Pentagon’s Handling of Vaccine Mandate Motivates Veterans, Military Families to Run for Office

A desire to continue defending the Constitution is another factor spurring veterans to seek political office.

Veterans and a military spouse running for Congress say they are motivated to run by the Pentagon’s handling of the COVID-19 vaccine mandate, as well as their desire to continue serving their country.

Mara Macie, a Massachusetts native, worked for a family business until 2006. Mrs. Macie stated that she witnessed “the failure of our Congress” firsthand when her husband and other service members contacted their congressional representatives in opposition to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s 2021 COVID-19 vaccine mandate for the military, which has since been withdrawn.

“Many of those servicemembers were ignored, and most were told that there was nothing that could be done, which led to lawsuits, servicemembers being separated from the military, and disillusionment in our community,” she went on to say.

Her husband is former Navy Seabee Ted Macie, who is now an active-duty Navy Medical Service Corps officer and a whistleblower who revealed that myocarditis was on the rise in the military as a result of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Mrs. Macie told The Epoch Times that because the Hatch Act of 1939 prohibits federal employees from engaging in political activities, “this leaves spouses of active duty servicemembers to step up to the plate and be the one to defend them, their freedom, and the Constitution.”

Mrs. Macie is running for U.S. Congress in Florida’s 5th Congressional District, where she and her four children have lived since 2020. Her initial bid in the Republican primary against incumbent Rep. John Rutherford in 2022 fell short.

Mrs. Macie’s motivation to run for office stems from within her.

“I am a proud descendant of veterans, dating back to the Revolutionary War, and come from a big family of police officers, [and] I value truth, honesty, and integrity above money and self,” she went on to say.

“And if our founders were willing to selflessly die to secure our freedom and success, so am I,” she went on to say. “I cannot knowingly leave our children a country in worse shape than I inherited it.”

Honoring an Oath 

Cameron Hamilton is a retired Navy SEAL who served honorably from 2005 to 2015. He’s running as a Republican in Virginia’s 7th Congressional District; the incumbent, Democrat Rep. Abigail Spanberger, is running for governor rather than reelection.

“Many who have taken up arms in this nation’s service do so with bold and firm convictions of the merits of the fruits of liberty,” Mr. Hamilton told The Epoch Times. The oath of allegiance to the United States, he said, is “critical” for veterans because it “comes with the responsibility to uphold and defend truth and justice in the face of great trial and adversity.”

He claimed that in previous generations, serving in the military was regarded as “one of the most noble displays of character, and that bravery in difficult times was to be venerated.”

He noted that many elected officials have served in the United States Armed Forces, “setting aside their personal safety and needs for the defense of others and this great nation.”

“Veterans are uniquely distinct from other public officials in their experience of physically defending this nation in a deeply personal manner,” he told the audience.

“If more of our elected leaders had invested their lives in defending this nation, many of these leaders would embody more humility and reject personal ambition and tyranny in favor of improving the lives of others.”

“It is past time for us to elect leaders of more noble character and resolve, such as those who have served honorably in the military.” That is how we will get this country back on track.”
Nate Cain, a three-and-a-half-year Army veteran, also served the country in a civilian capacity for the Navy and Marine Corps for nearly a decade. While working for the FBI in 2017, he became a whistleblower against the Department of Justice over its refusal to investigate Hillary Clinton and the Clinton Foundation in connection with Uranium One and other matters.

Mr. Cain stated that after witnessing the “deterioration of the country over the years,” he began praying for “God to raise up righteous men and women to run for office and change the direction the country is headed.” To his surprise, he felt compelled to declare his own candidacy for a House seat in West Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District as a Republican.

With “a corrupt D.C.,” Mr. Cain saw a need for someone with “the moral courage to do the right thing no matter what.” While this isn’t always the case in today’s progressive world, he believes that doing the right thing for the country should be “an easy transition” for a service member.

“We, the former service members, all took the oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” he went on to say. “Most people know who our foreign enemies are, but we also have an awful lot of domestic enemies of the Constitution right now.”

He stated that one such adversary would be those who “shredded the Constitution in regard to our First Amendment, preventing people from going to church due to COVID.” In another, he criticized the censorship of stories about Hunter Biden’s laptop computer. He also drew attention to the Capitol breach prisoners who were not given due process or a jury of their peers on January 6.

“The country is facing the most dangerous time the nation has ever faced,” he went on to say.

He encourages other service members to uphold their oath to the Constitution and consider having an impact, whether politically or otherwise, on a national or local level.

Fighting for the Republic

Nick Kupper was able to retire as a master sergeant after serving in the Air Force for two decades.
“I was mostly intent on retiring around 20 years to be able to make time for my kids and family,” he told The Epoch Times. “However, it was the [COVID-19] vaccine mandate that sparked that decision.”

“I almost lost it all after 19 years of service.” I was going to be separated because I didn’t get the vaccine.”

The Air Force was barred from requiring COVID-19 vaccines for religious objectors when the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit decided Doster v. Kendall. His career was saved as a result of his decision.
“I was able to make it to retirement,” he told reporters.

“I realized how quickly our country is slipping away when I saw our Department of Defense and government attempting to enforce an illegal vaccine mandate.” It is not the country I grew up in, and it is not the country I wish to leave to my children.”

That, he says, inspired him to run for the Arizona House of Representatives in Legislative District 25.

“Just like the military, I feel like politics can be a very brutal place,” said the politician. “Even when things are tough, someone has to step up and fight for what’s right.”

“We’re not the first military members to feel the need to go into politics, and we haven’t seen the harshest realities some of our former service members have seen.”

For example, he referred to Dwight Eisenhower’s role as the United States military officer who led the victorious forces in Europe during World War II before becoming the 34th President of the United States from 1953 to 1961.

“This was the worst war the world has ever seen, and while he was privy to the most horrific things, he must have still wanted to make the United States a better country after it all,” he said. “If others like Eisenhower had the courage to continue [into politics], many of us can.”

“What do we have if good men do nothing?”

“We need to fight for our Republic, or we risk losing it.”