He’s done it again. Donad Trump continued his pattern and practice of disparaging the United States Armed Forces.
Trump’s latest offensive remarks about the military were made on August 15 during a campaign fundraiser at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.
The timing and substance of Trump’s continued castigation of the military is hurting his own campaign — and the Republican Party by extension.
Trump is denigrating the U.S. military while, at the same time, his running mate is lambasting the service of Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
Trump’s running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, is a Marine veteran who was deployed to Baghdad, Iraq, in a non-combat role. Vance is playing the role of attack dog by consistently criticizing and questioning the military service of Walz.
That’s why it’s the height of hypocrisy for Vance to denigrate the service of Gov. Walz while being silent about Trump’s insults about the military.
Once again, Trump’s failure to control his impulses by uttering misstatements and verbal gaffes has undercut his own campaign.
Call the Trump-Vance messaging machine the equivalent of political bizarro world, because it simply makes no sense.
Needless to say, degrading American service members will not help Trump attract moderate and independent swing voters he needs to win the election.
Erroneous Comparison
Trump denigrated the highest military award given to war heroes: the Medal of Honor for valor in combat.
Trump asserted that the highest civilian medal — the Presidential Medal of Freedom — is “much better” than the highest military distinction — the Medal of Honor — because the civilian award doesn’t involve those who were killed or wounded in battle.
Trump said the civilian medal “is actually much better because everyone [who] gets the Medal of Honor, they’re soldiers. They’re either in very bad shape because they’ve been hit so many times by bullets or they’re dead.”
Trump added that the two medals are “rated equal” — an offensive and erroneous comparison.
Trump’s former chief of staff, retired Marine General John Kelly, corrected his old boss by saying: there’s “no equivalency of any kind” between the two medals.
Army Colonel Jack Jacobs (retired) a Medal of Honor recipient, said of Trump:
- “This is the man who denigrated people who served and sacrificed so that he can enjoy the freedom that he enjoys now. And if it weren’t for these people, he wouldn’t be in the position where he could enjoy freedom.”
Col. Jacobs saved the lives of 14 allied soldiers who were pinned down during the Vietnam War, even though he had been wounded too.
He added: “I’ve spoken to a lot of people who work directly for the [former] president who reiterate he has no respect for people in uniform, no respect for people who have served and, most significantly, does not understand the notion of being part of something that’s larger than yourself.”
CBS reported: “Out of the 41 million who have served in the U.S. military, only 3,517 service members have received the Medal of Honor — 19 of whom were awarded the medal twice — according to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society.” (article below)
But again, Trump has no impulse control, as he’s proven time after time. Moreover, having no impulse control is one of the worst qualities for a President of the United States.
No current or former president should ever demean American servicemen and women. Such conduct is beyond reprehensible.
Veterans React
Here’s what other veterans had to say about Trump’s degradation of the military (in addition to Col. Jacobs):
Amy McGrath, a former Senate candidate from Kentucky, is a veteran fighter pilot who was the first woman to fly a combat mission for the Marines. During her two decades of service, she flew 89 combat missions against al-Qaeda and the Taliban.
- McGrath pointed out: “Every single member of the military knows the significance of the Medal of Honor. Every single Commander in Chief in the history of America knows the significance of this medal…except Donald Trump.”
Army veteran Paul Rieckoff is the founder of the group, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. He noted the following about Trump’s degrading language toward the military:
“Our enemies are celebrating when they see a former Commander in Chief attack our military, and he’s done it over and over again.”
Former Army captain and CIA officer, Mark Zeller, told CBS News the following about Trump’s repulsive remarks (article above):
“I can only hope this latest affront against military service is the one that finally makes the rest of my fellow veterans see the light — the man is a con.”
Pattern and Practice
Trump has exhibited a perplexing pattern and practice of demeaning, devaluing and disparaging the military for many years — including those wounded, captured or killed in war.
- Trump is accused of dodging the Vietnam War due to purported bone spurs in his foot, a claim not everybody believes.
- Trump is reported to have joked that his personal equivalent of serving in Vietnam was avoiding sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) while dating models in Manhattan.
- Trump previously made unwarranted and shameful public criticism of former Arizona Senator John McCain’s service in Vietnam. McCain was a decorated Vietnam War hero who was imprisoned and tortured for years.
Trump has previously said that McCain was “only a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren’t captured, okay?”
- Trump reportedly refused to lower the American flags at the White House to half-staff in the immediate aftermath of McCain’s death.
During a trip to France as president in 2018, Trump refused to visit the sacred burial grounds of the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery.
That’s where American soldiers who died storming the beaches of Normandy during World War II were laid to rest. That battle marked a critical turning point of the war. It helped pave the way for the allied victory over Hitler’s Nazi Germany.
Trump previously described members of the military who died during war as “suckers” and “losers”.
Final Thoughts
Trump’s pattern of open disdain for the military clearly demonstrates he is unfit to be the Commander in Chief of the U.S. Armed Forces.
Such baffling and troubling utterances by Trump show he has no respect for the U.S. military, which he has intentionally bad-mouthed for decades.
Col. Jacobs also said of Trump’s recent remarks:
- “The president has said so many things that are outrageous that now it almost fails to shock, and it would be interesting to see what is the fallout, if any, from this.”
- “Maybe it will resonate not just with military people but with the large majority of Americans who support the military, who understand what the military does and what the military has been doing since the inception of the country for our freedom.”
Retired Army General Barry McCaffrey stated, “It’s impossible to believe that Trump can sound this ignorant.”
McCaffrey noted, “A lot of veterans supporting Trump are blocking out this message.” He called Trump’s words “incoherent, babble talk.”
Enough said.
WHAT DO YOU THINK? Please leave your valuable comments below.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: You can learn more about me here. Also, check out my LinkedIn weekly newsletter on politics here. I’m a long-time registered independent voter who is unaffiliated with the Harris-Walz campaign or any political campaign. My experience in government and politics spans 25 years, including work at The White House, the Presidential Transition Office, two winning presidential campaigns, the U.S. Congress, and two federal agencies (OMB and EEOC).
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This post was previously published on medium.com.
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