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BREAKING: Toomey Endorsed by Another Republican Investment Banker

BREAKING: Toomey Endorsed by Another Republican Investment Banker

Joe Sestak still only candidate who has stood up for Veterans and working families

MEDIA, Pa. — In a move that shocked absolutely no one, Congressman Toomey today accepted the endorsement of yet another Republican former public official and current investment banker.

Former Navy Secretary John Lehman served honorably under the Reagan Administration, and as a Naval Reservist. But as a longtime investment banker, including chairman of a private equity investment firm in New York, board member of a number of conservative think tanks, and part of Presidential campaigns for George W. Bush and Sam Brownback, Secretary Lehman’s stances on key issues have consistently placed him, like Congressman Toomey, to the right of mainstream Republicans. [http://www.rightweb.irc-online.org/profile/Lehman_John]

“Admiral Sestak respects Secretary Lehman’s honorable service, both in uniform and as a civilian leader, even though they could hardly disagree more about the Secretary’s views on the Iraq War and his controversial statements regarding the war on terrorism,” said Sestak campaign spokesman Jonathon Dworkin. 

“But working Pennsylvanians – and particularly Veterans – simply won’t be fooled into thinking Congressman Toomey is on our side after he voted against more than $1 billion to fund mental health treatment for Veterans and even opposed a $1,500 bonus for our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. We know he’ll always join his friends on the far right to stand up for Wall Street bankers – while Admiral Sestak will always fight for Veterans and the middle class.”

All Veterans should be concerned about Congressman Toomey’s extreme record. No matter who he stands next to, Pennsylvanians know he will always do what’s best for Wall Street at our expense:

Toomey voted to underfund the VA by $1.3 billion, even though we had troops returning from two wars in 2003. [S Con Res 95, #198, 5/19/04]

As a Congressman in 2003 under the Bush Administration, he did nothing as more than one million “Priority 8” Veterans making as little as $29,000 a year were excluded from VA health coverage.
He voted against increasing funding for Veterans, including increased funding for the Veterans Health Administration [H J Res 107, #478, 9/29/04] and against an additional $1.3 billion for veterans’ health care. [HR 3289, #600, 10/30/03]

This is probably why he received a 25 percent lifetime rating from the Disabled American Veterans [Disabled American Veterans:  http://bit.ly/cUO5rP,  http://bit.ly/a3eesx,  http://bit.ly/9PalF0,  http://bit.ly/9EUPwR,  http://bit.ly/bn9vzZ,  http://bit.ly/dwMLHS]

Meanwhile, Admiral Sestak has always been a strong supporter of those who wear the cloth of this nation – and, as the highest-ranking military officer ever elected to Congress, would be a strong ally for Veterans in the Senate:

In 2007, he helped pass the largest funding increase in the history of the Veterans Administration, which was underfunded for so long. [HR 2764, #1186, 12/19/07]
He authored a bill that reversed a Bush Administration policy that excluded more than a million Priority 8 veterans from the VA health system. [HR 7167, 2008]
Voted with the Disabled American Veterans 100% of the time [Disabled American Veterans:  http://bit.ly/bqWxZI,  http://bit.ly/aUo9Ho,  http://bit.ly/9gz8xD]
Passed the Wounded Warriors Assistance Act to give Veterans better treatment of mental health issues, post-traumatic stress disorder, and substance abuse  [HR 1538, #208, 3/28/2007]

Background on Secretary Lehman

In 1992, Lehman founded the private investment equity firm J.F. Lehman & Company, which has New York, Washington and London offices. [http://www.jflpartners.com/contact/index.html]

Lehman is a member of the ultra-conservative Heritage Foundation among other conservative think tanks. He was part of Presidential campaigns for George W. Bush and Sam Brownack. [http://www.nndb.com/people/230/000043101/]
In 2004, Lehman claimed in an address to the Naval Institute that the U.S. is not at war against terrorism, and is instead engaged in “a religious war” against Islamic fundamentalism. [http://www.military.com/NewContent/0,13190,NI_Meeting_0504,00.html]

As a member of the Project for a New American Century, Lehman signed onto a letter sent to President Bush in the days after 9/11, calling for the United States to take action against Iraq, regardless of whether they had any involvement: “. . . even if evidence does not link Iraq directly to the attack, any strategy aiming at the eradication of terrorism and its sponsors must include a determined effort to remove Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq. Failure to undertake such an effort will constitute an early and perhaps decisive surrender in the war on international terrorism.” [http://web.archive.org/web/20070807153905/www.newamericancentury.org/Bushletter.htm]

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