Back to that primary, right?
Mike Snitz and his supporters have been criticizing Jonathan Larkin for not having a college degree. Given that he spent his early 20′s as a US Marine in Iraq, it is safe to assume that he was a bit busy. Larkin, by the way has been working on his degree since he returned.
At least one veterans’ organization has had enough of Snitz’s criticism. Here is the release from VoteVets.org:
VOTEVETS.ORG TELLS STATE REP CANDIDATE SNITZ TO BACK OFF CRITICISM OF MILITARY SERVICE PHOENIX, ARIZ. – The national veterans group, VoteVets.org, representing over 220,000, is today telling Arizona House of Representatives candidate Mike Snitz to immediately stop insulting those who have chosen to serve America in the military, as he has with his opponent, Jonathan Larkin, who served in Iraq.
“Mike Snitz should be ashamed of himself,” said Ruben Gallego, Arizona State Chair for VoteVets.org, and himself State Representative and Iraq War Veteran. “It is offensive that a twice decorated Marine like Jonathan Larkin is having his Iraq war service attacked by a former advertising executive, who never served anyone other than himself. Further, when Mike Snitz attacks the honorable service of someone like Jonathan Larkin, he attacks every single man and woman who served America in Iraq and Afghanistan. He doesn’t just owe an apology to Jonathan Larkin, he owes an apology to all of us who served.”
Last Thursday, in the Yellowsheet from Arizona Capitol Report, Snitz said derided Larkin as a “20-something” and said serving in war as a Marine didn’t give one enough “life experience.”
2 Comments
It’s an interesting issue. I’ve been prone to criticize the likes of Jesse Kelly and three out of the four Republican candidates for Pima County Sheriff for lacking college degrees, but none of them have made any discernible effort to actually obtain one. (I’ll admit, that’s a bit distorted — one of the three has an associate’s degree, but does that really count?)
I suppose I don’t mind, as long as he’s actually working to obtain one. We should look for sophistication in a candidate, which doesn’t actually come free with a college degree.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with not having a college degree, the problem is that in the current political climate, a shortage of education is considered some kind of qualification. I think if Larkin had come out and bragged that he didn’t have a college education, or waved ignorance around as a badge of honor like we see in so many Republican primaries, it would be a different issue entirely. That is not what we see happening here. Snitz is trying to invoke class as some kind of disqualification for office, and that has no place in a political party that is supposed to be about working people.