Let’s face it: Anyone who questions Mayor Lee Leffingwell’s commitment to city and country would be nuts. As far as we know, nobody has.

The son of an Austin firefighter who later became a Travis County Deputy Sheriff, Leffingwell grew up in South Austin, attended public schools, graduated from the University of Texas, joined the Navy, became a pilot, fought in the Vietnam War, flew commercially for Delta Air Lines and then turned his attention full-time to public service with two terms on the City Council before being elected Mayor in ‘09.

If you’ve been to or participated in a parade here, chances are good you’ve seen the Mayor — Juneteenth, Martin Luther King Day, Gay Pride, Veteran’s Day and, of course, the Fourth of July. We caught up with Mayor Leffingwell to talk about the upcoming holiday, his year-round patriotism and waving a staunch Democrat flag in an allegedly non-partisan job.

QUESTION: How are you going to celebrate the Fourth, now that the drought has dashed our traditional Auditorium Shores concert and fireworks fun?

LEFFINGWELL: Well, first you’ve got to remember to put out your flag. For me, I’ll be doing community stuff, going to two or three neighborhood parades. That’s always a lot of fun. Then hopefully we’ll have time to relax at home and do a little barbecuing.

QUESTION: Your office is non-partisan, but I also know that you are a lifelong Democrat.

LEFFINGWELL: I’ve never denied it (laughter)!

QUESTION: So how does it make you feel when Republicans try to co-opt patriotism and paint Democrats as somehow less patriotic and less American?

LEFFINGWELL: It’s irritating to me. I know there is a section of anti-war folks, and some people think that makes them seem anti-patriotic, but those folks are certainly patriotic, too. The Democratic Party has always represented the middle class, and that has always been very patriotic. We don’t play second fiddle to anyone in respecting our military.

I’m the only vet on the Council right now, and I’ve carried the ball on military issues, honoring and serving our veterans. It’s been a labor of love, too. We established a program for city employees who are in the Guard and the Reserves to make sure they have all the services they need while they’re on active duty and when they return — and that includes counseling, if it’s needed. We make up pay differences, continue benefits and guarantee their jobs will be here for them no matter how long it takes. We got the Freedom Award from the Department of Defense in 2007 for this program, and we’re really proud of that.

QUESTION: As a Navy veteran who fought in the Vietnam War, how do you feel about the long-awaited repeal of  “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” by President Obama?

LEFFINGWELL: I support it. I don’t see any negatives to it, and I don’t think there will be a ripple when it goes into effect. It’s a social evolution process that’s gone on for a number of years. If you talk to people on active duty in the military, they could care less. The military has always been a social pioneer — President Harry Truman desegregated the military. The Democratic Party has always been the party of positive social change.

QUESTION: Is there a way we can convince people in Austin and the rest of Texas that voting is an act of patriotism? We’re supposed to be such a politically sophisticated city, and yet a 10 percent turnout in a City Council election is considered good. How can we increase participation?

LEFFINGWELL: Yeah, I’m constantly amazed. I do think it’s a new thing to a lot of people because we have those elections in May. Most people think of November as election time. We want to change our city charter to make that happen. I don’t buy that people don’t vote because they just like things the way they are. I think it’s just not on their radar screen, and people have a limited knowledge of what city government does. We’ve done a few things to provide more civic education programs, because it does start with young people, and we’ll do more.

QUESTION: Do you have a final message for Austin as we get ready to celebrate America’s birthday?

LEFFINGWELL: Most likely it will be very hot, so people need to be very careful. We’re concerned about fire hazards, too. Fireworks have been banned, and some places can’t even do barbecue either. But mostly I hope people will just remember what this holiday is about. Think of what John F. Kennedy said: “Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.”