I became a bomb technician because I wanted to save lives and serve a cause greater than myself. I nearly gave my own life for that — I lost both my legs and a finger when a roadside bomb detonated beneath me — and have known more heroes than I can count who died defending others.
I remember the day I was injured — September 19, 2010 — very clearly. What I remember most, though, isn’t the bomb detonating. Instead, it’s hearing my fellow soldiers yelling “EOD is hit, EOD is hit.” In that moment, they didn’t care where I came from, how much money I had or what my political views were. They rushed to my side because we were all fighting for something bigger than ourselves.
I remember seeing the world go by horizontally as they carried my stretcher across the terrain to load me onto a helicopter, and I remember them 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.
I remember them every day that I have the honor to serve in Congress. It’s because of them and for them that I fight endlessly to improve care for our nation’s veterans — whether they are Republicans or Democrats. When a veteran — or anybody for that matter — comes to me and asks for help, I fight for them with every damn thing I have. And it would never occur to me to ask them which party they belonged to first.
My opponent running against me this year feels very differently. She has called all Republicans “racist,” “traitors,” “white supremacist,” and “stupid.” Does anybody honestly believe she would be willing to help a Republican that needed it? Would any Republican even feel comfortable asking somebody for help that carries such hatred in their heart?
That’s why I’m humbly asking for your support in this election so that I can continue to serve our community — and when I say that, I mean our whole community. We simply cannot afford to have a representative that belittles, demeans and hates every one of her Republican neighbors!
In this fight, I would greatly appreciate it if you would make a commitment to ensuring service before self leadership:
