Wade Zirkle
Encyclopedia
Wade Zirkle is a decorated American military
veteran
of the Iraq War. He is the founder and former executive director of the Vets For Freedom Action Fund, a political action committee
(PAC) whose stated mission is to "help candidates-mostly combat veterans-who believe in achieving success in Iraq
, Afghanistan
, and the overall War on Terrorism
, get elected to the United States Congress
and other Federal positions."
infantry officer, first as a Light Armored Vehicle platoon commander with the 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion
during the invasion of 2003, and then as a rifle platoon commander with the 2nd Battalion 1st Marines
in the First Battle of Fallujah in 2004. During his second deployment to Iraq, he was badly burned as a result of an insurgent
suicide bomb attack on a convoy he was in. He is a recipient of the Purple Heart
Medal.
He returned to Iraq for the third time as a civilian
freelance journalist
in 2006, where he was embedded with the Iraqi Army
in Ramadi
. He was the first American
journalist to report that the new American counter-insurgency
strategy being implemented in Anbar Province was working, and later wrote controversial editorials in the Philadelphia Inquirer and The Weekly Standard
claiming the "oilspot strategy" was seeing signs of success in Iraq. It was not until three months later, that the Los Angeles Times was the next newspaper to report such news, as it stated "tribal leaders in Anbar province were turning against the Al Qaeda resistance." It was not until 11 month after Zirkle's initial report that the New York Times acknowledged that Anbar was "undergoing a surprising transformation". In 2009 he wrote for the Fox News Channel
while he was embedded with U.S. troops and Afghan Commandos on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
Zirkle is currently a managing partner of the financial services
firm StrongPoint Capital, LLC, in Woodstock, Virginia
. He previously worked for Lehman Brothers Asset Management
and was on Wall Street
during the 2008 financial crisis. Originally from Edinburg, Virginia
, Zirkle graduated from the University of South Carolina
with a Bachelor of Arts
in political science
in 2000.
was criticized for giving free airtime to Zirkle to promote a force increase in Iraq of 30,000 troops. Four months later, President George W. Bush
announced the increase of 24,000 troops
, leading many left-wing activists to speculate that Vets for Freedom was coordinating a Republican Party
-orchestrated public relations campaign.
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
veteran
Veteran
A veteran is a person who has had long service or experience in a particular occupation or field; " A veteran of ..."...
of the Iraq War. He is the founder and former executive director of the Vets For Freedom Action Fund, a political action committee
Political action committee
In the United States, a political action committee, or PAC, is the name commonly given to a private group, regardless of size, organized to elect political candidates or to advance the outcome of a political issue or legislation. Legally, what constitutes a "PAC" for purposes of regulation is a...
(PAC) whose stated mission is to "help candidates-mostly combat veterans-who believe in achieving success in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, and the overall War on Terrorism
War on Terrorism
The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...
, get elected to the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
and other Federal positions."
Biography
Zirkle served two combat tours in Iraq as a U.S. Marine CorpsUnited States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
infantry officer, first as a Light Armored Vehicle platoon commander with the 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion
2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion
2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion is a mechanized infantry battalion of the United States Marine Corps. Their primary weapon system is the LAV-25 and they fall under the command of the 2nd Marine Division and II Marine Expeditionary Force. The unit is based out of the Marine Corps Base...
during the invasion of 2003, and then as a rifle platoon commander with the 2nd Battalion 1st Marines
2nd Battalion 1st Marines
2nd Battalion, 1st Marines is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. Nicknamed "The Professionals," the battalion consists of approximately 1000 Marines and Sailors...
in the First Battle of Fallujah in 2004. During his second deployment to Iraq, he was badly burned as a result of an insurgent
Insurgent
Insurgent, insurgents or insurgency can refer to:* The act of insurgency-Specific insurgencies:* Iraqi insurgency, uprising in Iraq* Insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir, uprising in India* Insurgency in North-East India...
suicide bomb attack on a convoy he was in. He is a recipient of the Purple Heart
Purple Heart
The Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917 with the U.S. military. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in New Windsor, New York...
Medal.
He returned to Iraq for the third time as a civilian
Civilian
A civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation...
freelance journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
in 2006, where he was embedded with the Iraqi Army
Iraqi Army
The Iraqi Army is the land component of the Iraqi military, active in various forms since being formed by the British during their mandate over the country after World War I....
in Ramadi
Ramadi
Ramadi is a city in central Iraq, about west of Baghdad. It is the capital of Al Anbar Governorate.-History:Ramadi is located in a fertile, irrigated, alluvial plain.The Ottoman Empire founded Ramadi in 1869...
. He was the first American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
journalist to report that the new American counter-insurgency
Counter-insurgency
A counter-insurgency or counterinsurgency involves actions taken by the recognized government of a nation to contain or quell an insurgency taken up against it...
strategy being implemented in Anbar Province was working, and later wrote controversial editorials in the Philadelphia Inquirer and The Weekly Standard
The Weekly Standard
The Weekly Standard is an American neoconservative opinion magazine published 48 times per year. Its founding publisher, News Corporation, debuted the title September 18, 1995. Currently edited by founder William Kristol and Fred Barnes, the Standard has been described as a "redoubt of...
claiming the "oilspot strategy" was seeing signs of success in Iraq. It was not until three months later, that the Los Angeles Times was the next newspaper to report such news, as it stated "tribal leaders in Anbar province were turning against the Al Qaeda resistance." It was not until 11 month after Zirkle's initial report that the New York Times acknowledged that Anbar was "undergoing a surprising transformation". In 2009 he wrote for the Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel , often called Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation...
while he was embedded with U.S. troops and Afghan Commandos on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
Zirkle is currently a managing partner of the financial services
Financial services
Financial services refer to services provided by the finance industry. The finance industry encompasses a broad range of organizations that deal with the management of money. Among these organizations are credit unions, banks, credit card companies, insurance companies, consumer finance companies,...
firm StrongPoint Capital, LLC, in Woodstock, Virginia
Woodstock, Virginia
Woodstock is a town in Shenandoah County, Virginia, United States. It has a population of 5,097 according to the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Shenandoah County....
. He previously worked for Lehman Brothers Asset Management
Lehman Brothers
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. was a global financial services firm. Before declaring bankruptcy in 2008, Lehman was the fourth largest investment bank in the USA , doing business in investment banking, equity and fixed-income sales and trading Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (former NYSE ticker...
and was on Wall Street
Wall Street
Wall Street refers to the financial district of New York City, named after and centered on the eight-block-long street running from Broadway to South Street on the East River in Lower Manhattan. Over time, the term has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, or...
during the 2008 financial crisis. Originally from Edinburg, Virginia
Edinburg, Virginia
Edinburg is a town in Shenandoah County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,041 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Edinburg is located at ....
, Zirkle graduated from the University of South Carolina
University of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...
with a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
in 2000.
Criticism
In October 2006, the CBS Evening NewsCBS Evening News
CBS Evening News is the flagship nightly television news program of the American television network CBS. The network has broadcast this program since 1948, and has used the CBS Evening News title since 1963....
was criticized for giving free airtime to Zirkle to promote a force increase in Iraq of 30,000 troops. Four months later, President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
announced the increase of 24,000 troops
Iraq War troop surge of 2007
In the context of the Iraq War, the surge refers to United States President George W. Bush's 2007 increase in the number of American troops in order to provide security to Baghdad and Al Anbar Province....
, leading many left-wing activists to speculate that Vets for Freedom was coordinating a Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
-orchestrated public relations campaign.
Articles by Wade Zirkle
- The View From the Chow Hall; by Josh Clark and Wade Zirkle; The Wall Street Journal
- The Birth of an Army; by David Bellavia, Owen West and Wade Zirkle, The Weekly Standard
- In Ramadi, a Test of Iraqi Forces by David Bellavia and Wade Zirkle, Philadelphia Inquirer
- Troops in Support of the War; by Wade Zirkle, The Washington Post
- Celebrating Those Who Gave Chase to Evil, Safe Harbor to Liberty; by Wade Zirkle, The Contra Costa Times
- When Media Pull Back, Coverage is a Casualty by Wade Zirkle, Philadelphia Inquirer
- Self-Fulfilling Prophecies Do Not Equal National Interests by Wade Zirkle, Townhall.com
- Benefits Ripple Beyond Iraq's Borders by Wade Zirkle, The Des Moines Register
- On the Frontlines of Freedom by Wade Zirkle, The Ripon Society
External links
- Vets For Freedom official site
- Wade Zirkle Televised Commentary
- Wade Zirkle debates Michael Blake on C-Span. Paste URL into browser: rtsp://video.c-span.org/archive/c06/c06_wj102906_blake_zirkle.rm
- Congressman John Murtha Fires Back at Wade Zirkle on The Huffington Post Blog
- Comprehensive listing of Wade Zirkle media sourcing.