Military Moms, Wives Campaign Against Bush
By Erin Neff
Las Vegas Review-Journal

Monday 11 October 2004

Women come to Las Vegas to share personal stories of loved ones who are serving country overseas.
The war in Iraq continues to dominate news on the campaign trail, even in Nevada, where it has eclipsed Yucca Mountain as of late.

Three women with sons or husbands serving in the military campaigned for John Kerry in Las Vegas last week, meeting with a local mother whose son is serving in Afghanistan.

They said they gave up jobs and left Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Florida to tell other mothers that the commander-in-chief isn't serving their sons.

"We wanted to tell personal stories," Nita Martin of suburban Philadelphia said.

Martin's two sons are Marines, and she said one serving in Iraq bought a helmet online before he was deployed.

"They had helmets, but not proper equipment," Martin said.

Martin and the other mothers spent most of their time not sharing personal stories, but retreading statements and news articles that criticize everything from the justification for the war in Iraq to troop levels and morale.

Asked what her son has told her about the upcoming election, Maura Satchell of Smyrna, Tenn., started talking about an article written for the New Yorker by Seymour Hersh.

Asked whether their campaigning for Kerry could have ramifications for their sons, Satchell said: "The failure to speak out is worse. Making sure we have a change in commander in chief is far more important."

The voluntary campaign by the women wasn't greeted well by a local Republican whose son, a Marine, just returned from Iraq on Oct. 2.

Denise Needham said that although she has grave concerns about the war, she would never campaign for George Bush on the issue.

"It wasn't until Sunday (the day after he returned) that I didn't have to pick up the paper because I knew my son wasn't going to be killed that day," said Needham, a nurse. "Do I think it's worth losing one American to be over in Iraq? If it's my son, I'd say 'hell no.' But standing back and looking at it and being the leader of the United States, I don't know."

Needham said she wouldn't vote for Kerry because she is "pro-life and pro-family."

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