This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Oct. 23, 2012- U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., is launching a new ad today that highlights her record on veterans issues through the voices of Missouri vets.
The ad features several military retirees who praise McCaskill for her leadership in confronting the mismarked and mishandled graves at Arlington National Cemetery, her prominent role during the controversy over veterans' care at Walter Reed military center in suburban Washington, and her outspokenness on veterans' benefits.
McCaskill has made veterans' issues a key emphasis since she took office in 2007, saying that she was motivated by the memory of her late father, a World War II vet.
The ad isn’t all positive. Near the end, one veteran says that he “doesn’t trust Akin” to pay attention to veterans’ needs. That veteran, Russ McCreary of Union, Mo., said in a statement, "Both my son and son-in-law are active duty Marines, and I trust Claire to stand up for them in the Senate. I don’t trust Todd Akin to take care of our veterans the way Claire has. Missourians have a clear choice in this election and Claire has always been on the side of our veterans and military families.”
Akin briefly served in the military in the early 1970s; McCaskill has attacked him over some votes he cast against measures to improve veterans' benefits.
