Courage And Her children

By J. Ford Huffman

Fifteen years ago, this reader had the opportunity to review, favorably, a memoir by a young man who – while he was in a Naval ROTC program in North Carolina – found
time to establish a nonprofit in support of people living in poverty in Kenya. After
commissioning, he served in the Marine Corps in Iraq and elsewhere.

The author Rye Barcott is back in print.

Like his It Happened on the Way to War (2011), Barcott’s second book is about
serving other people and is also worthwhile reading. Maybe even motivating.

Courage Can Save US is a title that in words and in jacket design (the “U” in “US” is
subtly torn) conveys the author’s belief that the politically divided population in these
United States needs to assess and then act upon issues – with critical thinking, alacrity
and with honor. (The cover also acknowledges Barcott’s allegiance to the Corps. Look
closely; the one-inch figure is a Marine in dress blues.)

In Barcott’s view, maintaining the integrity of the U.S. requires courage, which is
different than bravery. “Bravery is action in the moment,” he writes. “Courage is a
choice: a decision to advance the common good despite risk.”

With “Courage” Barcott focuses on legislators who have taken risks, mostly unpopular
ones. In 10 separate mini-biographies his book presents the lives and convictions of 10
public servants:

One female, the others male. Five Democrats, five Republicans. Two Army veterans,
three Navy, three Marine Corps, one Air Force, and one from the FBI, all in public
service as members of the House and the Senate and as state governors. Admittedly,
“not a fully representative cross-section of the U.S. military,” but each with an individual
and often intriguing history.

Each subject is a voluntary member of With Honor, the nonprofit organization Barcott
founded in 2017 as a way for politicians to commit to “cross-partisanship” (With Honor’s
term).

What are the attributes of the conviction? Integrity, humility, and commitment, says Barcott. Each of the 10 illustrates those virtues and aspirations. After interviews with and research about his subjects, Barcott concludes that “courage is influenced not by isolation but through the influence of others.” From family to friends, it takes a village to raise a conscientious solon.

Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), one of the 10 and a House member running for a
Senate seat, says: “What’s lacking in Congress isn’t intelligence – it’s courage. It’s simply the courage to take a tough vote you know is right or tell the truth when it’s not politically popular.” In 2024, Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) asked newly elected Congressional members whether they were there in order “to do something, or to be something?” “Doing,” he advised, requires having relationships across political lines. (Crenshaw is finishing his term, having lost his seat to a primary challenger.) When polarization in Washington “gnawed” at Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) in 2017, he opted “to figure out how to make friends across the aisle.” He’s now one of the “top 10 most bipartisan members” in the House, says the Lugar Center.

Having integrity is no gauge of popularity, a reader and Barcott conclude. The take-away: Having the courage to buck a political trend is no guarantee of having the support of your voters or your fellow lawmakers. But you have your love of integrity to keep you warm.

– Huffman is immediate past chair of Student Veterans of America. His reviews of more than 400 books published during the Iraq-Afghanistan era appeared in Military Times publications (Marine Corps Times, etc.) and received the Military Reporters and Editors (MRE) award for commentary in 2018.