[1]Lucas Kunce for U.S. Senate

John — Congress spent 20 years
voting to send us out to fight and die in their pointless wars, costing us
trillions of dollars.

But now whenever it's time to pay the bill for the care we were promised,
the SAME politicians act like we're broke. It's nothing less than theft.

[ [link removed] ]Wall Street Journal headline that reads: Biden, Republicans Spar Over
Veterans' Healthcare in Debt Ceiling Battle. Veterans groups seek promises
to protect funding for burn pit care, claims backlog and routine
appointments.

In a moment, I’m going to ask you to [ [link removed] ]chip in $10 toward
my campaign to defeat Josh Hawley and flip Missouri’s U.S. Senate seat.
But first, let me tell you about the burn pit I lived next to in Iraq —
and why this issue is so personal to me.

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It was 2009. I was stationed at the Al Taqaddum Airbase where I was a
Marine Captain leading a police training team. Twelve Marines and a Navy
Corpsman. Running missions through Habbaniyah, Fallujah, and Ramadi.

It was my first of three tours of duty during the War on Terror. And from
our camp, the base’s burn pit loomed over us.

[ [link removed] ]Photo of the burn pit Lucas lived next to in Iraq.

Smoke columns filled the sky and blew through our living space. We ran
through it, joking about how we should be doing gas mask runs. For three
months that pit bathed us in toxic fumes. We accepted it and focused on
our duty.

For me, that was planning our routes and pouring over intel to avoid the
immediate danger: IEDs on all the convoys and missions we were running
outside the wire. I was so proud to bring every member of that team home
safely.

Or so I thought — because, as it turns out, we couldn’t protect ourselves
from our own country.

When I got back from Iraq, I developed a persistent tickle in my throat.
Constant irritation. I never had allergies before and annoyed myself with
the constant throat clearing. Eventually, I was so embarrassed by it that
I went to the base clinic. They said it was postnasal drip and that they
could give me allergy medicine. There was no formal diagnosis. But over 10
years later, it’s still there.

Bothersome. Uncomfortable, but certainly manageable. And that’s about the
best story you’ll hear about a vet who’s been exposed to burn pits. Many
struggle with chronic respiratory issues. Migraines. Cancer.

So imagine how we all felt, watching all these Republicans, most of whom
have never even worn the uniform, throw us a giant middle finger by voting
against legislation to protect veterans who were exposed to these toxic
burn pits.

I know that’s harsh language, but it has to be. Because what they did was
about as anti-American as it gets. Patriots don’t attack veterans who
suffered injuries or illness from being around those toxic pits.

Many of these same Republicans spent years voting to keep us in these
forever wars, lying to the American people about what was really going on
over there, and getting rich off their defense contractor stocks that
skyrocket when we’re at war.

These people profited off of sending us over there only to screw us when
we came back messed up. It’s criminal — and I’m ready to do something
about it.

After serving for 13 years in the United States Marine Corps, I’d give
anything for this country — and that’s exactly why I’m running to replace
Josh Hawley in the U.S. Senate.

We deserve leaders who are willing to make even an ounce of the sacrifice
our veterans have. [ [link removed] ]If you’re with me, please add a donation of
$10 or anything at all to my grassroots campaign today so we
can get this message in front of Missouri voters and defeat Josh Hawley in
2024.

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I’m proud to have you on this team,
John.

Thanks for everything,

— Lucas Kunce


 


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Paid for by Lucas Kunce for Missouri.

Use of military rank, job titles, and photographs in uniform do not imply endorsement by the Department of the Navy or the Department of Defense.