September 28, 2024
Melbourne, Australia—In the latest round of absurd remarks from former President Donald Trump, members of the Democrats Abroad Veterans and Military Families (VMF) Caucus’ leadership team responded with their thoughts on Trump’s remarks disparaging Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Rights Act (UOCAVA) voters.
According to Mr. Trump’s latest attack on military and overseas voters, mail-in voting equates to “cheating” and that “anyone can get a ballot.” Fortunately, military voters and other U.S. citizens living abroad know full well Trump could not be further from the truth, and four VMF steering committee members opined on the latest Trump-related controversy.
Among the VMF leaders setting the record straight, Robert Scott, a veteran residing in Germany, stated:
“Trump and his people don’t know anything about the overseas voting process, or they are intentionally lying. Overseas voters are subjected to the same checks that stateside voters have to withstand. The Trump Camp feels that any vote not for Trump is an attempt to steal the election. Trump’s plan to label any results that does not say he won is a ‘stolen election’. We must continue in our quest to elect Kamala Harris to be the next President of the United States of America!”
Kee Evans, Guatemala resident, current VMF Vice Chair and former VMF Chair, also provided her response.
“That former President Trump would say that UOCAVA voters would use the Act to cheat and anyone, including active military, would be jailed, is an outrage. He accuses states of sending ballots to U.S. Citizens without verifying U.S. Citizenship. This disinformation spewed by the former president must be stopped. All U.S. citizens abroad should exercise their right and obligation and vote in this and every election. Vote Democrat up and down your ballot,” she said.
Another leader on the VMF Caucus and also a Germany resident, Terese Sarno, provided her thoughts:
“The former president’s latest display of ignorance of the laws of the United States, specifically focusing on military and overseas voters, proves once again that he is not qualified for the position he once held and wishes to hold again. Disinformation and attempts to deprive U.S. citizens of their lawful right to vote are his calling cards. With this latest attack, Trump demonstrates once again his lack of knowledge of how our democracy works. Enough of the lies and insults and pitting U.S. citizens against each other. Voting should be a joyful event because it allows U.S. citizens to participate in and safeguard our Democracy. We remind all UOCAVA voters to immediately return your absentee ballot and encourage your friends to do the same. Your vote matters! U.S. citizens can vote from wherever they are!”
VMF Chair and resident of Australia, Michael Ramos, added:
“We shouldn’t be surprised that Trump continues to spread falsehoods and misinformation. If he actually did his homework before making such an outrageous public statement he’d know that absentee voting’s been around since the Civil War, and that President Reagan is the one who actually signed UOCAVA into law. For him to attack our service members’ right to vote is an attack on every frontline defender of freedom in uniform. Any serious individual running as a presidential candidate should endlessly promote UOCAVA voting, not straight up lie about it to the American people. Republican Presidents Lincoln and Reagan would not stand for Trump’s shameful candidate behavior in wanting to slither his way back into the White House by lying about UOCAVA voting rights.”
U.S. citizens living abroad, both civilian and military, are highly encouraged to check your voter registration status and request your ballot as soon as possible.
The VMF Caucus, proudly consisting of veterans, military family members, and strong allies of veterans and military family causes, has a membership of approximately 1,200 members located in dozens of countries.
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