ELM GROVE, Wis. – Patrick Proctor Brown says the war in Afghanistan was lost within a year of its start. The suburban Milwaukee lawyer, who was an infantry captain in Iraq, said the trillions of dollars spent and the thousands of lives lost, including a lieutenant he trained with, make it “a tragedy.” "And the Taliban will be back in power in a year," said Brown, 35, who also studied diplomacy at Norwich, a military university in Vermont. "It’s insane.” Brown supports President Joe Biden's decision to withdraw all troops from Afghanistan by Sept.
11, and by voting for the Democrat, he represents a subtle but potent shift in the voting behavior of some in the military. Voters who served in the military have long leaned toward Republicans.