Thursday, June 28, 2012
Arkansas Politics Democratic 3rd district candidate's resume padding
Posted by Max Brantley on Thu, Jun 28, 2012 at 6:25 AM
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette today got to the bottom, apparently, of questions about the military record of Ken Aden, the Democrat waging the lost-cause battle against U.S. Rep. Steve Womack in the Third Congressional District. Aden is a veteran of service in a combat zone and holds the combat infantryman badge as well as a parachutist badge, but he apparently didn't meet all the qualifying tests for Special Forces, a service he had directly claimed in documents, nor was he a Green Beret, a claim that he mentioned at least once in a speech but isn't made in campaign materials I can reference. The D-G also couldn't find record of an associate degree he claimed from Arkansas State University.
Sad in any number of ways, not the least because his military record was admirable enough, as Womack acknowledged in the article before piling on.
“He served his country in a combat theater,” said Womack. “That’s something I haven’t done, and it’s an honorable accomplishment. But to go beyond that accomplishment and suggest that you are a member of the Special Forces community, if not true, that’s a pretty serious breach of trust.
COINCIDENTALLY: The U.S. Supreme Court today affirmed a California case in which the 9th Circuit held that a statute setting criminal penalties for misrepresenting one's military record was unconstitutional. The so-called "stolen valor" case concerned an elected official who'd falsely claimed to be a Medal of Honor recipient.
Speaking of Ken Aden, Steve Womack
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