Jon Powers in Boston

by Cam Kerry

7
Supporters 3,925
Raised $
 

Jonathan Powers is the young Iraq War vet who brought the audience to its feet when he introduced John Kerry for a major speech on the Iraq War at Fanueil Hall in April, 2006, on the anniversary of John’s Vietnam testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 1971. His message, his eloquent words, and his passion brought to mind that testimony.
Now Jon Powers is running for Congress in New York’s 26th Congressional District in what is going to be one of the marquee congressional races of 2008.
Jon went to Iraq as a captain in Iraq when George Bush declared “mission accomplished” and was there when Bush told insurgents to “bring it on.” He has made it his mission to repair the damage. The MSNBC correspondent who profiled Jon for “The Daily Nightly” had this to say about him:
“It never ceases to amaze me how young the faces of so many U.S. soldiers are, and the boyish grin of Jonathan Powers is no exception. How can a kid from the suburbs of Buffalo spend a year on the mean streets of Baghdad, with its roadside bombs and untold dangers, and return home to his mom and dad not grizzled or twisted in some way?
“Maybe Jon Powers hides it well, but instead of letting the nightmare of post-Saddam Iraq destroy his boyhood dreams, Powers has combined the two. A young man who always wanted to teach kids, he returns stateside from serving his country in the war zone and cannot forget the faces of the Iraqi orphans he left behind.
“So in the face of so much untold danger (and let’s face it, Powers is a soldier, so he knows what’s really going on on the ground) he raises money to GO BACK and assist the street kids of Iraq. ”
That’s leadership and service. Jon will be an exceptional candidate, and an exceptional young leader in Congress. He’s already proved that by scaring the incumbent, Tom Reynolds, into retiring rather defend his 2006 chairmanship of the RCCC in 2006 against Jon’s active grassroots campaign. Jon has proved he can win, and I believe he will.
This is a race that will make a difference in 2008.