US Army veteran blasts Obama in youtube's most popular election video

Washington, Nov 1 : A video of an Iraq veteran blasting Barack Obama for calling the war a "mistake" has been watched by more than 11 million people - handing a huge boost to McCain and making the two-minute YouTube video an Internet sensation.

On the YouTube clip, titled "Dear Mr Obama," ex-soldier Joe Cook, 23, from Wauconda Illinois, says: "I witnessed first-hand the many sacrifices made. Those sacrifices were not mistakes. When you call the Iraqi war a mistake, you disrespect the service and sacrifice of everyone who has died promoting freedom."

Announcing his support for McCain, Joe adds: "Freedom carries a price", then walks away on a false leg to show he lost his limb in service.

McCain's most powerful ad -- an open letter to Barack Obama in which an Iraq War veteran criticizes his stand on the war - didn't cost the Republican candidate a dime.

In "Dear Mr. Obama," Cook stands in front of the camera and scolds the Democratic presidential candidate for calling the Iraq war a mistake.

The two-minute video, which was posted on YouTube has gotten more than 11 million hits and is the most popular election video on the site, FOX News reported.

Cook was wounded in Iraq in June and returned home to Wauconda, Ill., to recover. He said he enlisted three years ago because of his family's dedication to serving their country. His parents were both Marines, and he has two brothers in the military. ow that he's back from Iraq, Cook continues to help his fellow service members, running a business with a neighbor that provides valet parking services at veterans' hospitals and working on the campaign of Dan Duffy, a Republican running for state senate.

"When I first got back it was all about the recovery and everything like that, but as the race starting going on, I got more involved," he said, explaining why he made the video.

"I started reading about McCain and stuff. He's a leader. I can really respect him, seeing as he's a vet as well."

Cook said that Obama calling the war in Iraq a mistake is "a slap in the face."

Video director Michael Brown, who teamed up with Cook to create the video, said he was inspired to make the video because he wanted to share the experiences of soldiers that aren't reported in the media and to lend support to McCain for his position on the war.

ANI