Former Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs commissioner Kent Davis vowed to "not go away' on Tuesday despite his recent firing by Gov. Kay Ivey.
The State Board of Veterans Affairs rejected Ivey's request to terminate Davis in October. Ivey then unilaterally fired him after the one-and-a-half-hour SBVA meeting.
"The level of support I've gotten is overwhelming. I mean, hundreds and hundreds of not just veterans, but a lot of veterans all over the state have contacted me. I've not heard from one person who has pointed fingers at me and said, 'You did wrong. You need to resign, go away quietly.' Just the opposite. I've had, I won't name names, but I've had plenty of elected officials, including senior elected officials, bravely approach me and lend words of support. I've had former and even current cabinet members approach me quietly. I will not betray the confidentiality but nothing but support," Davis said in an interview with Mobile radio FM Talk 106.5's "Midday Mobile" on Tuesday.
"You've probably seen some of the print media that's covered this. It's been pretty overwhelming all over the state. I still get invitations. During the Veterans Day break, I was a guest speaker at several events including one in Tuscaloosa dealing with veteran suicides. I'm not going to go away. I'm going to be a champion for veterans. I'm retired from the military and the federal civil service. I'm a former federal attorney and a retired public affairs officer. I'm going to be out there talking about this issue because it is a real issue with veterans' suicides especially and veterans' mental health in general. I ain't going away."
John Saxon, an attorney representing Davis, told 1819 News in October, after the firing, they were considering filing a lawsuit.
"Again, this is not going to go away. You've probably seen the speculation about some legal action. That's a distinct possibility here," Davis said on Tuesday. "I'm getting encouragement from a lot of people, and people in Montgomery might be surprised at some of the support I'm getting, and I'll just leave it at that. People need to voice their concerns because, ultimately, it ain't about me. This is about veterans in the state of Alabama, the nearly 400,000 veterans in this state and their families. When you add up veterans, active duty military, and their families, you're talking about a quarter of the state. That's a huge voting block in this state. Now, they usually have been quiet and they're good citizens and don't like to stir up problems, but I've got to tell you I think the last few weeks have been a galvanizing moment for the veterans community. I've never seen anything like this. The contacts I've gotten and everywhere I go, the reception I get, they're championing the idea that we're not doing enough for veterans in this state.
"There's an honorable way out of this if someone with reason would look at it. In any situation like this, there's a potential legal battle and a public relations battle. They're kind of related but they're separate. I'm not sure Alabama wants the public relations battle with this especially with some of the things coming up. You know, we're still trying to get Space Command headquarters. We're trying to get tanker aircraft at one of our units. National news, this is hitting national. I don't think Alabama wants the reputation of, 'You don't care about veterans.' Look, a lot of our elected officials are great with photo-ops and showing up for events but when you look at things like Governor DeSantis in Florida, who is a combat veteran who signed into law a dental health program for veterans in that state because that's another problem for veterans, they get left out in the cold…the state of Texas which has comprehensive tax relief for veterans. Those are the substantive things that people take notice of. Showing up for a photo-op, that's great, but it really doesn't do much to help veterans. I'm telling you, we need to do more in this state. I have tried. Every time I've urged that and I've recommended things, it seems to ruffle feathers sometimes, and that's unfortunate."
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email caleb.taylor@1819News.com.
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