It really takes a lot of chutzpah to try to call into question a vet's military record on Memorial Day Weekend, when you yourself never served a day. Hopefully this disgraceful attack on Kirk will simply backfire on Alexi and highlight the fact that Alexi was playing basketball in Greece while Kirk was serving Navy intelligence.
From the Kirk for Senate campaign:
My Navy Service Official Record Speaks for Itself
Dear Friend:
I was commissioned as an Ensign in the US Navy Reserve in 1989. I have now served 21 years. For the last 10 years, as a Member of Congress, I served without pay because I love the Navy, her duty, honor, country. In uniform, I served during conflicts with Afghanistan, Iraq, Haiti and Bosnia. I am proud of my service – it is the honor of my life to work with Americans who keep America safe.
Last week, I found that I misidentified a military award and corrected my biography. According to the Washington Post, their reporter worked with Alexi Giannoulias' campaign to write a story that turned out to be imprecise about the title of an award included in that biography.
The error was discovered last week by my staff. Going through my Fitness Reports for 1999/2000, we recognized that referring to an award as “Intelligence Officer of the Year” was not precise – so we corrected my biography with the official name of a very distinguished award that I am honored to have received.
My corrected biography accurately shows I received the United States Navy Rufus L. Taylor Intelligence Award – as the leader of an ad-hoc intelligence effort supporting four EA-6B Prowler electronic attack squadrons as part of Operation Allied Force – instead of Intelligence Officer of the Year. I accepted the Taylor Intelligence Award (named after the head of navy intelligence in World War II) as the leader of an intelligence section that I assembled and led. There is no hierarchy between these awards as the Taylor Intelligence Award is equally distinguished.
Watch the Kirk Campaign’s Response to Alexi Giannoulias’ Desperate Attack
I knew Alexi Giannoulias would focus on a negative campaign – in fact, he and his consultants announced that in the New York Times. I corrected the record, but I will not let my 21 years of service in uniform be denigrated by Alexi Giannoulias, a man who chose not to serve.
Frankly, I thought it took some nerve when he ran a television ad claiming credit for what amounted to tens of millions in investment losses from the college savings of thousands of working families under Illinois Bright Start – or to follow it up with a second ad looking for sympathy after so many of his decisions ran his bank into the ground, costing the FDIC $394 million. But coming after my 21-year Navy service record just might top those.
In November, Illinois voters have a choice – so let us look at my opponent’s record – here it is. Because of that record he has made a strategic decision to attack my military service record. I understand politics is a tough business – but this attack orchestrated by Alexi Giannoulias is a disgrace.
My official Navy records speak for themselves – read them here.
Our state and nation face serious problems - and having a veteran's military record challenged by a politician who never served and was anointed by the media as a "mob banker" is absurd.
I look forward to the contest and laying out the choice. If Alexi wants to make this race about my military record, I'm happy to have the debate. Thank you for your continued support.
Very truly yours,
Mark Kirk
Member of Congress
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13 comments:
This is both good and bad. Good in that Alexi was stupid enough to dump this right before memorial day weekend which means as of tuesday it's a dead story. Bad in the sense that mark has no margin for error and this is the kind of stupid self inflicted wound that loses candidates elections see gash, lauren beth, the rebellion of her campaign staff on her, seals, dan- too many to list.
Part of running for national office is doing opposition research on yourself so you know what attacks are coming and have well prepared defenses so that when they come you have plans to neutralize them. Bush famously dealt with his mediocrity by calling himself a common man and sought to neutralize his social conservatism by running as a compassionate conservatism.
I saw a headline on nbc5 where the story was Kirk lied about record.
not good.
the good news is this came out now and not the last weekend in october where it could have cost him votes.
blago trial starts this week and the beauty of it for mark is that unlike the ryan thing which was just one guy being stupid, this is an entire democrat party on trial which will make it easier for king louis astaves the alexi ellen and pup slayer to say to his neighbors next fall, it wasn't just blago it was the whole party, they are all rotten and lets get them out of office.
Fan of king louis astaves the ellen pup and alexi slayer.
Members of the Armed Forces are held to higher standards, whether fair or not. These types of faux pas do not sit well with veterans and it will take away votes in November. You just don't make more of an award that is not on the citation. The opposition will be sure to re-hash this and any subsequent punishment Mark receives from the military chain of command. If his chain of command tries to sweep this under the table because he is a Member of Congress, then that in itself will be spun to hurt Mark.
Thank goodness Alexi didn't serve in the military. The guy has fu*ke* up just about everything he has done in his short adult life (failed bank, failed bright start program). We cannot afford to have consummate failures in our military, the stakes are just too critical.
-The Oracle of Mirth
While definitely something that Mark and the Kirk team will have to deal with, in the grand scheme of things I don't think it's a deal breaker. Mark has a more than 20 year record of strong military service, awards that are verifiable, commendations for outstanding service. Couple this with his continuing service right now each month when he easily could have shelved it to run his Senate campaign. He hasn't done that, folks. I've seen that award statement ever since Kirk ran in 2000. IF he truly thought he was deceiving the public I think he and/or the staff would have removed that statement years ago. Knowing Mark Kirk, I know that this was an honest misstatement and not something more sinister.
What sickens me more than anything I can state, TA, is the disgraceful, unwarranted, over the top crap coming out of that woman's blog. Her hatred for Mark is more evident than I've ever read. She, not Mark,is a disgusting, vile liar.
This will not end this week, but it will fade in time because Mark Kirk is head and shoulders above Alexi and anyone else the Democrats might send this way. His verifiable record is more than outstanding. His service while others choose the easy route in life, is to be admired and appreciated. This might make the next 5 months more challenging, but Mark Kirk is the only choice for the office of US Senator from IL. My family, my friends and associates have not changed our commitment to this outstanding candidate. Let's just redouble our efforts to help him in his election in November.
anon 1 you are incorrect, this is not like dodging the draft because you want to run for president or throwing away your medals or saying you went to vietnam but did not, this is misttating a reservist award, which he actually did win. He won an award, it's just a symantics game. What is not a symantics game is the fact that alexi never served, has no understanding of foreign policy and has a failed mobster bank to his name.
Fan of King Louis astaves the ellen pup and alexi slayer
Fan of the king...you are dead wrong on this one!
This singlehandedly makes this a race Alexi can win again, and knowing Alexi's campaign team, they probably have at least one more big hit that they drop soon.
Anon 3:40, that's a lot of wishful thinking and nothing more. Kirk is doing a great job of talking to the press, explaining how this mini error happened way back in his 2000 campaign. I was at the Arlington Heights parade today. Kirk received a great ovation from the crowd,had a huge group of walkers with him, including many sporting T shirts that said, Veterans for Kirk. Alexi is such a flawed human being, a guy who hasn't released his tax returns, a guy who offers nothing but a failed attempt at being Treasurer of our failing State. And let's talk about Bright Start. And you want to compare this guy with Mark Kirk? You aren't serious, are you.
Anon @4:54
You forget that this state is hardly Arlington Heights. Arlington Heights is the heart of Kirk's base, the rest of the state is just starting to get to know him.
Alexi on the other hand is known statewide, and is a proven performer in the critical collar counties.
Now both candidates are flawed. Think about the 30 second spots that are coming. How do you think the collar counties who don't know Kirk will vote? They don't know him the way you do, and they will only know him as a guy who lied about his military record.
1. Mark Kirk is not flawed.
2. Alexi was thinking with his ellen in putting this story out this weekend, a memorial day weekend, a weekend AFTER the springfield session where reporters are burnt out, a weekend BEFORE the trial of the decade if not a GENERATION where the ex GOVERNOR and ENTIRE STATE DEMOCRAT PARTY is going on trial not to mention the PRESIDENT and the WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF.
3. Your nightly news for the rest of the year will be
blago
blago
blago
and a side dish of blagoe washed down with a beverage of blago.
4. Thankfully I didn't go to the union dominated chicago public schools so I learned math and the math is
mob banker +corrupt governor + bad economy=Senator mark kirk.
5. Team I suggest you bookmark realclearpolitics.com they are big fans of mark, israel, freedom and the freemarket and they had a brilliant frontstory today from the suntimes with old friend comrade jan whining to Laura Washington in the scum times about how bad a man mark is.
that would be husband of convicted fellon, jan schakowsky who sold out her fellow woman, cheryle jackson, and fellow jew david hoffman to back alexi in the primary.
happy weekend, if you are a republican, this is going to be one awesome summer. wonder how ellen will cover the trial?
FOKLAEAPS
folkleaps,
I generally agree with you but this time you're off the mark (no pun intended).
Sexi Lexi's team knowingly dropped the medalgate bomb for Memorial Day weekend. My hunch is where there is smoke there is fire...it will be a long summer.
1. This was a dumbass move. If you google erik elk, kirk fundraising reports you will find that over the last 4 years every kirk fundraising number has come out in the middle or beginning of the week when there is no other news.
Why does as team america calls him, elk man do that? Because that is when it will get maximal coverage.
Alexi right now is beyond desperate, his fundraising is in the ellenhole (translation: rear end or toilet), the narrative has already formed that he's a loser mobster banker (he's in the mecca of democrat fundraising known as obama's protege and raised half of what mark raised), he has liberal republican hating columnists from urban papers like laura washington repeatedly writing nasty things about him.
He's desperate and so he foolishly raised this issue over a dead newscycle weekend which is a pr total no no because as of tomorrow it's an issue that's been asked answered and done with and the only people paying attention to the news saturday night were the newscaster and her husband who has to watch.
That said, there should be a furious investigation at team msk, because this is a monster unforced error, like his comment a few years ago about mexicans and planes that he can't afford. He has his throat on alexi's neck, the first moderate gop in this state to do that in more than a generation and every stupid thing like that moves it a bit off. If there are other things-there was a fracas in 2000 about whether he was porter's chief of staff and for how long, he needs to make sure he has that taken care of now. Bush didn't do his homework on his 1971 maine dui in 2000 and it came out the last weekend of the race that year and nearly cost him the white house. That one was found by the cousin of a low level democrat staffer. Illinois is a lot smaller and team gore was pretty stupid and still caught that.
the other thing I'd say about him is that he needs to be less dc. He's running to be the guy in the front of the picture on cspan not the guy behind the guy on cspan and people expect a senator to be a backslapper with some charisma. I don't expect him to be barackobama, but the tenth is different than the rest of the state where people don't know and mostly don't care what kim il sung had for dinner at the russian embassy in 1992. In this district, people like the nerd. In carbondale, homewood flossmoor, and peoria where people know and care more about american idol than the number of american icbms, they expect their politicians to be people focused leaders.
FOKLAEAPS
I found it helpful that Kirk posted the documents corroborating the awards he received on his campaign web site.
He attacked the problem head on while Alexi feigned and ducked about the loans he oversaw and the Bright Start Program financial losses.
I demand that Alexi do the same with all of his military honors! In the alternative, Alexi should make public all documents relating to his expert handling of the Bright Start Program and those odd loans other bankers wouldn't touch. I mean, two guys on the way to jail get $20 million?
Louis G. Atsaves
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