A Colonel for Congress?

You bet 'cha.

Martha E. McSally is a pioneer. She was the first female fighter pilot to fly in combat, and first to command a fighter squadron in combat in United States history. In 2001-2002, Martha McSally earned national recognition for successfully overturning a military policy requiring all U.S. servicewomen to wear a Muslim Abaya and headscarf when off base in Saudi Arabia.

Originally from Rhode Island, Martha retired from the United States Air Force as a colonel in 2010. She has made her home in Tucson for a number of years, first arriving in the Old Pueblo in 1994, the first of her four assignments to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base.

She is a Distinguished Graduate of the United States Air Force Academy, and earned her Masters Degree, in Public Policy, from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard. In 1995, Martha was one of only seven active-duty Air Force officers selected for the prestigious Legislative Fellowship Program, working on Capitol Hill and serving as a national security advisor to Senator Jon Kyl.

Before resigning to run for office, Martha was Professor of National Security Studies at the George C. Marshall Center in Germany where she taught and mentored senior government officials from all over the world in international and national security issues.

Now, Martha McSally wants to bring her extensive track record of leadership, moral courage and public service to the people of Southern Arizona. “It’s time we stopped talking and starting making our government work again,” said McSally, “When I see something messed up, I fix it. And right now, we have a lot of work to do.”

She is running for the seat Rep. Giffords (D-AZ) is vacating. Martha McSally - an A-10 driver with over 100 combat missions - works for me.

Awesome woman and a great example to all officers, male & female. Put her in Congress.

Great thing for her; "Congresswoman" outranks "Colonel." As Rep. West will be able to tell her; zen.

Speaking of Field Grade officers in Congress .... we need to throw a few schekels in to LtCol & Rep. West's "moving fund" as Florida is shuffling its districts to add in new ones, and West is moving to be in one of the new districts. Also, LtCol & Senator Scott Brown has a tough race in Mass. against the self-proclaimed mother of the Occupy movement.

You don't have to agree with all these people all the time - but you can't complain that no one on The Hill understands the military when you don't help them get elected.