US VETERANS SKEWER TRUMP AS ‘NATIONAL DISGRACE’

Advocacy organizations representing millions of veterans across the United States slammed President Donald Trump for denigrating US soldiers killed or wounded in war as “suckers” and “losers” while passing himself off as the unrivaled champion of the nation’s service members.

Writing for Common Dreams on September 4, 2020 (September 5, 30320 in Manila), Jake Johnson said Trump’s statements were confirmed by 28 sources for The Atlantic and corroborated by Washington Post, NBC News, CNN and even by Jennifer Griffin of Fox News. “This is not surprising, nor is it the first time President Trump has attacked veterans, but it is a new low, even for Trump,” Will Goodwin, an Army veteran and director of government relations for advocacy group VoteVets, said in a statement. “There is no rhyme or reason for Trump to cruelly attack our nation’s fallen heroes. And it is especially egregious given that he’s the commander in chief of our Armed Forces.”

“Donald Trump does not respect our men and women in uniform,” Goodwin continued. “He does not respect their families. He does not respect veterans. And worse, he has matched his vile language with action. He has abused our military, has made our country less safe, and has put our men and women in uniform in harm’s way for his own political gain.” The Union Veterans Council, a national labor organization, called Trump “a national disgrace” in the wake of The Atlantic‘s reporting. Alexander McCoy, political director of Common Defense, which represents millions of veterans across the US, said millions of veterans, their families and friends would surely not vote for Trump and his Republican cohorts on November 3.

In a series of tweets late Thursday, Trump denied the comments attributed to him in The Atlantic, writing—falsely—that he never called late Republican Sen. John McCain a “loser,” but his 2015 tweets calling McCain a “loser” have swamped cyberspace, proving beyond doubt that Trump is a liar. Ret. Gen. Mark Hertling on Friday told CNN’s Jim Sciutto that many military service members do not think much of President Donald Trump and his views on the military. “He doesn’t understand service and sacrifice,” he explained. “For the president to degrade them, to defile them in their service, as he is reported to have had done, to me is frankly disgusting. I don’t understand it. These are people who put their life on the line.” Hertling said he had little hope that Trump would ever come to appreciate military service. “He is who he is,” he said. “But it’s not the kind of individual we should have as a leader and as a commander-in-chief.”