CNN is reporting that a prestigious veterans group wants an apology from President Trump:
The Veterans of Foreign Wars [VFW] is demanding that President Donald Trump apologize for downplaying traumatic brain injuries sustained by US service members in Iraq after Iranian missile strikes on American troops earlier this month.
Earlier this week, Trump said he does not consider potential traumatic brain injuries to be as serious as physical combat wounds, minimizing the severity of the injuries, saying he heard that some troops “had headaches, and a couple of other things, but I would say, and I can report, it’s not very serious.”
“The VFW expects an apology from the President to our service men and women for his misguided remarks,” William “Doc” Schmitz, VFW National Commander, said in a statement Friday, following the Pentagon’s announcement that 34 US service members have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries in the January 8 Iranian attack.
My money says they’ll be disappointed.
- President Trump is an expert on everything.
- People who complain about President Trump are lily-livered wusses. Just ask him.
- Admitting that a traumatic brain injury is a serious, long term life-threatening matter would be to admit that the Iranians actually inflicted some serious injuries on American troops.
- Admitting (3) would then require Trump actually do something about it. Trump killed Soleiman, in large part, to distract the American public from the then-upcoming impeachment trial. It would be a signal mistake to get the United States involved in a foreign war, because one of his campaign promises was to not be involved in foreign wars overseas.
It’s a balancing act. Right now Trump is claiming he killed an important element of Iranian trouble-making in the Middle East – an uncontested claim – without incurring any casualties in return. This is Trump’s Osama bin Laden moment, isn’t it? For those who’ve forgotten or never learned, while bin Laden never admitted to it, he was widely blamed for the destruction of the Twin Towers and the attack on the Pentagon by hijacked airliner on September 11, 2001.
President George W. Bush (R-TX), in office at the time, never managed to do more than chase bin Laden into hiding, despite starting two wars in the Middle East. That failure, plus the false pretenses under which the Iraq conflict was initiated, has left a deep and abiding stain on the Republican brand, no matter how much the Republicans refuse to discuss or acknowledge it. In fact, it’s a bit of an OK Boomer moment.
President Obama (D-IL) was in office and authorized the raid that killed Obama bin Laden, and while we did lose a helicopter in the raid, no personnel were wounded or lost, or at least none acknowledged. It became one of the moments symbolizing the tenure of President Obama, who was ironically the winner, in my mind prematurely, of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009.
And, as has been noted several times, President Obama has been the measuring stick President Trump has chosen for himself. Whether it’s because of Trump’s alleged, but apparently unproven, racism, or because of Republican jealousy of Obama’s success, not only in winning office twice, but in executing the duties of the office, it’s been noteworthy how often Obama is denigrated in a Trump tweet.
So it is necessary for Trump to achieve a killing of a terrorist of stature equivalent to bin Laden’s, without troop loss. Trump, I think, will stick at claiming it’s nothing more than a headache, because, hey, maybe he got a concussion at his military-themed school, and that’s all he ever had.
And he’ll get away with it. I’m not aware of the severity of the injuries, nor the relevant statistics, but my guess is that two to four of those afflicted will commit suicide due to the resultant infirmity of their brains – just as the VFW is noting in their call.
But the Republicans, who are already desperately short in the prestige department because of the missteps and brazen maliciousness of their last twenty years, won’t admit a thing. Just as they can’t at this impeachment trial – it’s a blot on their national brand.
If you’re a vet – I’m not, but my Dad served during the Cuban Missile Crisis – and Trump continues to deny the importance of these injuries, it’s worth questioning his commitment to the troops. He periodically claims to have been their biggest friend. Is he? It might pay you to check out VoteVets.org. I glanced at their endorsements page, and they appear to be heavily tilted towards the Democrats, Vet division – Buttigieg, Gabbard. Lieu, etc.
