By Steve Brozak

After watching Governor Tim Walz’s acceptance speech as vice president – and the subsequent loud criticism from Republicans of his military performance – my reaction is: enough is enough.

The revisionist attacks on his decision to resign from the National Guard to run for Congress are not only partisan, they are blind to reality. He could never have run for Congress without resigning, and I should know.

I had just returned from active duty, out of the Marine Corps Reserves, and was planning to run for Congress in New Jersey in 2004. It was the year before Governor Walz ran for Congress. I had no illusions that a congressional campaign would be an easy undertaking, but the real-life circumstances were more than just political blood sport. At that time, under the Bush White House, it was a no-no for anyone on active duty or even in the Reserves to ask honest questions about what was happening in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Both personal reprisals and even legal consequences were simple facts of life.

I learned that in 2004. Speaking as a civilian in a CNN interview on a Friday night, I said, “I wanted my president to go out and present a really clear and sensible strategy for what was happening in Iraq.”

On Monday, the White House had contacted Marine Corps Headquarters and requested that an investigation be opened under Article 92 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, similar to the Hatch Act. What prevented this investigation from even beginning? I had retired three days earlier.

Mark Twain once said, “First find the facts, then twist them as you please.”

In my view – and even more so in my view, Governor Walz – today’s critics have studiously ignored the havoc the Iraq War has wreaked on our active and reserve forces, and the misguided arrogance of those who pushed that war forward.

Twenty years ago, even our 30- to 45-year-old reservists and guardsmen were called back to serve alongside our youthful troops, often without even the basic equipment they need. And there was no real plan in sight: Donald Rumsfeld once said we would be welcomed as liberators, only to be outdone by his claim that we would quickly hunt down the insurgent “death fighters.” History has proven Rumsfeld tragically wrong.

A great sacrifice was demanded of the Guardsmen and Reservists – unrealistic troop levels and casualty limits prevented them from returning home. It was a hard fate. As many said, it was their job. But when financial and social hardships were imposed on their families and loved ones, it became unbearable.

This is the backdrop that Governor Walz had to contend with as he attempted to bring about change for the men and women in his care.

So he ran for Congress, and his success in the 2006 election was significant: there was a change in leadership in Congress and the government was made aware that it now had responsibilities.

Tim Walz did not leave the National Guard to avoid service; he ran for Congress to extend his service.

Governor Walz retired after 24 years of service in the National Guard as a sergeant in an artillery unit, which deserves recognition and applause. His life is filled with true American stories that were shared by many service members – including friends, students, colleagues and even members of Congress. We should have no doubt about his selfless career, his warmth and his good nature.

Now we are in a fog – not the fog of war, but the fog of political propaganda, eerily reminiscent of the thrashing that Senator Kerry suffered in his 2004 presidential campaign. But this time it is much worse. The Republicans’ disingenuous attacks on Governor Walz’s achievements are bad enough, but now we have the devaluation of the Congressional Medal of Honor.

Donald Trump’s statement that the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which honors civilians, is “actually much better than the Medal of Honor, since soldiers who receive the nation’s highest military award are often wounded or dead” is repugnant, and the attacks on Walz are false.

They both trample on American valor and cannot be argued away. And they both should be held accountable for dishonoring members of our armed forces, veterans, and all Americans.

Steve Brozak is a retired Marine Corps lieutenant colonel and president of WBB Securities, an investment firm based in Cranford. He ran unsuccessfully for New Jersey’s 7th District congressional seat in 2004.

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