Michael P. Norton
State House News Service
Candidate for governor Mike Minogue, who served as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army, has named Brian Concannon, president of Haemonetics Corporation, to chair his 61-member Veterans for Minogue campaign coalition.
The candidate also pledged that, if elected, within his first 100 days in office he will launch a statewide Hire a Veteran Day initiative, establish a Veterans and Gold Star Family Employment Council, and prioritize hiring more than 25,000 veterans over his four-year term.
"Our goal is to make Massachusetts the model for America on how to honor veterans and their families," Concannon said.
Minogue used the announcement to promote the importance to veterans of benefits, education, advocacy and opportunity, and to take a jab at some undocumented immigrants and state spending on immigrants.
"The days of veterans being overlooked, especially while millions of tax dollars are spent on benefits for criminal illegal immigrants, ends when my administration begins," Minogue said in a statement.
His campaign said veterans and their families "should be at the front of the line when it comes to getting an education, workforce training, or trade certification" and pledged to "expand access to higher education, workforce training, apprenticeships, and trade certifications for veterans."