Ron Gibbs, a veteran of the Vietnam War and a member of the Veterans for Obama Policy Committee, spoke Friday night at the Madison Campaign for Change headquarters on Monroe Street.

Gibbs spoke to both students and members of the public, who gathered for a debate-watching party about the importance of Obama’s foreign policy plans, primarily for veterans but also for the country at large.

“John McCain has one of the worst records for supporting soldiers in the Senate,” Gibbs said. “Sen. Obama knows how to treat veterans when they return home and has a good track record of doing so.” 

He went on to say that Obama would provide full funding for soldiers, both for their health care and for their education after coming home, something McCain would not be prepared to do. 

He also spoke about how he believes Obama will bring credibility back to the White House and restore confidence in America internationally. 

“Obama has sound judgment, leadership and diplomacy,” Gibbs said. “We don’t need a maverick in the White House; we need a thoughtful, precise individual.”

Gibbs spoke further on Obama’s foreign policy plan with regards to Iraq, saying that the country needed to learn from the lessons of the past, particularly from the Vietnam War. 

The government should have learned the value of understanding the enemy and creating exit strategy, Gibbs said, parts that were missing in the plan at the start of the Iraq war in 2003. 

He added without learning from the past, we can’t prepare for the future, and the same mistakes will be made again at an increasingly higher cost.

Mark Bednar, co-chair for Students for McCain, said that he disagrees that Obama better understands the needs of veterans and how to provide for them. 

“Veterans in this country feel they can trust McCain to a greater extent, not only because of his life experience but because of his standpoint in the Senate,” Bednar said. 

McCain would reform the GI Bill to make sure veterans are better treated, Bednar said, and will offer better incentives for young people to join the military.

In regards to the Iraq war, Bednar said even with the high cost of the war now, the cost would be higher if the United States left prematurely.

Gibbs said it is important for students to connect with veterans.

“Students are the ones that are going to inherit this country,” Gibbs said. “They need to learn from the lessons of the past and get involved. Students can’t abdicate responsibility; they need to act.”

Bednar agreed, stating that there is a gap, both nationally and here on campus, between veterans and students. 

“There is a lack of connection, and … it needs to be bridged,” he said.