Mission
With Honor fights polarization in Congress by supporting principled veterans across party lines who take the With Honor pledge. With Honor Action, our public policy nonprofit works alongside the bipartisan For Country Caucus in the U.S. House and a group of bipartisan Senators who are veterans to pass critical legislation for our nation.
Learn more about the For Country CaucusWith Honor’s political action committees recruit and help elect next-generation veterans across party lines who are committed to the With Honor pledge. With Honor has helped elect more than 40 cross-partisan Members of Congress, a governor, and numerous veterans in other down ballot races across the nation.
Learn more about With Honor Political Action Committee
The Pledge
Many of the most effective American leaders have been veterans.
Why With Honor Action
Veteran Representation
As we see a decline in veteran representation in Congress, public trust in Congress also declines.
CREDIT:
Public Trust in Congress is Far Too Low
Americans know that extreme partisanship has corroded our national legislature. Congres no longer tackles our country’s biggest issues, and, as a result, public confidence in Congress has plummeted over the last fifty years.
CREDIT:
A stronger democracy with more cross-partisan veterans who take the With Honor pledge to serve with integrity, civility, and courage.
Principles
What Makes Principled Veterans
Effective Legislators?
Cross-Partisanship
Political Science research linked here suggests veteran lawmakers, especially when screened by an organization like With Honor, are more likely than their non-veteran counterparts to work across the aisle. For example, veterans who have taken the With Honor pledge often score within the top quartile of the The Lugar Center’s Bipartisan Index, which measures how often a member crosses the aisle to sponsor or co-sponsor legislation. Additional insights into this can be found in this article by West Point Professor Joseph Amoroso.
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Service
The most effective lawmakers are motivated by a service ethos. Every veteran served. Every veteran took an oath to give up to their lives in the line of duty.
Work Ethic
Military service often requires grueling hours in training and on missions. Such service instills the value of hard work and a respect for the importance of persistence to accomplish goals. These values are crucial in the halls of Congress, where each representative serves hundreds of thousands of constituents, and faces many competing priorities each day.
National Security
Many veterans who become policymakers have uniquely informed perspectives on national security because they put their lives on the line for our country. Political Science research has found that U.S. veteran policy-makers historically have a narrower set of conditions under which they believe in military intervention, but when they do so, it is generally with a significant commitment of resources to ensure an effective engagement. Read more about this in Choosing Your Battles: American Civil-Military Relations and the Use of Force by Drs. Peter Feaver and Christopher Gelpi.
Leadership
Nearly every U.S. military veteran has received leadership training and real-world leadership experience, often at a very young age, and sometimes in the crucible of combat. Learn more about the benefits of military leadership training and experience in this essay by Colonel Miguel Howe, which focuses on post 9-11 veterans.
Diverse Backgrounds
Veterans serve with Americans from all walks of life, on missions that matter. Military service instills an appreciation of our diverse nation, and how that diversity gives us strength. Learn more about the changing demographic profile of the U.S. military at this link from the Pew Research Center. With Honor Action-supported veterans in Congress speak to the experience of serving with Americans from diverse backgrounds here.