Edwin Lyngar

No one has said more but done less for veterans than Sen. Dean Heller, who is basing his entire reelection campaign on stoking resentment from veterans to take attention away from his attempts to destroy health care coverage for thousands of Nevadans. Heller’s latest strategy is to reanimate the dead corpse of a 50-year-old grievance centered around Jane Fonda, a now 80-year-old actress.

I didn’t want to talk about Heller this week, but his series of attack ads about Fonda sickens me. I spent my youth listening to Vietnam-era veterans detail their many understandable grievances. No matter how many nice things politicians said about them in the '80s, our government failed them. Instead, politicians have long trotted out Fonda to distract veterans from their epic shafting. If you have no original ideas, it’s a good move.

I’m a veteran, as are my father, brother, eldest son and both my grandfathers. I’ve watched for years as politicians like Heller blow into town for a few months every election cycle, pat us on the head and “thank us for our service.” Then they cut taxes for the rich, rob our communities of resources and rake in a fortune in campaign cash to vote against the interests of everyday Americans. The militant Republican politicians who’ve never served, like Heller, are always the worst. If you call his office, his staff will help you navigate the VA, but so will any other congressional representative. This is not an accomplishment; it’s the job.

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The year of Fonda’s controversial visit to Vietnam was 1972, the year before I was born. Is this the most urgent political issue of our day? If you must go back 50 years to “stick it to Democrats,” you’re politically and historically bankrupt. Heller has spent more time on Fonda this election than on soldiers being killed in Afghanistan, because invented problems don’t have to be solved. I think the best thing we can do for our military is not sending them abroad to get killed for reasons no one can articulate.

Heller’s entire campaign is based on pandering and virtue-signaling. In 2010, the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America gave Heller a “D” in his support for veterans. Perhaps Heller should stop exploiting a 46-year-old celebrity feud and instead help the people he is using as political props. The truth is veterans are a diverse group of people with any number of political outlooks and opinions, and as a community we need what everyone else does: good schools, health care, clean air and good paying jobs.

There’s been a lot of good journalism over the past few years showing Heller’s rhetoric falls far short of his actions. In fact, veterans’ groups routinely rate Democratic politicians and policies as better for vets. The Trump era has elevated the exploitation of veterans to an art. We get an avalanche of cheap patriotism while the country is looted to pay for tax cuts. Total Republican control of Washington has done nothing for us.

Many veterans will disagree with me. That’s fine. We’re not a monolithic group. Veterans in general are more approving of Trump, according to Pew, although we are divided much like everyone else these days. In a surprising twist, veterans are driving Democratic Party success at the ballot box this year. Locally, of the four local RGJ columnists, it’s the two liberals who are veterans — me and Cory Farley. The mistake Heller and Republicans make about veterans is assuming we’re all white, aging, Republican baby boomers. The picture is far more diverse.

Veterans are an ever-shrinking slice of America, and they suffer from suicide, addiction and falling incomes, just like so many Americans. Some veterans are profoundly hurt and need improved health care and greater support services, but many of us don’t need anything extra. We just want a country that works and good paying jobs, so we can share in the prosperity that Republicans have long provided for big businesses and political donors. The only thing trickling down for many veterans these days is misery.

You can tell what Republicans really think by watching President Donald Trump. Sure, a lot of veterans support him and that’s just fine. I would point out the uncomfortable truth that Trump is a four-time draft dodger who routinely insults actual war heroes like John McCain and Humayun Khan, a Muslim-American soldier killed in action. Like Heller, Trump never served but denigrates the entire notion of service. Those who work for Trump suffer most. General John Kelly, Trump’s chief of staff, allegedly said, “This is the worst job I've ever had.” That’s an astounding statement coming from a Marine.

As time goes on, fewer Americans serve, making it even easier for Republicans to talk nice without doing much. Instead, Trump and Heller diligently work to eliminate social programs, cut education and eliminate health care protections, making life more expensive, stressful and difficult for everyone. Thrusting all Americans into perpetual serfdom is no way thank veterans.

Edwin Lyngar is a Reno resident and freelance writer.