Transcript - Vets for Congress

This Week: About the Show | 'Video the Vote' Movement Gains Momentum | Vets for Congress | Transcript

Watch the Videos: John Courage | Van Taylor

FIRST VIDEO: JOHN COURAGE

JOHN COURAGE: We have been silent too long.

MARIA HINOJOSA: John Courage is one of the so-called "fighting Dems," one of over 60 veterans around the country who're running for higher office as Democrats.

Courage is an air force veteran running for Congress in the 21st district in Texas. His opponent is Republican incumbent Lamar Smith...this district includes San Antonio—the city known as military town U.S.A. ...and Courage is hoping his military service will help him win.

COURAGE: No more young American lives should be shed for people who can't resolve their own differences.

HINOJOSA: I sat down with Courage and two veterans who are campaigning for him and I asked them about the war.

Do you consider yourself an anti-war candidate?

COURAGE: I'm anti this war. I didn't oppose the United States acting the way it did going into Afghanistan and going after the real enemy at the time, which was al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden.

HINOJOSA: But Courage says Iraq is not that kind of war. And he believes we need to get out as quickly as possible.

COURAGE: The government of Iraq, the people of Iraq, the different factions that are fighting with each other need to come to the table. If they recognize we have no intention of staying there—and if they can't resolve their own problems there's no reason for us to stay one day longer, then maybe that will bring them to the table.

HINOJOSA: Courage has won supporters among veterans in his community. Meet Vietnam vet Emilio Serrano.

It was important for you that John Courage was a veteran?

SERRANO: Yes, ma'am. Absolutely.

HINOJOSA: Because as a—

SERRANO: Because we need people in Congress that understand what the military has to go through when they go to war.

HINOJOSA: Serrano agrees 100 percent with Courage's platform, but he's worried that an anti-war label will alienate the troops.

SERRANO: I'm a military person. I love my troops. And they have pride. I love what they're doing. And—and they're not doing by choice. They have to do it because that's their job.

So it's very hard for me to tell them, "Hey, you know, you shouldn't be there." It's like an insult. That's what happened in Vietnam.

And there was a very bad morale in the military back in those days. And they were—we were treated very bad. And I don't want that to be repeated because of this war.

We have to say, "Yeah, we are—we—we're anti-war. But the main thing is we want to bring the troops home safely. And we don't want no more of them to be killed."

HINOJOSA: "Dutch" Berkley served in the air force during Vietnam and he decided to stump for courage when he realized his neighbors rarely talked about the war in Iraq.

The war is not a subject that comes up?BERKLEY: No.HINOJOSA: Even though you're in San Antonio, which is a—BERKLEY: Right.

HINOJOSA: -somewhat of a military city.

BERKLEY: Right. But most of the people that I hang out with in my part of town are not military.HINOJOSA: Why do you think that people turn away from wanting to talk about it as an issue?

SERRANO: A lot of people are afraid that if they start talking—against the—the war—they're going to be accused of being traitors. And yellow. And I think that's a big factor of why they don't talk about it. They might really believe in it. But they don't want to admit it.

BERKLEY: People have trouble talking about painful issues. They know that our troops are suffering. That they're getting blown apart every day. People don't want to talk about painful issues.

HINOJOSA: We had Dutch here saying the overwhelming majority of people just glaze out, phase out when it comes to talk on the war.

COURAGE: Well, that's why I say I think it should be a major issue. And, I also elaborate on the cost that it's—it's imposed on us to our civil liberties and to our rights, to our opportunities for success in this country.

Not only the cost in our civil liberties, but the cost financially. And, the lack of money available to do so many other things, you know, to improve the quality of living for us all. And, if people think of all of those different components as part of a problem related to the war, and how it effects their lives individually, then I think I can convince them that I will work to change that direction. And, to support me as a candidate.

HINOJOSA: We accompanied courage to a town hall meeting in San Antonio, and just as Dutch Berkley said: people were reluctant to mention the war.

Many of you asked questions about healthcare, taxes, but not the war in Iraq...

There is an element of fear, if you speak out against the war, you're a traitor.

It's a little bit difficult when you're in a military city.

War is almost the elephant that is taking over the living room.

Only within the last few months have I seen bumper stickers questioning policies...I do detect a shift even among the main stream.

BERKLEY: We need to think about it. We need to pay attention to what's going on. And we need to let people care about what's going on to get our troops out of there as soon as possible. That's how you care about the troops. And the military. For me.

COURAGE: Now is the time for Democrats, particularly veteran Democrats, to stand up and say, "You know we're tired of being told we're unpatriotic as a Democratic party."

"We're tired of being told that we just need to stay the course," when all of us could see that the course was heading for disaster.

SECOND VIDEO: VAN TAYLOR

[Footage of Taylor in factory]

TAYLOR: I'm the Republican running for Congress here. Served in Iraq, and like to go work for you for lower taxes and less government.

Yeah, well I'm—I'm running for Congress here, and served as a Marine in Iraq and would like to go work for you for lower taxes and secure borders and traditional family values. Be honored to have your support.Served as a Marine in Iraq, and would like to go work for you in—lower taxes and less government.

MAN: Good. Good.

HINOJOSA: Van Taylor is campaigning in Waco. He is a former Marine platoon leader running for Congress here in the 17th district of Texas, right in the heart of Bush country.

He's one of several vets running in this state, but he's the only Iraq war vet in the entire country running as a Republican.

HINOJOSA: Tell me what this is.

TAYLOR: This is a flag that I picked up off the floor at the police station in Afak, Iraq on April 8th, 2003. And it was a pretty—pretty amazing day for me, because on this day, we entered into a town, and the people started cheering, "Bush! Bush! Bush!"

HINOJOSA: Taylor hopes his experience on the ground in Iraq will win him the election in Bush's home district. TAYLOR: There are a lot of people who served with me, in Iraq, or who are there now, who are really hoping—that someone goes to Washington who understands what they're going through, knows their experience, and will go watch their back in Washington, DC.

HINOJOSA: You talk about the war, how does it play as an issue here?

TAYLOR: People here, by and large, understand what is at stake in Iraq. It's nothing less than our survival as a nation, out freedom, our future.

HINOJOSA: But are they engaged? Are they saying, you know—"Van—we have to do something, we have to pump up the troops, or we should pull out"? Just what's you're reading on—on Waco and—and the war?

TAYLOR: I think people here are resigned. I mean, they understand what we need to do, and they're committed to making sure that we win the war on terror—wherever it may be, wherever it may take us, whatever the cost is. We've go to win.

And I—And I'll never shrink from that personal commitment, that internal drive to make sure that we destroy al-Qaeda terrorists wherever they may be. And if they're in Iraq, we need to hunt them down and kill them right there. If they're in the Horn of Africa, if they're in—if they're in Afghanistan, wherever they may be, we've got to find them.

What Osama bin Laden wants is he wants America to give up on defending itself. He's counting on liberal Democrats to lead the way, to undercut our will to defend ourselves.

HINOJOSA: But despite his warning to voters about liberal democrats, Van Taylor isn't running against one. His opponent, Chet Edwards is a popular conservative Democrat. At this point in the race, Edwards is way ahead in the polls. And nationally, most Americans seem to be turning against the idea of staying the course in Iraq.

Now it seems that the Republicans are saying, "Maybe don't use the war." And the Democrats are the ones that are talking about the war and raising the failed policy issues.

TAYLOR: I don't take orders from anybody, except for the Marine Corps and my wife. And as the—as the first member of Congress who served in the 'war on terror,' I'll have a unique role to play to make sure that we don't quit on ourselves, that we don't betray our troops in the battlefield and leave—

HINOJOSA: You're going to take on your own party when you go to Washington, if they're—if they're saying, "Maybe we need to rethink this?"

TAYLOR: I will always stand up for what is right, whether it's a Republican thing or a Democrat thing. If you walk away from Iraq, al-Qaeda is a dog that will follow you home. And it will come here, and it will tear apart our life, our way of life. There's too much at stake. And if—And if Democrats want to cut and run, I'm against them. And if there are Republicans that want to cut and run, I'm against them too. Cutting and running will not make us safer. It will imperil our nation and our future.