Vets have no better friend than Kirk

Over the past couple of weeks there has been a lot of false information flying around about Congressman Mark Kirk's record on veterans. Dan Seals' outrageous television commercial is only the worst example. I am one of those veterans that Dan Seals claims Congressman Kirk abandoned, and I am writing to set the record straight. I do not take the claim of "abandonment" lightly. I received the Medal of Honor because I refused to abandon three of my fellow GIs in Vietnam. Tenth District veterans have no better friend than Mark Kirk. Any discussion of Kirk's record on veterans has to start with his saving of the North Chicago VA Hospital. Without Mark Kirk, that hospital would not be open today. That's not me talking, that's Al Pate, the former director of the North Chicago VA.

Saving our veterans' hospital is only Kirk's most striking achievement; it is by no means his only. He voted for the new GI bill, which guarantees anyone who serves in the military can receive a four-year college education, all expenses paid. He voted for the largest increase in veterans' benefits ever, over $50 billion in new funding.

Kirk is a veteran himself. He's served in the Navy for 18 years, and he continues to work in the Pentagon as a reserve naval intelligence officer.

I never should have had to write this letter. Kirk's support for veterans should be a given, and free from political attacks. I don't appreciate a fellow veteran being treated in this shabby manner. Whether you are a veteran or not, I hope that you will all join me in working to send Mark Kirk back to Washington.

Al Lynch

U.S. Army, Retired

Gurnee