I'm a Catholic school boy from the military.
I'm a military kid, both parents in the military - Mom did 12 years, Dad did 21, served in two wars. So discipline is something that was huge.
Both my grandfathers were in the Navy, and I have cousins and uncles in the military, so it's something that I've always respected.
When I got out of the military, I finished up my education at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, and I had some mentors who said, 'You got what it takes. You should consider going to graduate school, getting a Ph.D. in neuroscience.' I didn't think I had what it took until somebody who had a Ph.D. told me I had what it takes.
I went to military college in Canada and graduated as an officer in the Navy but also as an engineer.
I've never really had a TV career. I've been a soldier and a climber.
In picking Gen. Jim Mattis for Defense secretary, President-elect Donald Trump has said that he found his 'Gen. George Patton.' Yet that label may not really capture what makes Mattis a distinctive choice.
I go back and think of President Kennedy, who had a military service background, but he comes into the presidency, and he's faced with a decision on the Bay of Pigs, with the C.I.A. and the military giving him data, and it turns out very badly.
It's easier to get people to talk to you if you're a vet and you want to interview a vet about war. Sometimes they open up a little bit easier.
Like it or not, Jesse Ventura is a Navy SEAL. He did the pushups and put up with the cold water, just like the rest of us.
My father was an ex-Marine Goldwater Republican.
A President who has served in the military is better able to serve as Commander in Chief …. I was a better President for having served …
My father was an air officer in the Second World War. My brother was a marine in Vietnam. When I was given this opportunity, I leapt at the chance because I thought it would be a hell of a lot more interesting than what my friends were doing.
I was born in a family with a strong military background, so I chose to be a soldier.
My father was a military attache, so I've been traveling all my life.
My father was career military. He was a veteran, he was a doctor of political science, he taught at West Point and Air Command Staff and lectured at the War College.
I had been in that part of the world as a soldier in Korea, so I had been interested in Vietnam.
I'll tell you what I do have: I have a good feel for ordinary people, for politics, and those are my strengths. I understand, I hope instinctively, where many of our Armed Forces come from.
A veteran is a person who has proven themselves in an uncontrolled, unstable environment. That's the kind of person I want on my team.
Donald Trump has no credibility to criticize me or my record or anything that I have done. If he had spent a minute in the deserts of Afghanistan or in the deserts of Iraq, I might listen to what he has to say.
I virtually grew up at Air Force bases, and when I was younger, I'd dream of wearing a uniform like my father and grandfather. But when I turned 10, I felt theatre and acting were my calling.
My father - who was a master sergeant and the toughest man I've even known - next to him, Coach Lombardi was a piece of cake.
My whole life experience feeds into my writing. I think that must be true for every writer. Clearly the Army and combat were major influences; just the same, you need to understand that many of the writers we have now couldn't load a revolver.
My dad was a Navy munitions officer, and by the end of his career, he was a specialist in nuclear weapons.
My dad was in the military, yeah. He was in the Air Force, and he was a doctor, so he would go places for six months here, and two years there. And I was home-schooled because I played the violin, and I did a lot of competitions.
