Posted on 07/23/2007 1:20:18 PM PDT by radar101
On a gorgeous afternoon earlier this month, a couple of hundred people gathered at Mission Valley's Town & Country Resort, nibbled on cake and wrote checks for a candidate who would like to be the new congressman for the 52nd District.
The candidate's young son sang the Marine Corps hymn; his preschooler daughter sang the national anthem; his father greeted guests; and his wife effused about her husband.
Just about everyone was there. Except the candidate. He was in Afghanistan. And according to U.S. Department of Defense regulations, he could not even phone the fundraising event to say hello.
“No question about it, it's very challenging not having a candidate,” said Dave Gilliard, campaign manager for Duncan D. Hunter, who will be seeking the Republican nomination in June. “That said, everybody's worked a lot harder because he's not here.”
Hunter, 30, a Marine Corps captain, is mighty constrained about what he can say, do or even wear while running for the congressional seat his father is leaving after 26 years.
Shortly after announcing his candidacy to succeed his father, Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Alpine, the younger Hunter was called from reserve status to a nine-month tour in Afghanistan – his third overseas stint since joining the Marines six years ago. Since his deployment, Hunter has found the Defense Department's rules are pretty strict about running for elected office while serving in the military.
In fact, those regulations say men and women on active military duty can't run for office.
Those in the military reserves called to duty – which is Hunter's situation – can be candidates for elected office, but only if their duty lasts no longer than nine months.
While on duty, reservists are banned from partisan political activity. They cannot appear at campaign events, make political speeches or solicit campaign donations. While Hunter may campaign after returning from Afghanistan the first week of December, he may not do so in uniform.
“That would imply endorsement from the service,” said Maj. Jay Delarosa, a Marine Corps spokesman who said Hunter's situation was examined carefully for any conflicts before the Corps gave him the go-ahead to run for office. “He can discuss what he's experienced from a personal angle, as long as it doesn't reveal any secrets . . . as long as it's within good taste and he's not embellishing.”
As one might imagine, this has been frustrating for an operative such as Gilliard, who – among other jobs – ran last year's successful special-election campaign for Rep. Brain Bilbray, R-Carlsbad.
“I had big plans for having (Hunter) do some video blogging from (Afghanistan), but we determined we couldn't do that,” said Gilliard, whose candidate also can't participate in political e-mailing or phone calls.
Politically, there hasn't been much of a downside to the candidate's absence so far largely because the campaign has been slow to take shape – which is unusual for a rare open congressional seat. Santee Councilman Brian W. Jones, a Republican, announced his candidacy Thursday while Democrat John Rinaldi, who ran in 2006, and radio personality Mark Larson, a Republican, haven't ruled out running.
Hunter's wife, Margaret, is doing a lot of the blogging and appearances for her husband. During the recent fundraiser, 6-year-old Duncan and 4-year-old Elizabeth provided the entertainment, while the candidate's father, who is seeking the GOP presidential nomination, gave speeches.
“I didn't know I would be doing this,” said Margaret, who also has a 10-month-old and spends about 20 hours a week campaigning. “When Duncan did actually leave and we started campaigning, it turned out to be a little more challenging than I thought, but . . . I'm doing well.”
It might seem odd that voters in the Republican-heavy 52nd District won't see one of the leading candidates during the early stages of the campaign, but there is plenty of precedent.
When the American Civil War broke out, an Ohio lawmaker named James Garfield joined President Lincoln's army. Garfield rose quickly through the military ranks and then ran successfully for Congress while still fighting in the war. Garfield later became America's 20th president.
Lyndon B. Johnson was a member of Congress and a Navy reservist when he was called to duty during World War II. He was awarded the Silver Star – the third-highest award for valor – before returning to Congress and eventually going on to the White House.
On a more contemporary note, Tom Umberg, an Army prosecutor from Santa Ana, was called to Guantanamo Bay while running successfully for Assembly in 2004. Umberg, a Democrat, said one of his biggest challenges while serving in Cuba was convincing news reporters that “I couldn't opine on political issues.”
Hunter is in the same boat. He posted his campaign positions on his Web site before being deployed. While on duty, he cannot change them, add to them or discuss them.
“The rationale has to be that their first and foremost obligation is their military obligation,” said Doug Sterner, a military historian from Pueblo, Colo., who notes that many of the 124 military veterans now in Congress could be called to duty – leaving them in a situation similar to Hunter's should their re-election campaigns coincide with military service.
Larry Balsamo, another military historian, says avoiding conflicts of interest is another reason for the strict rules regarding political activity.
“If you're a serving officer, you're under the command of the president of the United States,” Balsamo said. “And the president is a different branch of government than Congress.”
Bravo!
Go Duncan Duane!
Wasn’t John F. sKerry in the military?
Unfortunately, yes.
Depends on what you mean by "in the military"...
Did you know he was in Vietnam? It’s true
:)
LBJ’s Silver Star was a crock. IIRC,he basically flew on a fact-finding mission to Australia, and FDR armtwisted the Pentagon to give him the medal.
Is DDH allowed to have a campaign website? I couldn’t find one.Is there a link to his wife’s blog?
While Johnson's Silver Star was indeed bogus you incorrectly recall the details.
The website for Duncan D’s campaign is www.hunterforcongress.com
His wife’s blog is updated through that site. The military is very strict with it’s regulations concerning someone serving running for congress. Now that he is a reserve called back to duty and only serving 9 months (the maximum to serve and still run), he can run but not campaign. His website had to be (and was) created with his issues right before his deployment; he is not allowed to change, modify, or post anything personally or through Margaret on the site concerning issues or the campaign. Margaret, however, can update with basic information. Duncan D. is slated to return in December, and from there will avidly be campaigning.
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