The Patriot Post® · Profiles of Valor: Morgan Luttrell
Recently, I profiled Navy SEAL PO1 Marcus Luttrell. In 2005, he was deployed to Afghanistan, and in June of that year, was involved in the counterinsurgent mission code-named Operation Red Wings under the leadership of SEAL Medal of Honor recipient LT Michael Murphy. The events of that tragic day, and Marcus’s survival, are immortalized in the book, Lone Survivor.
The other half of the Luttrell story is that of Marcus’s twin brother, Morgan.
The brothers were born in 1975 and raised on a horse ranch. Their father, David, is a Navy Veteran who did a tour in Vietnam, and their mom, Holly, is a strong woman and very much the family matriarch. Like most Texas boys, these fifth-generation Texans liked to hunt and fish! They shared all interests in their formative years. Of their upbringing, their father notes, “I raised Marcus and Morgan to be survivors, to take care of each other. I taught them about weapons, the woods, how to survive in the woods, to swim. They learned it well.”
Of life on the ranch, Morgan says, “If you want to humble somebody, if you want somebody to appreciate a hard day’s work, have them throw square bales of hay during the summer in Texas.”
The boys were destined to become warriors, influenced by a long line of family Veterans who had served in every 20th-century conflict. Marcus and Morgan set their sights on becoming Navy SEALs when they were teenagers. At age 14, under the tutelage of Billy “Soupbone” Shelton, a former Green Beret who lived nearby, they started training to ensure that they would eventually make it through Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S).
Before entering the Navy, Morgan earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Sam Houston State University in 2000. Once enlisted, he received orders for BUD/S, graduating with class 237. After BUD/S, he completed Basic Airborne School parachute training and cold-weather combat training in Kodiak, Alaska. He then completed his six months of requisite SEAL Qualification Training (SQT) in Coronado, California. He then received his Navy Enlisted Classification designation as a SEAL, and after completing Officer Candidate School in 2007, he was commissioned an Ensign, becoming a Naval Special Warfare Officer.
In that capacity, he led SEALs over the course of nine combat deployments.
In 2009, he notes that “by the grace of God,” he barely survived a helicopter crash that left him with a broken back and a traumatic brain injury. But that did not keep him down. After rehab, he returned to combat deployments, serving until being medically retired in 2014 as a Lieutenant.
After leaving the Navy, Morgan devoted much of his energy to serving fellow warriors with PTSD through the Boot Campaign and also completed a Master of Science in applied cognition neuroscience from UT Dallas.
In 2017, he became a senior advisor to former Texas Governor Rick Perry during his appointment as Donald Trump’s Secretary of Energy. In 2021, Morgan filed to run for Congress for the Texas 8th congressional district. He won the seat vacated by retiring Republican Kevin Brady, defeating Democrat Laura Jones, whom he will face again in the 2024 general election. (You can support his campaign here.)
Morgan joined other outstanding Texas Veterans in the House, including Brian Babin, Dan Crenshaw, Jake Ellzey, Pat Fallon, Tony Gonzales, Wesley Hunt, Ronny Jackson, Troy Nehls, August Pfluger, and Keith Self.
During his first term with the 118th Congress, Morgan served on the Armed Forces Committee and its Subcommittee on Cyber, Innovative Technologies and Information Systems and its Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations. He also serves on the House Committee on Homeland Security and is Vice Chair of its Border Security and Enforcement Subcommittee, and he serves on the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, chairing its Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee.
Morgan is no longer defending our nation against enemies on foreign soil, but he most assuredly continues to honor his oath “to support and defend” our Constitution against domestic threats.
If you have not witnessed this combat-tempered Navy SEAL taking on squishy members of the inept Biden/Harris regime, particularly Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, who empowered “Border Czar” Kamala Harris’s disastrous open border policies, grab some popcorn and enjoy the show here and here and here.
Ahead of the 2024 election, Morgan authored an op-ed, “Kamala Harris is the Wrong Choice for America,” in which he notes: “As Border Czar, Harris has completely failed to deliver meaningful — or any — solutions. She has been completely absent. … Further, the tragic Afghanistan withdrawal in 2021 was a direct result of failed leadership and a major projection of weakness on the world stage. … Kamala Harris has been part of an Administration that has overseen record high inflation, rising energy costs, and a disastrous economy. The lack of leadership on these issues only underscores that she is out of touch with hardworking Americans. … As alarming as her record as Vice President is, it nearly pales in comparison to her time in the Senate [when] she had a more liberal voting record than socialist Bernie Sanders.”
He concludes: “Americans will have the chance to course correct the direction of our country. Kamala Harris is simply not the right choice.”
Morgan notes that his military experience has shaped his work in Congress, particularly regarding character and patience. “Those qualities served me well in the military, and they serve me well in Congress.”
Warrior, yes, but he also endeavors to reach across the aisle: “I work every day as hard as I can to reach across the aisle, to find harmony between the two parties. I have co-sponsored legislation with my Republican colleagues and my Democratic colleagues.”
But on some things, he will not compromise: “I have my stances, my conservative Christian stances, that I don’t walk away from. But what I have found is that when you’re able to meet and talk with those in the other party, and you have a cordial, professional conversation, a lot can be accomplished together.”
Morgan and Leslie, and their sons Gunner and Lincoln, the next generation of American Patriots, reside in Magnolia, Texas. They are, in his words, “a faith-based family.”
“Greater love has no one than this, to lay down one’s life for his friends.” (John 15:13)
Live your life worthy of his sacrifice.
Footnote: In a recent column, “Congressional Veterans Condemn Walz for Stolen Valor,” I referenced the current Veterans serving in the 118th Congress. There are 80 House Veterans and 17 Senate Veterans. Predictably, about 75% of those Veterans are Republicans, and the ratio of those having served deployments in combat zones is 5:1 Republican.
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis Pro Deo et Libertate – 1776
(Read more Profiles of Valor here.)
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Pro Deo et Libertate – 1776
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