Gori Bush, a member of the farthest left of the House Democrats' far-left Congressional Progressive Caucus, the "Squad," has been defeated in her primary by a more moderate Democratic candidate. She is the second of the six-member “Squad” to be removed from Congress.
Now, another Squad member, Ilhan Omar, is also in a contested primary next Tuesday. In Minnesota, where even Ronald Reagan could not win in his 1984 landslide, now Vice President nominee, Governor Tim Walz remains popular and Omar remains the clear favorite. However, should she lose, her loss would send shock waves throughout the Progressive Caucus of Congress.
Speaking about Tim Walz, U.S. Marine Corps Sgt Maj Mark Tillman Davis made this statement regarding the significance of Walz balling out on his unit just after it was known that his unit would, in all probability, be deploying overseas to a combat zone.
"I see Harris/Walz supporters already making excuses for Walz ditching his unit before their deployment. Some are saying things like, "It's not a big deal. They would just replace him with another administrator.' The ignorance is mindboggling. The Sergeant Major (SgtMaj) is not an 'administrator' any more than the commander is an 'administrator'. For the uninitiated or willfully ignorant, let me fill you in on what the SgtMaj is: 1) The commanding officer's (CO) closest advisor. The CO will share things with the SgtMaj that he would share with no one else. He is the closest thing to a peer the CO has within that command. 2) The model of discipline and military professionalism to all members of the command; officer and enlisted. 3) The voice of reason and experience and a mentor to NCOs and junior officers within the command. 4) The advocate for enlisted members and their families. 5) Continuity - the CO and SgtMaj rarely change at the same time. The SgtMaj provides continuity to the new CO and provides him/her with an honest lay of the land, allowing the new commander the ability to rapidly get up to speed. 6) Keeps officers who might have an alternate interpretation of the commander's intent in check. The SgtMaj takes orders from the CO. He takes requests from everyone else.
When Walz bailed on his battalion, he failed his CO and every member of his command. He should have been the 'glue'. The rank of SgtMaj (and that of 1st Sgt at company/battery level) solely exists to serve the commander and the members of the unit. Walz clearly did not understand the gravity of that responsibility. Moreover, anyone with that length of service who would do something like that isn't worthy of respect or trust." - Mark Tillman Davis, SgtMaj, USMC (Retired)
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