Deconstructing the Rhetoric of Iowa's Senior Senator

by Paul Deaton

“The
assertion that “fewer families today have a direct, personal connection
to a branch of the Armed Forces” is plain wrong. With continued
overseas deployments of military reserve and National Guard units in
Iowa, almost everyone the author knows has either served in the armed
forces or has a direct connection to someone who has served or will be
serving in the military.”

Senator
Chuck Grassley has filed nominating papers for re-election to a 6th
term this year. With the coming of summer and Tuesday’s primary
elections, so begins the political campaign season. Grassley has no
primary opponent so what do you say we start unpacking one of his issues
and see what is inside. With Memorial Day just past, veterans issues
seem as good a place to start as any.
 
On Grassley’s
official website appears the following
statement regarding veterans, “For the last three decades, the U.S.
military has relied upon an all-volunteer enlistment. Fewer families
today have a direct, personal connection to a branch of the Armed
Forces.” These statements reflect a typical Grassley approach. First,
state a “fact” that is part of our common understanding. Then make an
assertion based upon that fact. Seemingly benign, upon closer
examination the rhetorical device in this statement reflects how out of
touch the senior senator is with Iowans generally and veterans in
particular. At another level, this rhetoric obfuscates the truth.


The
assertion that “fewer families today have a direct, personal connection
to a branch of the Armed Forces” is plain wrong. With continued
overseas deployments of military reserve and National Guard units in
Iowa, almost everyone the author knows has either served in the armed
forces or has a direct connection to someone who has served or will be
serving in the military. Increasingly, people with whom we have a
connection are or will be deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan.

As Blog for
Iowa previously
reported, Iowa’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division is
currently preparing for what may be the largest single unit call-up
since World War II. The senior senator is well aware of this, or should
be. By using the rhetoric found on his web site, he frames the
discussion as something fewer Iowans are connected to and this serves to
de-emphasize his support for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Grassley’s policy stance is hidden here, but it is to support a foreign
policy that makes more Iowa veterans and then to help them deal with
subsequent paperwork and health care issues. The author believes Iowans are
connected to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq in a way that is personal
and direct. We do not assume that these wars are either just or
necessary as Grassley’s rhetoric may suggest.

On this issue, the “fact” about the
all-volunteer military is also wrong. While the all volunteer military
is a facet of national defense, we increasingly rely on defense
contractors, not the all-volunteer military, to perform vital functions
in contingency operations that put our military in harm’s way. In
Afghanistan, the number of defense contractors actually
exceeds the number of uniformed personnel.


According
to the Congressional
Research Service, 53% of the Department of Defense workforce in
Iraq and Afghanistan is made up of defense contractors. Contrary to what Senator Grassley’s
website indicates, a key dynamic in our military deployments in Iraq
and Afghanistan is how defense contractors are integrated into our
military doctrine and strategy and how well we manage our relationship
with these contractors. Uniformed military personnel from Iowa will be
working side by side with defense contractors and the quality of
contractor performance will impact the safety and well being of our
soldiers. To the extent abuses
and crimes have been committed by defense contractors against local
nationals, it undermines U.S.
efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. In today’s military, we increasingly rely on defense
contractors in contingency operations and Grassley’s rhetoric obfuscates
this reality. While citizen soldiers remain an important component of
military operations, in Afghanistan and Iraq, they are in a minority.

As Grassley
suggests, Iowans are often immersed in their daily lives and don’t take
time to dig deeper into things that impact our health and well-being.
His approach is paternalistic, telling us what he thinks we need to
know. What Iowa needs, regarding veteran’s issues, is not only help with the government
bureaucracy, but a sense of connectedness to the reality of the wars we
are waging and the veterans they produce. The best policy would be to
scale down the wars our senior senator has supported and reduce the
creation of new veterans. This policy won’t be found on Senator
Grassley’s web page.

~Paul
Deaton is a native Iowan living in rural Johnson County and weekend
editor of Blog for Iowa. E-mail Paul
Deaton