The Unauthorized Randy “Duke” Cunningham Page

Last summer I attended my husbands graduation from the Air Force Air Command and Staff College in Montgomery, Alabama. Every year at the same time the ACSC folks invite a number of famed aviators to a "Gathering of Eagles". They are asked to speak to the student body and are later feted with barbeques and formal night out with the graduates. They tell their stories give autographs and basically bask in the adulation of the students and their families. This being a military hosted event - it was nothing formal or too fancy. I was surprised to hear from one of the event planners how Cunningham insisted on first class air accomadations. At the time I thought the behavior was repugnant especially considering the audience (those that upon graduation will most likely head out to Iraq or Afghanistan - and most certainly not First Class). Anyhow, I opted not to go up to meet him or his wife. I now know how truly repugnant this man was and is.

We were involved years ago with the hosting of an event for Marine Ace Joe Foss . . . a humble, Christian man with a zillion kills - who sadly has since gone West. He insisted on coach and a standard room.

After the event we were shocked to learn that is wonderful guy and his wife had paid for their room service! We wrote him a check. He returned it with a note saying for us to use it for the next event.

What a class act. What a difference.

Jennifer,

Congratulations on your husband's graduation from Command and Staff College. It's an honor to be selected, and a further honor to graduate from that distinguished school. (I've visited, but did not attend)

Further congratulations are in order for you. You were able to ferret out Cunningham's arrogance and insolence, and respond to it. If only his district's voters would have done likewise, years ago.

Good luck and Godspeed to you and your husband.

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Doesn't surprise me in the least. Randy had a BIG HEAD even before he became an ACE. When I heard on the news that morning that the United States has its first ACE....I just KNEW it was RANDY. Because despite all his faults, NOBODY.....and I mean NOBODY studied harder, trained harder, and NOBODY checked the sortie route on the charts and then pinpointed where MiGs might be coming from....JUST IN CASE!!!!!

When I heard on the News about him becoming ACE, my wife and I looked at each other and wondered where they would find a helmet big enough to get his big head in, and how hard he would be to live with after that.

At the end of the 1970 cruise and we Tx's some planes to the Marines in Japan, He and I were part of 8 to fly home early on military commercial charter. HE went to the Gedunk and bought a bunch of ribbons that he THOUGHT he would be later awarded and put them on his uniform just so he would have MORE than just the few we had prior to the later awards back at Miramar.