Mitt Romney and "War Wimps"

It looks like we have a second generation of "war wimps" in the current presidential election. Republican Mitt Romney re-ignited the debate when said his sons demonstrated their patriotism by campaigning for him rather than serving in Iraq.

Romney's remarks generated a barrage of late-night jokes. Jay Leno talked of the tough choices that Romney's kids had to make - "Iraq or Iowa" - in a bit of monologue that got replayed on ABC's "This Week" last Sunday. The New York Times eventually addressed the controversy Wednesday.

Worse for the Republicans, Romney's remarks highlighted an issue that the Democrats had been trying to bring to the forefront for years. That is, a number of Republican presidential candidates are active supporters of the war, even though they've avoided military service themselves.

This isn't a new campaign argument. Some of you may remember the first generation of 'war wimps." The term was coined in the 1980s by Democrats to describe hawkish Republicans who were avid advocates of military action, even though they themselves avoided fighting in Vietnam. Those who got the label back then included Republican congressional leader Newt Gingrich.

By the 1990s, the term could be applied to a Democrat. President Bill Clinton ordered several military actions, even though he himself had ducked military duty during Vietnam.

The first impetus for resurrecting the issue came when the "National Guard" issue arose during the 2000 presidential election. That debate highlighted George W. Bush's enlistment in the Alabama National Guard as a way of avoiding military duty in Vietnam.

The voters took a ho-hum attitude toward the charge during the campaign, but it got renewed interest with the invasion of Iraq. After early success, progress in Iraq floundered, but the President's insistence on fighting brought up memories of the "war wimp" charge from his Democratic critics.

Again, the public generally dismissed the issue as irrelevant. Now the Romney campaign has brought it up again.

Will it make a difference? Wait and see, but this isn't something that Republicans like to talk about. Even the mention of the topic hurts most of them.

In fairness, not all political leaders can be labeled "war wimps." Former President George H. W. Bush, for example, was a decorated pilot during World War II. His experience may have helped his decisions during the invasion of Iraq under his presidency.

Similarly, two of the current presidential candidates - Republican John McCain and Democrat John Kerry - served with honor in Vietnam. Those two men have opposing positions on the Iraq war, with Kerry wanting to end it and McCain arguably the strongest supporter of the war among those currently seeking the presidency. Regardless of whether you agree with them, you have to give both credit for making their decision with an understanding of the true nature of war.

You can't say that for some of the other candidates.

REFERENCES

Luo, Michael (2007, August 15). Question of sons' choices dogs Romney campaign. New York Times, A15.