As a G.I. a decade ago, he represented America to the Iraqi public on the television show Moulton & Mohammed, one of the first free press broadcast programs to emerge after the fall of Saddam Hussein. Today, Seth Moulton faces an entirely different set of challenges: preparing to represent Massachusetts in the 114th Congress.
Moulton, the decorated war veteran who will represent Massachusetts’s 6th district, joined Jim Braude and Margery Eagan on Boston Public Radio this Veterans Day to explain how his military experience has shaped his perspective on the current state of Iraq and his political priorities.
Asked about President Obama’s pledge to deploy 1500 additional American troops to Iraq, Moulton was cautious. “I think it’s dangerous. We could quickly get on a slippery slope,” he said.
Moulton witnessed that slippery slope firsthand in the city of Najaf, when the Iraqi troops his unit was assigned to mentor were overrun by the enemy. Faced with defeat, the Americans—ostensibly there strictly as advisors—found themselves filling a combat role.
“A military advisory mission can very quickly become a ground combat mission,” he said. “Let’s not forget, the Vietnam War started as a military advisory position.”
Moulton’s experience as a combat veteran will also guide his priorities once he joins Congress in January. The first item on his agenda—and one which he says has huge potential for bipartisan support—is the issue of veteran’s health.
“I get my healthcare from the VA, so I know that the system is broken,” he said. “I have a great doctor, but if he sends me down the hall to get my blood drawn, I can wait two hours. Or if he refers me to a specialist, it can take two months. The system is broken.”
"I have a great doctor, but if he sends me down the hall to get my blood drawn, I can wait two hours. Or if he refers me to a specialist, it can take two months. The system is broken."
Moulton explained that the VA was organized to respond to the medical needs of veterans returning from the first World War, not those returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan today.
That system was built for treating missing limbs, not for treating the mental health disorders that come with traumatic brain injuries—the kind of traumatic injuries that, only decades ago, would have been a death sentence.
“This is a real serious crisis,” Moulton said. “We need to make sure we fix the bureaucracy, not just throw money at the existing bureaucracy.”
“I’m going to work on that,” he said.
For more from Congressman-elect Seth Moulton, tune in to his full interview on Boston Public Radio above.
