Our guest today is Army veteran Dan Helmer. Dan began his Army career at West Point and after receiving his commission was assigned to the 4th Infantry Division, 1st Battalion 68th Armor Regiment, right after they had just invaded Iraq. A lot of his service story will come up early in the interview so I don’t want to spoil anything, but I do want to highlight that he was instrumental in creating the Counter Insurgency Academy that would then change our strategies in Iraq and Afghanistan. Dan is now living in Virginia, where he continued his service in the Army reserves, and on top of it all is now running as the democratic candidate for Virginia’s 10th congressional district.
Two topics Dan made sure we hit during his interview were why it's important for veterans to run for office, and why we need a new set o veteran democrats in congress.
We get to spend a good time listening to his ideas on leadership, problem solving in the military and how it translates elsewhere, and what he's planning on bringing to congress.
Dan's Book Recommendation: Cicero
If you'd like to learn more about Dan's campaign and or would like to help him our with a campaign contribution, you can do so at HelmerforCongress.com.