If the presidential race is as close as some polls suggest, just a small percentage of the vote could make the difference between victory and defeat. This week, the reelection campaign of President Barack Obama is stepping up its efforts to win over more of the Virginia's military veterans.
Retired General Wesley Clark came to the Roanoke Valley to announce the formation of "Military and Defense Leaders for Obama." He held a town hall meeting Wednesday night in Vinton.
He says the "carryover" from the Vietnam War has colored many veterans' views of the Democratic Party, but he says a lot has changed since the '70s.
"And that attitude persists in the veteran community," Clark said in an interview, "and it has no basis in fact. Barack Obama has done much more for veterans than George W. Bushever did as President, I can tell you that."
Prince William County Delegate and Air Force Veteran Rich Anderson offered the Republican response. "Wes Clark is flat wrong," Anderson said in a satellite interview provided by the Republican National Committee. "The President on two prongs is going to inflict considerable damage to national security and to the economy of Virginia, pure and simple," he said.
