In my book it’s never a good thing when elected officials start telling the leaders of our military how to do their jobs.  If you have read my columns long enough you know that as a veteran I hold those who serve (or served) in the military higher on my favorable meter than those who did not.

Plus, most if not all elected officials are looking at how they can best get re-elected. They don’t really allow much to get ahead of that mission.

Sadly, just yesterday Montana’s junior U.S. Senator, Jon Tester, (D-Mont.) ventured into a world that he knows nothing about.  From the safety and the security of the senate floor Tester said “the Obama administration needs to follow through with a scheduled withdrawal of the 45,000-strong force from Iraq by December.”

You can read the Associated Press story HERE.  You can read Tester’s press release HERE.

Tester’s speech was nothing but an attempt to shore-up his core voting base to let them know that although he has failed the left in the first four-plus years of his term, he’s getting his mojo back during the last year of this election cycle – and to prove that he’s the guy they so fell in love with way back in 2006.  Tester received world-wide coverage for his remarks.  I’ll bet his campaign team was yelling “ka-ching” last night as the donations to re-elect him came rolling in.

Before those Tester supporters jump down to the comment section to say something nasty about me, my dog or my family (that won’t be published) let me state that I am in favor of withdrawing from Iraq.  I want to bring the entire force home, but first they must be brought home safely.  Secondly, let the military leaders dictate the withdrawal timetable, not some Pillsbury doughboy who never served a day in the military.  Third, we should never advertise a withdrawal date to our enemies no matter how much the media thinks they need to know.

Tester’s projected opponent for the 2012 Senate race, Congressman Denny Rehberg, had this to say about Tester’s speech (I don’t have the full statement from Rehberg because The Western Word was removed from his e-mail list):

I’m always a little wary of politicians in Washington, D.C., second-guessing America’s commanders on the ground and trying to arm-chair quarterback our military strategy,” Rehberg said. “It’s our responsibility to ensure that our men and women in uniform have the resources, including manpower, they need to do their job as safely as possible and return home quickly.

Although I have disagreed with Rehberg on a number of things, that statement is absolutely correct.

Let’s set the record straight:  If the issue is organic farming, Utz cheese balls, or flat-top haircuts, Jon Tester is the expert.  If it’s a timetable for withdrawing troops from Iraq, Tester should let the Patriots running the show on the ground make that call.

Jack is a military veteran who honorably served his country in different parts of the world with the last stop being Montana.  You can follow him on Twitter @TheWesternWord and visit this website often for independent commentary about politics, sports, the media, and current events.