Cotton Announces Veterans Coalition (UPDATED)

Republican Senate challenger Cong. Tom Cotton announced Saturday (July 26) the formation of a veterans coalition called “Veterans for Cotton.”

Cotton, an Army veteran who has done tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, said he would be a strong supporter of veterans on issues such as homelessness, the crisis at the VA, and the state of the military budget.

Against the backdrop of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial at the state Capitol, Cotton said the President has been weak on issues impacting the nation’s military.

“Whether it is the failures at the VA or his failed foreign policy, President Obama has not done right by our veterans,” said Cotton. “As a U.S. Army veteran, I will always be a voice for Arkansas’s 250,000 veterans and their families. I firmly believe the U.S. Senate needs more men and women who have served in the military, not less.”

“Veterans for Cotton” is a statewide coalition of over 400 Arkansas veterans from every corner of Arkansas, the Cotton campaign said. It said the coalition represents every branch of military service. The veterans group will perform traditional volunteer activities such as phone calls, yard sign distribution, and door-to-door, but will also “spread Tom’s message through social media and civic groups, particularly to fellow veterans,” according to the campaign.

Approximately, 250,000 veterans reside in Arkansas, according to Cotton’s campaign.

Cotton is challenging incumbent Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor in the November general election.

UPDATE: The Pryor for Senate campaign responded to today’s announcement regarding Cotton’s veterans’ coalition:

Erik Dorey, deputy campaign manager for Pryor’s Senate campaign, said:

“At the end of the day, this campaign is about two very different records of serving Arkansans in Congress, and while Mark has introduced and passed into law measures to expand benefits for those who serve our country, Congressman Cotton has yet to offer a single bill aimed at helping veterans. What Congressman Cotton has done, however, is vote for a proposal that cuts military pensions, something no other Republican or Democrat from Arkansas supported.

“Tom Cotton deserves our thanks for wearing the uniform and serving our country, but in Washington he simply hasn’t been there for Arkansans.”