Eric Greitens, the Republican gubernatorial candidate for Missouri, is not someone who will lead the state to success. His struggles in both character and within his party prove that this demagogue is not fit to live in the governor's mansion. But before I delve into my grievances with this candidate, I believe that he deserves a neutral introduction.
Eric Greitens is a 42 year old Navy SEAL veteran who served in Afghanistan and Iraq. Upon returning, he founded an organization to help veterans. This organization is called The Mission Continues, and Mr. Greitens received an award as one of Fortune's The World's 50 Greatest World Leaders is a result of it. He is the recipient of scholarships to Duke and Oxford University, where he boxed for both schools. Lastly, he is married to Sheena Greitens, and has two children.
This, candidly, is incredibly impressive. It should be noted that all of this information is from his website, excluding the award from Fortune magazine. That is sourced to their website. So why should Missourians not vote for this candidate, who thus far seems to be a wonderful person and leader?
1. He Sells ISIS Hunting Permits
Mr. Greitens issued an email selling artificial permits that boast "No bagging limit. No tagging limit." on members of the terrorist group ISIS. In exchange for the stickers, individuals provide $10.00 donations to his campaign. What should immediately strike those reading the above sentences is this: will a fake permit and a donation stop ISIS’s reign of terror? No. This should then lead you to the conclusion that Eric Greitens is manipulating the fear of Missourians in order to gain their money and votes. A more real consequence then ISIS operatives running in fear of his bumper stickers is the alienation of the Muslim community, and increased hostility towards innocent Muslim civilians.
2. He Also Sells Signed ISIS Hunting Permits
For an $100.00 donation, you can receive the aforementioned permit signed by a Navy SEAL who claims to have killed Osama bin Laden. How the death of Osama bin Laden, the former leader of the terrorist organization al Qaeda, is connected to ISIS operatives in the state of Missouri is superficial at best. Whether Navy SEAL Rob O’Neill, even killed Osama bin Laden has been contradicted by other SEALs who were in Afghanistan with Mr. O’Neill. I find it sordid that Mr. Greitens asks for $100.00 I was unable to find any images of a signed permit.
3. He Does Not Respect Fellow Republicans
In a phone call between Mr. Greitens and former Republican gubernatorial candidate John Brunner, Mr. Greitens loses his temper and disrespects a member of his own party. In this call, Mr. Greitens labels Mr. Brunner a “weasel” and a “coward” because Mr. Brunner is unable to immediately reschedule a meeting. I urge you to listen to the conversation. Further examples of his disprespect can be found in his debates, such as this one.
4. His Policies are Hypocritical and Absent
The section of Mr. Greitens’ website that is devoted to his future policies states he will provide “the training, the equipment, and the support” needed by police and firefighters. In order to achieve this claim, he will need to expand these government programs. In the section directly next to this, Mr. Greitens states that “SPENDING MUST BE CUT,” specifically to government programs. How he plans to shrink the government while also expanding it is ambiguous at best. His website also states that “PEOPLE OF FAITH ARE UNDER ATTACK.” This statement is confusing when juxtaposed with his ISIS hunting permits, which can be interpreted as supporting attacks on Muslim communities. If he truly cares about people of faith, why does he endanger them?
The “absent” policies I speak of can be seen in his eight initiatives: namely, that there are only eight of them. Are eight policies enough to cover the all of the intricate and convoluted issues that face Missourians? I firmly believe that the answer is no. How does Mr. Greitens feel about marijuana, LGBT rights, tax cuts (he only vaguely states that tax codes must be reformed, though he does not tell us how this will be achieved), or climate change? It does not say on his website. In fact, when asked for his opinions of marijuana usage, he used his time to attack fellow Republican Peter Kinder instead of providing an answer. Absent policies should be very concerning to Missouri’s voters; because of his ambiguity, we cannot make a truly informed decision.
5. He is Not Supported by Other Navy SEALs
As a civilian, it is not my place to speak of his service, so I will not do this. Other Navy SEALs have been vocal in their distaste for the nominee, and I will be quoting them directly. Their names are Paul Holzer and Drago Dzieran, who spoke on the Dana Loesch show, the audio of which was published to YouTube on July 7, 2016.
Paul Holzer: “Dana, it got to a point, especially with the ISIS hunting permits, that to me that was the red line… Drago and I both feel very strongly that when we took our ethos, as SEALs, and we got our trident, we promised that we--and here’s a quote from the ethos--’I do not advertise the nature of my work, and I will not seek recognition for my actions.’ And the Greitens campaign continues in... his use of the trident and the SEAL credibility as a prop for his campaign.”
Drago Dzieran (DD): “And also after the video surfaced, actually exposing Greitens for...who he really is, he started calling combat veterans--like my teammate here--cowards and names. He was calling real combat veterans cowards, all kinds of names. I couldn’t sit on the sidelines and just watch it, especially...coming from the guy who refused to go to combat and, choose instead of going and leading us in combat, he choose to write books. So he left to become the White House fellow, and it was at the height of the war where we needed anybody, we needed anybody we could muster to go to war and fight.”
Drago Dzieran’s claim that Mr. Greitens worked as a White House fellow is supported by Eric Greitens’ website.
DD: “...This is like having a lawyer who graduate[d] from the law school, passed the bar, but then decide to go sell the ice creams. So technically he’s a lawyer, but he’s not real… still doesn’t make him a great lawyer. This is actually the best analogy [for] what this individual, Greitens, is doing. It is a disgrace to our community.”
Is this the man we want in Jefferson City? Do we want a man who uses his service (against his ethos) to gain votes and promote himself? Do we want a man who claims he will provide benefits for veterans, but also calls them cowards? Do we want missing policies, insolent behavior, and fear for our Muslim communities? I certainly do not, which is why it is crucial that you vote this November.
