OPINION: What it means to put America first

We live in a surreal world where we are asking questions like: Will a presidential candidate be loyal to the U.S. Constitution? Will they sell us out, or be manipulated by our enemies? As someone who deployed overseas to protect this country, I ask that you vote for a president who will always be loyal to America. We don’t really need to listen to the rhetoric of this campaign to know that both candidates have a record that says far more about them than sound bites or theatrics. As Gen. Stanley McChrystal said, “Regardless of what a person says, character is ultimately laid bare in his or her actions. So, I pay attention to what a leader does.” Listen to what high-ranking national security staff, like former defense secretaries, generals and national security advisers, say about Donald Trump.

As president, Trump promoted daily chaos in government, praised our enemies and undermined our allies, politicized the military and disparaged our veterans (calling them “suckers” and “losers”), prioritized his personal interest above American interests and betrayed our values, democracy and this country’s founding documents.

I find it disturbing that the people with the most direct experience with Trump — people like former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis — are the most concerned about the risk he poses to America’s national security.

With China and Russia looking for every opportunity to weaken and ultimately attack us, we do not have the luxury of a weak president, nor one who will sell out our national interest to enrich himself.

I served in the Army, and was deployed to Vietnam. Generations of soldiers, airmen, Marines and seamen have served since. Vote for them. Vote to defend the Constitution that many of them died to protect. Our nation is at grave risk. Listen to the military leaders who are urging us to keep Trump out of the White House. It’s time we put America first.

Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Tim Walz are fighting for a new way forward that protects our fundamental freedoms, strengthens our democracy, and ensures every person has the opportunity to not just get by, but to get ahead. As a prosecutor, attorney general, senator and now vice president of the United States, Harris has always stood up for the people against predators, scammers and powerful interests. She promises to be a president for all Americans, a president who unites us around our highest aspirations, and a president who will always fight for American people. From the courthouse to the White House, that has been her life’s work. Please make your voice heard. Vote for Kamala Harris on Nov. 5.

Kevin McGee is a Vietnam veteran and past president of the Anchorage NAACP Branch 1000-B.

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