Brandon Friedman is a writer with extensive experience in both the military and politics. He is the author of The War I Always Wanted: The Illusion of Glory and the Reality of War, and has served since 2007 as the Vice Chairman of VoteVets.org--a 95,000-member organization dedicated to getting veterans elected to public office.

Brandon served as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division in Afghanistan and Iraq. In March 2002, he led a rifle platoon into Afghanistan's Shah-e-Kot Valley in order to engage Taliban and al Qaeda fighters as part of Operation Anaconda--a battle later written about by award-winning journalist Sean Naylor in Not a Good Day to Die. A year later, Brandon commanded a heavy weapons platoon during the invasion of Iraq. He led troops during combat operations in Hillah, Baghdad, and Tal Afar. Brandon eventually left active duty in 2004, after having spent the latter half of his Iraq tour as an executive officer in the northern part of the country as the insurgency intensified. He was awarded two Bronze Stars for his service in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Brandon has been interviewed by ABC News, the Associated Press, McClatchy, Bloomberg, the UK's Guardian and Daily Telegraph, The Military Times, and other news organizations. He has also appeared on ABC, CNN, MSNBC, and C-SPAN, as well as on numerous radio stations across the country. Brandon's writing has been featured on a wide range of new media outlets to include the UK's Guardian Unlimited, The Huffington Post, Daily Kos, and, most recently, as the Editor of VetVoice--a blog on politics and the military.

Brandon holds a B.A. in History from Louisiana State University in Shreveport and an M.P.A. in Public Policy and Administration from the University of Texas at Dallas. He is currently a Captain in the Individual Ready Reserve.

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