Veterans-Turned-Candidates Have New PAC

By NANCY ZUCKERBROD

WASHINGTON (AP) - A new political action committee to put veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in Congress is getting under way.

There is not one policymaker debating this war who has actually fought this war,'' Jon Soltz, the executive director of the PAC and an Iraq war veteran, said in an interview Wednesday. Retired Army Gen. Wesley Clark, a former Democratic presidential candidate, is heading the advisory board of the group, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America PAC. He said in a statement that veterans need help overcoming certain obstacles.For the most part they come from modest backgrounds and cannot self-finance their efforts,’’ Clark said. They move around a lot as part of their duty, which makes it difficult to cultivate a home base, and military careers do not expose these candidates to the kind of training and judgment needed to succeed in politics the same way other candidates' careers do.'' Though the PAC has not yet endorsed anyone, it has identified about a dozen veteran-candidates who have recently returned from service in Iraq and Afghanistan and are running in Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia. All are Democrats except for Van Taylor, a Texas Republican who is running for the seat held by Democratic incumbent Rep. Chet Edwards. Soltz said a Republican can get his group's backing.This PAC is open to everyone who served,’’ he said. What we're concerned about is people who are right about Iraq.'' Specifically, the group wants detailed plans, with timetables, for the gradual withdrawal of troops from Iraq. It also supports funding increases for the Veterans Affairs Department and expanded health benefits for veterans, among other things. Andrew Horne, who served in Iraq in 2004, is running as a Democrat for the seat held by Rep. Anne Northup, R-Ky. Horne welcomed the arrival of the new PAC on the fundraising scene.Clearly the issue of Iraq is very, very important as a national issue,’’ Horne said.

``Whatever we can do to focus on possible solutions to that is helpful.’’

A separate PAC called Band of Brothers was also formed recently. It is open to all military veterans, not just those who served in the recent engagements in Iraq and Afghanistan. That PAC is backing only Democrats.

Political action committees can give a total of $10,000 to candidates for both the primary and general elections.

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