As the only bomb technician on the ground with my assault force each night, it was my job in the Army to ensure that my guys made it to and from each target safe from explosives. It was an inherently dangerous job, but I’ve always believed in serving something greater than oneself, and I truly believe that God put me on this earth to help others.
I was injured on September 19, 2010 when one of these improvised explosive devices detonated beneath me. I remember the way the bomb that tore through my legs rattled my teeth. I didn’t even know if I had teeth left in my mouth because of the concussion from the explosion.
Soon after, however, amid a cloud of dirt and very little moonlight, I could hear the chatter over my radio: EOD (my call sign) was hit. As I lay there, my guys applied tourniquets to both of my legs and my left arm. They moved me quickly across the challenging terrain to the landing zone rendering me one final salute as the helicopter took off. Their selfless acts of courage are the only reason that I am still here today.
A few days later, I awoke in Walter Reed Army Medical Center unsure of where I was or what had happened. The next few weeks were a blur of surgeries and recovery. But, through it all, I knew that I could not accept a fate where the most meaningful work of my life was behind me.
So, I learned to walk again. And then I learned to run. And then I set my sights on running for public office to continue my fight defending our nation from enemies both foreign and domestic. Although I may no longer be an asset on the battlefield in Afghanistan, I found a new battlefield to fight on in the halls of Congress.
That brings me to where we are today: this fight to defend America has never been more important. Radical mobs in our country are threatening to tear down and overthrow the very nation I’ve fought my whole life to defend. They advocate for chaos and destruction.
I’m fighting, on the other hand, to restore and build up our great nation. And just like I needed the help of my fellow soldiers in Afghanistan, I need your help in this latest fight…
Because Nancy Pelosi knows I’m a fighter, she has named my district one of her top targets and is working with her special interest allies to unseat me. If they succeed, she’ll have another “yes” vote on her destructive agenda. Our country can’t afford to let that happen!
The crazy thing is, Nancy Pelosi and her allies believe that they can intimidate us into giving up the fight, so they are spending big money this month in hopes of replacing a patriot with a puppet. But after everything I’ve been through to this point fighting for our country, I’m certainly not going to stop now!
