A Breath of Fresh Air from Alaska

On Friday my colleagues and I here at SLDN, along with some of our board and honorary board members who happened to be in town visiting the office, had the pleasure of meeting with the first declared candidate for the Democratic Presidential nomination, former U.S. Senator Mike Gravel from Alaska.

Senator Gravel is running on a platform that centers on withdrawing troops from Iraq, reforming American foreign policy, implementing universal health care coverage, and creating a new national initiative program for citizen law making. I guess it goes without saying that he’s a man with big ideas, and he isn’t afraid of a fight.

A U.S. Army veteran himself, Senator Gravel sought to meet with SLDN to lend his support to our work on repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” He said he believes “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” is a bad law, and as President he would lead efforts to change it. He promised his support in whatever way we can use it, and we thanked him for coming to meet with us.

Straight talk isn’t something DC politicians are known for. But Mike Gravel is a straight shooter and a straight talker, and that’s a breath of fresh air in this town. And it was refreshing for all of us to meet with someone with not only a clear vision of what he believes is right for our country, and the courage to stand up for it.

- Sharon Alexander