As has been the case as of late, I've been finding Salem's Statesman Journal to have far superior political coverage than Oregon's largest paper, The Oregonian. This is especially true of statewide politics.

Today, the Statesman Journal runs an extremely interesting article about former Air Force chief of staff, General Merrill “Tony” McPeak. The General, who appeared as one of the dozen retired military leaders at the Democratic National Convention last week, headed the Air Force during the first Persian Gulf War in 1991.

The paper explains that McPeak will become a member of the Democrats' Truth Squad, a "20-person group will shadow the Bush campaign, including attending the Republican National Convention later this month in New York, to defend Kerry’s record and challenge Bush’s. [...] McPeak’s role will be to defend Kerry’s record on defense and foreign policy."

The paper also runs excellent quotes from McPeak:

"'It goes without saying — over time I’ve become more and more concerned about the president’s failure to live up to his aspirations,' McPeak said.

'I’m equally distressed at his attempts to mislead the American people about John Kerry’s record.'"

The article's key graf:

"In 2000, McPeak backed presidential candidate George W. Bush and in 1996 served as Oregon chairman for Republican Bob Dole’s failed presidential campaign."

It's clear that most retired military leaders favor Bush, mostly because he has been a strong advocate for increased military spending. However, it is a signal of changing times when a retired general who chaired a statewide campaign for a Republican nominee not only publicly supports the current Democratic nominee, but moreover chooses to campaign for him full time.

I had the pleasure of appearing on a televised town hall meeting in Portland with General McPeak three days after the 9/11 attacks and I must say that I was highly impressed by the way he could command an audience (pun not intended). His strong oratorical skills, coupled with his immense stature as the top of the Air Force will make him a force to be reckoned with in the months to come. His presence in the Kerry campaign, while not earthshaking, will doubtless aid the Democratic nominee's chances at winning election come November 2. In the nearer term, I'm looking forward to General McPeak refuting the lies spouted by Bush supporters during the Republican National Convention.