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After listening to Graham Platner use his military record as part of his experience to enhance his bid for representing the people of Maine, I would like to explain part of his responsibility as a sergeant.
While I do not fully know his responsibility in the Marine Corps, I, as a retired Army first sergeant, am very familiar with a sergeant’s duties in the U.S. Army. As a sergeant in the Army, he was designated as a Fire Team Leader. A sergeant is the lowest rank of non-commissioned officer and one is promoted to that rank because he has shown that he has the potential of becoming a leader. As a Fire Team Leader he is responsible for his squad of four to eight other soldiers. He generally trains his squad in the daily conduct of responsibilities as outlined by a squad leader and platoon sergeant.
Platner’s allegations of “American Sniper” Chris Kyle inflating his enemy kill would not even have anything to do with Platner’s realm of responsibility as I believe he wasn’t even assigned to the same outfit and he likely would have no first-hand knowledge of Kyle’s conduct.
I personally don’t believe that Platner has enough military experience to be using this as a reference for his capability to be a senator. He stated that Sen. Susan Collins sent him to war, when in fact, he volunteered for every duty that he had.
It is my personal belief that Graham Platner does not have the qualifications to be a U.S. senator.
Jeff Weatherbee
Dover Foxcroft