Father of Murdered Afghan War Veteran from Roanoke to Run for U.S. Senate

When two American soldiers were murdered in Afghanistan last month by a member of the Afghan military, it outraged the nation, increasing calls for accelerating the pace of the planned American withdrawal and appears to have inspired the father of one of the victims to take a stand politically.

Tim Conrad of Roanoke, is the father of Sgt. T.J. Conrad, one of the Americans killed in the attack (Sgt. Conrad’s family is the family that did not receive a phone call from President Obama, even though he took time out to call Sandra Fluke) and yesterday he announced via Facebook that he intends to run as an independent for Virginia’s open Senate seat.  In his announcement, Conrad cited the infamous protestors from Westboro “Baptist Church” as one of his primary inducements to run:

For those that do not know, Westboro is supported and backed by the ACLU, the United States Supreme Court 8-1, and there is not a single elected official at any level or capacity willing to confront them. Also, much to my surprise, there is not a single law firm, that I’m aware of, willing to challenge them. I suggest all who read this do their homework on the WBC. It is my opinion that when they celebrate the death of my son, pray for 20,000 more dead soldiers, thank God for IEDs, along with celebrating the deaths of tornado victims in the mid-West, it amounts to little more than domestic terrorism. There is a dirty little secret that no one talks about.

…[E]very single soldier, soldier’s wife, and military person attending the funeral was watching the Westboro website to see when and if they would announce their plans for T.J.’s service. This just adds to the stress of the day. These brave soldiers and their families should never have to worry about this at any level on American soil.

Conrad continued that his will not be a single-issue candidacy as he will also focus on the war in Afghanistan, cutbacks at the U.S. Postal Service, the care our veterans receive and “many other topics too numerous to list in this first posting.”

With polls showing a tight race between former DNC Chairman Tim Kaine and former Governor George Allen (if he receives the Republican nomination), it will be interesting to see how Tim Conrad’s candidacy will affect the electoral calculus for both parties.

Exit question: Could Tim Conrad’s campaign gain traction with Virginia voters (particularly our large population of active-duty and retired military personnel), considering that the polls say the general public strongly disagrees with Snyder v. Phelps, the U.S. Supreme Court ruling holding that Westboro’s protests–distasteful though they may be–constitute protected speech under the First Amendment?

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