“I fought dictators abroad. Kari Lake praises them.”

ARIZONA -– After Kari Lake’s “documented pattern of her preference for authoritarian-led countries over her own” was detailed in a new report, Arizona veterans have made the dangers of Lake’s self-serving quest for power clear. 

Kari Lake will do or say to gain power —  including “consistently [going] to bat for authoritarian leaders across the globe,” and siding with those interested in “ending the United States’ role as a global power,” as detailed in a new report from the Copper Courier. 

Read more about how Kari Lake’s “actions reveal a troubling pattern” to Arizona veterans:

Copper Courier: I fought dictators abroad. Kari Lake praises them.

By: David Lucier 

September 6, 2024

• I was born to two World War II Veterans who risked their lives to defend democracy against dictators. They taught me that true leadership is about service and integrity. 

• When I was 19, I followed in their footsteps and enlisted to serve in Vietnam. I fought to protect the democratic values that make America strong—values like free and fair elections, respect for the rule of law, and the defense of our freedoms. 

• Unfortunately, Kari Lake does not share these values. Kari Lake’s actions and words reveal a dangerous willingness to align with authoritarian figures and promote conspiracy theories that threaten the foundations of our democracy.

• Lake has repeatedly defended Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, criticizing journalists for challenging him and suggesting he is “interested in talking peace” even as he wages war on Ukraine. She praised Hungarian dictator Viktor Orban, calling him the “GREATEST” in Europe and commending his policies as “doing things right.” But under Orban’s leadership, Hungary has seen a decline in democratic freedoms, with election laws manipulated to favor his continued rule.

• But Lake’s anti-democratic tendencies don’t stop with her praise of foreign autocrats. She has also shown a willingness to defend the actions of those who attacked our own democracy on January 6th. Lake called the insurrection a “peaceful protest” and has spread baseless conspiracy theories about the 2020 election. She still refuses to acknowledge that she lost her own election in 2022 and claims that she is “the duly elected Governor of Arizona.”

• These actions reveal a troubling pattern: Kari Lake is willing to undermine democratic values and align with those who oppose them. Arizonans deserve leaders who will stand up for our democracy and reject authoritarianism in all its forms. 

• We must hold firm to the principles that make our country strong and reject those who seek to erode them. Kari Lake has shown she is not that leader.

Litchfield Park Independent: Peterson: Kari Lake can’t be trusted to defend our democracy

By: Vic Peterson

September 5, 2024 

• I served 22 years in the U.S. Air Force, including service in Vietnam and Operations Desert Storm and Enduring Freedom.

• Believe me when I tell you I have seen firsthand just how catastrophic a dictator’s rule can be. In America, we cherish our democratic values, but today, those values are under threat by people like Kari Lake, who cozies up to the very same foreign dictators threatening our country.

• Arizonans can’t trust Lake to protect American values like defending democracy, respecting elections and fighting for our freedoms when she openly supports America’s adversaries and authoritarians like Vladimir Putin and Viktor Orbán, questions the results of elections and defends Jan. 6 insurrectionists.

• Lake not only defends foreign adversaries who attack democracy but also defends insurrectionists who attempted to overthrow our own legitimate election. She has called the Jan. 6 insurrection a “peaceful protest” and has spread dangerous conspiracy theories about the 2020 presidential election. Lake even said she would “absolutely” work as a senator to free the insurrectionists.

• These are not the actions of someone who respects American values. They are the actions of someone who will do or say anything for power.

• Arizonans deserve a leader who will stand up for democracy, not someone who undermines it. Lake has shown us time and time again that she cannot be trusted to protect the values we hold dear.

• It’s time for Arizona to stand up for democracy and reject extremism. We need leaders who will protect our freedoms and uphold the integrity of our elections. Kari Lake is not that leader.