“As a 26-year veteran of the United States Air Force and the Nevada National Guard, Ken achieved the highest enlisted rank, retiring from active duty as a Chief Master Sergeant. He was stationed and deployed to locations throughout the world including Germany, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Bolivia, Honduras, and was even among the first military responders deployed to New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. After leaving active duty, Ken joined the office of U.S. Congressman Mark Amodei handling issues involving veterans, public lands and defense, for our congressional district.”
In addition, Ken is also Commander for VFW Dayton Post 8660, Director of the Nevada National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program, and a National Council member of the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States.
In other words, his military bona fides are beyond question.
And the reason this is important is because of an “open note” to Mr. Schwartz that Mr. Gray posted on Facebook this weekend which is absolutely jaw-dropping. I’m reprinting it here in its entirety…
“Mr. Schwartz, you just said in an open meeting in which I was in attendance, that ‘you and your opponent Adam Laxalt are both veterans’. You then continued by saying ‘you served during the Cold War and carried an M-16, and Adam Laxalt served in Afghanistan and carried a briefcase’. Your tone and demeanor clearly indicated that Mr. Laxalt was nothing more than a paper soldier.
“Mr. Schwartz, You have been a good treasurer. However, any support you would ever get from me has just been lost. I am going to work tirelessly to ensure you are soundly defeated. How dare you denigrate another veteran’s service, especially one who served in a real combat zone, Iraq not Afghanistan?
“Just so you know, I served for 26 years in the USAF in many capacities. My daughter currently serves in the USN. In September 2015, I lost my cousin in Afghanistan in a non-combat incident. Was his service any less valuable? In 2009 we lost several briefcase carrying soldiers on Victory Base in Iraq. Was their service any less valuable? You, Sir, owe every veteran an apology!”
Boy, does he EVER!!!
Katelyn Gray, Ken Gray’s daughter and “the Navy’s
newest Petty Officer Third Class, AG3,” 12/13/17
Mr. Gray’s note about Mr. Schwartz’s disgusting, gutter-level attack on Mr. Laxalt’s military service has generated a lot of heat in the comments section…
- “Bad move Schwartz, very bad!” wrote Dennis Johnson. “You are not worthy of the vote of any veteran who has served in a combat zone.”
- “What an insult to our military,” wrote Pam Ellis. “My son served 18 months in all the hot spots in Iraq as a combat engineer blowing up IEDs on the roads. He lost his battle buddy on an IED. I will never endorse Dan Schwartz.”
- “So I guess my son’s two tours in Afghanistan at Camp Leatherneck as a support USMC soldier to the Analysts was not as valuable,” added Andrew Pobirs. “Funny, he carried the same rifle everywhere he went just like the frontline Marines did.”
- “Any time one veteran thinks him/her self better than any other Veteran, based on the area they served in or job they did…I question it,” chimed in Jeff Komulaine. “ALL Veterans are equal. We ALL served.”
There has never been a rationale for Schwartz’s quixotic campaign for governor other than his own self-serving ego. But fine. It’s a free country. If he wants to make a political boob of himself for self-gratification purposes, that’s his right, right
And, yes, politics is hardball. Sometimes even a contact sport.
But even in football there are rules. You don’t hit somebody out of bounds, after the play or from behind. And this revolting attack on Mr. Laxalt’s military service is all of them combined – and then some.
At the very least Mr. Schwartz owes every military veteran in Nevada an immediate public apology, no matter how insincere and insufficient it might be. Better would be to drop out of the race in shame.
But don’t hold your breath waiting for either.
