There will be next to no learning curve for him to function at full capacity as a Senator. His D.C. experience includes serving in the Politico-Military Assessment Division of the staff of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as the Director for Defense on the National Security Council staff under President Bill Clinton, and 4 years as a Congressman.
His experience with the level of responsibility he held as an admiral guarantees a level-headed, unflappable performance under pressure. He's the kind of person of whom it is said, he keeps his head when all around him are losing theirs. He held a series of operational commands, including commanding the USS George Washington carrier strike group during combat operations in the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean in 2002.
Education wise, Sestak was accepted into the U.S. Naval Academy immediately after graduating high school, during the Vietnam War. In 1974, Sestak graduated second in his class of over 900 midshipmen, with a Bachelor of Science degree in American political systems
Between tours at sea, Sestak earned a Master of Public Administration and a Ph.D. in political economy and government from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in 1980 and 1984, respectively.
I've heard him speak to small groups twice now - both times staying for Q&A until everyone had asked all their questions, and then standing around talking with whomever wanted to stick around. At that point yesterday, I wanted to follow up on his earlier comments on closing Guantanamo Bay.
He's absolutely for it and said it should have been done many years ago. He was aware of the fact that at the time men were being denounced as terrorists, locals could collect $2,000 for denouncing anyone they didn't like as being with Al Qaida; half of the men still detained in Guantanamo have been determined by the U.S. Govt. as posing no threat; and for those who may be determined to be "terrorists", he spoke of the importance of honoring the rule of law and treating these prisoners as we would want our military to be treated if captured. He supported charging and trying all prisoners, with any found guilty to be detained in supermax prisons.
With those comments of his as background, in the smaller, post-talk group I wanted to tell him that when I had toured Sachsenhausen concentration camp outside of Berlin, I heard the description of Nazis grabbing men off the street, at their place of work or out of their homes - never to be heard from again. No charges, no trials, no legal representation, no right of habeas corpus - and not even telling their families what happened to them or where they were. When I heard that, I said to my American tour guide, it sounds just like the Patriot Act, and she agreed. I was amazed when Sestak interrupted me briefly to tell me he also had taken that tour of Sachsenhausen.
Law students and professors questioned him on a lot of foreign policy topics (including Cuba, Iraq, Syria, Israel and Pakistan). He gave succinct, fact-based explanations of how he saw those situations - he knew how they'd developed, and what the current situations were - and really stressed the importance of thinking out possible consequences and being prepared for them before jumping into action. As he said, military action is always on the table, but it should be at the back of the table as the last resort after diplomacy, economic sanctions, etc., have failed.
He was really up to speed on the fracking situation in PA - quoted the very latest problems with DEP's failure to keep on top of problems, and calling for a moratorium until things were brought under control, regulation wise, and the DEP had the trained staff to handle its responsibilities.
And did you know,
Sestak wrote various pieces of bi-partisan legislation that successfully passed Congress. In 2008, he was identified by the National Journal as "at the ideological center of the House."[22] House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer named Sestak the most productive freshman member of Congress in 2007.[23] In the 111th United States Congress, Sestak's last term in office, Congress passed more bills written by Sestak than bills written by both of Pennsylvania's Senators, combined.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Sestak
I'm going on at way too great a length, but my god, the man is head and shoulders above any Pennsylvania politician I've ever worked with or observed in my 45 years as a Penn. voter and 10 years as staff attorney for the Democratic Caucus in the state legislature. The only man I've found comparable in terms of intelligence, devotion to the job and integrity is Senator Bob Casey (whom I don't agree with on all issues, but I respect him). The state is damned lucky to have a person of Sestak's ability and caliber running for the U.S. Senate and I hope to hell the voters are smart enough to elect him.
I've heard good things about Fetterman. He's intelligent, well-intentioned and hard-working. I'd certainly vote for him over pro-fracking McGinty, but he (as would McGinty - who's never been elected to any office) would have a very steep learning curve to deal with. I hope he runs for another office. Too bad he's in Doyle's district. Doyle is "only" 62 and will probably keep running as long as his health allows.
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