Hillary Clinton Campaign Press Release - UPDATED TESTIMONIALS: Former Admirals and Generals on Why They Support Hillary Clinton to be Our Next Commander-in-Chief

More than thirty former admirals and generals, including two former Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and five retired officers at the four-star rank have endorsed Hillary Clinton to be our next Commander-in-Chief. Eighteen of these esteemed flag and general officers and other senior national security officials took part in a rare conference call with reporters earlier this month; eleven met in person with Senator Clinton last week in Washington for a private conversation about ending the war in Iraq and winning the war in Afghanistan; and to testify publicly for her leadership ability. In these testimonials below, these great Americans who have given so much to our country, say why they believe Senator Clinton is the best candidate of either party to be our next Commander-in-Chief.

[Click here] for audio of the testimonials. Transcripts are below.

General Wesley Clark

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General Henry Hugh Shelton

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Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Admiral William Owens

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Lieutenant General Claudia Kennedy

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Lieutenant General Frederick Vollrath

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Major General Paul Eaton

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Major General Antonio M. Taguba

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Brigadier General John Watkins, Jr.

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Transcripts

General Wesley Clark

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"She has done her homework on national security and I know from my personal discussions with her and with many other friends that go in and brief her in her role in the Senate Armed Services Committee. She knows the facts, she knows the details, plus she has the big picture. She is a strategic thinker but she has the building blocks of the strategy in her personal knowledge. This is someone that when she is president our military is going to respect very highly, and when our Senior Officers brief her and meet with her they are going be very, very impressed by what she knows and the intelligence that she brings to these problems."

General Henry Hugh Shelton

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"I've been with Senator Clinton when she has been with our military men and women. I know from those experiences that she understands the demands and sacrifice of military life. I am confident she will always put the readiness and well being of our troops first. She is ready to be Commander-in-Chief."

Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Admiral William Owens

[Click here] for audio "In this world that we face today, very complex as all of us know, I think experience will be really at a premium, especially at the level of the Commander-in-Chief. There's no time to learn. The phone rings and you have to be ready. You have to ready with intuition, with experience and with skills. And this world will have the complexities that perhaps we've never before seen. I've been impressed with and admire Hillary Clinton for her work in the Senate. And we need people with great judgment. I think she brings the best of talent, intuition and experience to handle these unknown threats in the future."

Lieutenant General Claudia Kennedy

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"I support her because I trust her. I trust Hillary Clinton because of her judgment and her leadership. I have confidence that she is responsive to the needs of people. I believe that she understands leadership the way we do in the Army and that is that it's about building connections and relationships and establishing guidance and leadership for others. I think she'll rebuild relationships with other countries that have been suffering for the last seven or eight years; those relationships have really been strained beyond anything I would have anticipated. Another part of Hillary Clinton that I think is just tremendous is that she knows our reality. She is in touch with people, she listens to people. She decides what she believes about policy based on what's right, she has integrity, and on what works, so she's practical."

Lieutenant General Frederick E. Vollrath

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"I support Senator Clinton because I believe it's time for change in our country, a new direction. And I know change carries with it risks. Senator Clinton is the candidate, in my opinion, with the proven experience that truly understands the risks and how to possibly cope with those risks to get the job done. We shouldn't shirk from change because of the risks, but we absolutely have to have a leader with the proven experience. America, in the area of national defense, must be successful and Senator Clinton has that experience to create change, to understand the risk, and to get the job done."

Major General Paul D. Eaton

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"On a personal note, I have a Special Forces Captain son and a Sergeant Paratrooper both in Afghanistan. I find Senator Clinton the perfect choice to be their Commander-in-Chief and to display the loyalty to command our armed forces and to rebuild them after the conflicts in which we are engaged right now."

Major General Antonio M. Taguba

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"Senator Clinton's unequivocal opposition to the use of torture under any circumstances, and her willingness to take a stand for what she believes in is exactly the sort of courage and moral strength that we need in our leaders. I know that, as President, Senator Clinton will hold America to the high moral standards that have made us a leader among nations."

Brigadier General John M. Watkins, Jr.

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"As I think about the challenges facing the nation and having been in uniform for almost thirty years, worked with a number of presidents to include the last four, I can't think of a single person - those generals included - who is better qualified to walk into the Oval Office than Hillary Clinton. I don't make that statement very lightly. She is more qualified, in my view, than her husband Bill was when he entered the office. It is no surprise to me that you would have as many flag officers who serve this country and Secretaries of the Army and Navy who have served this country who would come out and support Hillary."

The full list of admirals and generals who have endorsed Senator Clinton to be our next Commander-in-Chief follows:

1. General Wesley Clark

2. General John M. Shalikashvili

3. General Henry Hugh Shelton

4. General Johnnie E. Wilson

5. Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Admiral William Owens

6. Lt. Gen. Joe Ballard

7. Lt. Gen. Robert Gard

8. Lt. Gen. Claudia Kennedy

9. Lt. Gen. Donald Kerrick

10. Lt. Gen. Frederick E. Vollrath

11. Vice Admiral Donald C. Arthur

12. Vice Admiral Joseph A. Sestak, Jr.

13. Major General Roger R. Blunt

14. Major General George Buskirk, Jr.

15. Major General Edward L. Correa, Jr.

16. Major General Paul D. Eaton

17. Major General Paul D. Monroe, Jr.

18. Major General Antonio M. Taguba

19. Brigadier General John W. Douglass

20. Brigadier General Michael Dunn

21. Brigadier General Belisario Flores

22. Brigadier General Evelyn "Pat" Foote

23. Brigadier General Keith H. Kerr

24. Brigadier General Virgil A. Richard

25. Brigadier General Preston Taylor

26. Brigadier General John M. Watkins, Jr.

27. Brigadier General Jack Yeager

28. Rear Admiral Connie Mariano

29. Rear Admiral Stuart F. Platt

30. Rear Admiral Alan M. Steinman

31. Rear Admiral David Stone