Buy A Book, Elect A Vet

Starting this week through the end of October, I am setting aside $1 from each sale of Foreign and Domestic to help elect pro-surge vets to Congress. Specifically, OEF/OIF vets from the Vets for Freedom organization like Medal of Honor nominee, David Bellavia and NJ State Captain, Vince Micco.

Army Sgt Micco served in counterintelligence in Iraq. He is now a mortgage banker, father of four and running for New Jersey's 9th Congressional seat. "When the youth of that country grows up, we will have a powerful ally," he said. "The children love us."

SSgt Bellavia was with Task Force 2/2 when he led his Army platoon house-to-house during the Battle for Fallujah in 2004. There, he single-handedly cleared a house of six insurgents thereby saving his men and earning him the Silver Star. "No one sober can look at the success [in Iraq]…and say it is not working," Bellavia said to a group of Washington reporters earlier this month. "2010 will be the 1948 of our generation…we will take the House and the Senate back.”

I am proud of these and other courageous vets like them across the country. Not only have they risked life and limb on a foreign battlefield but they continue to fight for us by putting their names and reputation on the line back home. That's true inspiration and while this starving artist doesn't have enough money to donate to their causes, he can contribute the one thing he does have: books.