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Title: Trump creates outrage in Iowa claiming that John McCain wasn't a war hero because he was a captured POW – and dodges questions about his own Vietnam War draft deferments
Source:
Daily Mail Online
URL Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art ... all-half-field-stays-home.html
Published: Jul 18, 2015
Author: David Martosko, US Political Editor
Post Date: 2015-07-18 13:59:06 by cranky
Keywords: None
Views: 62969
Comments: 201
- Trump couldn't remember which foot had the bone spur that brought his medical deferment from the Vietnam draft
- He blasted John McCain on stage in Iowa for calling his Phoenix audience 'crazies,' and denied he was a war hero because the North Cietnamese captured him
- Trump had initially wowed the cattle-call crowd by talking about his religion for the first time in-depth
- Rick Perry quickly called for Trump to quit his campaign and said he's unfit to be commander-in-chief
- Trump clarified: 'I have great respect for all those who serve in our military including those that weren’t captured and are also heroes'
- Jeb Bush, Chris Christie, Carly Fiorina, George Pataki, Lindsey Graham and Rand Paul skipped the Christian conservative gathering in Iowa
Donald Trump escalated his feud with Sen. John McCain on Saturady in Iowa by suggesting only his capture and five years as a prisoner of war turned him into a 'war hero.'
'He’s a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren't captured,' Trump said on stage at the Family Leader Summit in Ames.
McCain spent years in a Viet Cong prison after the plane he was flying was shot down over Hanoi in October 1967.He was tortured enough to produce permanent physical disabilities.
Trump got student and medical deferments and never served in uniform.
He told reporters after his speech that a bone spur in his foot led to the medical exemption from the draft. Asked which foot had disqualified him, he couldn't remember.
'You'll have to look it up,' Trump said dismissively. 'It's in the records.'
Rick Perry, the former Texas governor who is running 10th in an average of national polls, immediately called for Trump to quit his presidential campaign.
ANGRY: Trump attacked Sen. John McCain and said the only reason he is considered a war hero is his capture and imprisonment as a POW during the Vietnam War.
NOT A HERO? Sen. John McCain spent more than five years in a North Vietnamese prison after his plane was shot down durign the Vietnam War
WALKING WOUNDED: McCain's torture left him disfigured and permanently damaged
'I respect Sen. McCain because he volunteered to serve his country,' Perry said in a statement. 'I cannot say the same of Mr. Trump.'
'His comments have reached a new low in American politics. His attack on veterans make him unfit to be Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Armed Forces, and he should immediately withdraw from the race for President.'
Trump focued considerable rhetorical artillery on McCain Saturday, mocking his bona fides on military and veterans issues:
'He graduated last in his class at Annapolis,' he claimed. 'Well, second-to-last.'
In a press conference following his speech, Trump backtracked a few inches about prisoners of war.
'If somebody's a prisoner, I would consider him a war hero,' he said. 'But her have lots of heroes who wersn't prisoners.
The billionaire's tussle with McCain began after he drew a reported 15,000 people to a campaign event in Phoenix to talk about illegal immigration.
McCain, a proponent of comprehensive immigration reform, called his audience 'crazies.' Trump responded that the GOP's 2008 presidential nominee was a 'dummy.'
In an emailed statement to DailyMail.com, Trump said after his press conference: 'I am not a fan John McCain because he has done so little for our Veterans and he should know better than anybody what the Veterans need, especially in regards to the VA.'
'He was extremely disrespectful to the thousands upon thousands of people, many of whom happen to be his constituents, that came to listen to me speak about illegal immigration in Phoenix last week by calling them "crazies",' Trump carped.
'These were not "crazies" – these were great American citizens.'
'I have great respect for all those who serve in our military including those that weren’t captured and are also heroes,' he insisted.
Republicans auditioned all day for Christian conservatives, parading their bona fides in the nations' first presidential primary state. But not everyone searching for votes showed up.
The cattle-call brought nine of the Republican Party's 15 declared presidential candidates to a single stage, less than a day after Democrats did the same thing – with all five of their White House hopefuls – a two-hour drive to the east.
The Christian-right sponsoring group, The Family Leader, attracted mostly the candidates from the conservative end of the GOP spectrum.
Led by political kingmaker Bob Vander Plaats, the group wields outsize influence in the Hawkeye State whenever Republicans barnstorm through during the run-up to the quadrennial Iowa caucuses.
The $10 billion man was otherwise a crowd favorite in Ames, Iowa, speaking about his religion before a group of Christian conservatives
Donald Trump's childhood church was First Presbyterian Church in Jamaica, Queens, New York City. He said he was in church just last week
Anti-abortion politics were visible in Ames, Iowa on July 18, 2015 at the Family Leader summit, a gathering of Republican presidential candidates hosted
Missing in Ames was the Republican front-runner Jeb Bush, the sometimes-moderate New Jersey governor Chris Christie and the usually moderate former New York governor George Pataki.
Nowhere to be found were senators Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Rand Paul of Kentucky. Paul's libertarian brand of Republicanism, makes some religious conservatives wary.
Carly Fiorina, the GOP's only female While House contestant, also didn't make the trip.
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, the day's first candidate-speaker, wrapped up his time on stage in a Q&A with pollster Frank Luntz by asking if he could read aloud from a book.
'It's a Bible,' he said, drawing wild cheers from the audience.
He read from the Gospel of Luke, chapter 12, verse 48: 'From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded' – explaining it as a parable about America's global primacy and its obligations to keep its people, and the world, safe.
Rubio blasted the Obama administration's recent nuclear bargain with Iran, calling it 'a complete sham.'
He also castigated the president for sidestepping the role of Islam in global terror.
'It's not radical Presbyterian terrorism,' he said. 'It's radical Islamic terrorism. ... We have to target them militarily in their safe havens.'
Abortion politics were visible both outside and inside the event venue in Ames, Iowa.
Sign-wavers pointed to right-wing outrage over a surreptitious video that showed a Planned Parenthood medical doctor describing how she tailored her abortion procedures in order to preserve fetal body parts for human biologics companies.
Outrage over an undercover video sting of Planned Parenthood brought anti-abortion
Iowa Rep. Steve King kicked off the day with anger over 'that in-quotes "doctor"' whom he said was killing 'babies that could be viable outside the womb. It is sickening to watch.'
Seizing on the political moment as a springboard for new laws tightening abortion restrictions, Knig said: 'This is our chance.'
Also in evidence was a lingering resentment over this month's stunning Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex weddings nationwide.
'Marriage = 1 [man] and 1 [woman],' a projected image declared above the stage as the crowd filed in, using icons to represent male and female. (9 images)
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Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 196.
Donald Trump escalated his feud with Sen. John McCain on Saturady in Iowa by suggesting only his capture and five years as a prisoner of war turned him into a 'war hero.''He’s a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren't captured,' Trump said on stage at the Family Leader Summit in Ames.
Trump got student and medical deferments and never served in uniform.
He told reporters after his speech that a bone spur in his foot led to the medical exemption from the draft. Asked which foot had disqualified him, he couldn't remember.
That's your boy. You must be so proud of him.
#5. To: SOSO (#1)
What do you disagree with?
#13. To: A K A Stone (#5)
What do you disagree with?
A guy with the moral values to call his future wife to the national press a great piece of ass.
A guy that slings sh*t at those who served in Vietnam but can't remember in which foot the bone spur got him his medical pass out.
#124. To: SOSO, A K A Stone (#13)
What do you disagree with?
A guy with the moral values to call his future wife to the national press a great piece of ass.
Have you taken a close look at McCain’s moral values? I think not, let’s do so now.
|
And you, SOSO, will condemn “a guy (Trump) with the moral values to call his future wife to the national press a great piece of ass” while you give a free pass to McCain on his “moral values” and call him a hero.
Aren’t you being grossly hypocritical? It surely looks like you are.
#140. To: Gatlin, A K A Stone (#124)
Have you taken a close look at McCain’s moral values?
For the last time, I am not a fan of McCain. But his military service demands more respect than your Dollar Donald and his band of pied piper morons deny.
"I think not, let’s do so now.
Her, let me fix this for you "I think not."
Over and out.
#141. To: SOSO (#140)
You condemn Trump for his morals and yet you give McCain a pass on his.
You are a hypocrite and McCain is no hero.
#143. To: Gatlin (#141)
You condemn Trump for his morals and yet you give McCain a pass on his.
How many times have I told you that I am not a fan of McCain? Now you can just go f*ck yourself.
#144. To: SOSO (#143)
How many times do I have to tell you that you are still are a hypocrite....for condemning Trump and giving McCain a pass for doing worse, by calling McCain a "HERO." McCain is no hero.
#145. To: Gatlin (#144)
How many times do I have to tell you that you are still are a hypocrite
And how many times do I need to tell to go f*ck yourself? I don't suffer fools well, especially disingenuous ones. You are totally insufferable.
#146. To: SOSO (#145)
And how many times do I need to tell to go f*ck yourself?
As long as you continue to expose yourself as the hypocrite you are.
McCain is no hero.
#148. To: Gatlin, SOSO (#146)
McCain is no hero.
He was a military prince, son and grandson of an admiral. He partied his way through Annapolis, graduating at the very bottom of his class. He was a lousy pilot and didn't follow procedure in attack and got himself shot down by AA because of it. While ejecting, his poor adherence to training caused him to be severely injured and permanently maimed (due to lack of medical care in POW camp). If he wasn't a military prince, the Navy would probably have never let him fly, let alone fly a warplane.
All that said, McCain did suffer maiming from his service, he was in POW camp a long time and didn't go home when they offered to let him go. That was the most honorable thing he did in his Navy career. It would have been easy to just quit after he'd been maimed.
There are a lot of other vets that are much bigger heroes than McCain. Bob Kerrey and Bob Dole both had better much records in elite units and lost limbs, for instance. But he served and suffered so "war hero" may be the only term that fits, even if he was a lousy pilot rightly held in low regard in the military.
#166. To: TooConservative, Gatlin, SOSO (#148)
But he served and suffered so "war hero" may be the only term that fits
I would prefer to reserve the appellation "war hero" to those few who have done something truly heroic and have earned praise as a "war hero." This seems to be watering down the term to where conduct deserving of a good conduct award would also be deserving of some heroism or valor in combat award.
"War hero" should be reserved for those few who have stood out from the rest of us who have served honorably, but without such distinction.
#178. To: nolu chan (#166)
I would prefer to reserve the appellation "war hero" to those few who have done something truly heroic and have earned praise as a "war hero." This seems to be watering down the term to where conduct deserving of a good conduct award would also be deserving of some heroism or valor in combat award.
Me too. But we don't have a category like "patriot martyr" or "war victim" so we just call them all war heroes.
I get Trump's point. A hero is the guy who makes our enemies die for their country because that saves the most lives of our own military by making wars shorter and victorious.
I recall Bob Dole and Bob Kerrey, both maimed. But they were members of elite units, Doe in elite mountain troops in Italy and Kerrey in the SEALs. So they were real fighting men that saw combat many times. McCain was such a lousy pilot that he got himself shot down in short order over Vietnam. It isn't fair to say that all three were equally "war heroes" when the other two were much better fighting men than McCain was and both were more maimed in their service than McCain is.
#181. To: TooConservative (#178)
Exactly how was Kerry maimed a la Dole, Stockdale or even McCain?
"It was not at all unusual that injuries meriting the award of a Purple Heart might not be serious enough to require time off from duty.
Kerry felt in his arm had been caused by a piece of shrapnel, a wound for which he was awarded a Purple Heart. The injury was not serious — Brinkley notes that Kerry went on a regular Swift boat patrol the next day with a bandage on his arm, and the Boston Globe quoted William Schachte, who oversaw the mission and went on to become a rear admiral, as recalling that "It was not a very serious wound at all."
Kerry earned his second Purple Heart while returning from a PCF mission up the Bo De River on 20 February 1969:...........Brinkley noted that, as in the previous case, "Kerry's wound was not serious enough to require time off from duty."
Kerry was injured yet again on 13 March 1969, in an action for which he was awarded both a Bronze Star and his third Purple Heart.......... According to the Boston Globe, this was the only one of Kerry's three Purple Heart injuries that caused him to miss any days of service:
Back in 1969, Navy regulations specified that any soldier wounded in combat three times be automatically reassigned away from a combat zone to an assignment of his choosing (unless the thrice-wounded soldier specifically requested to stay). Four days after Kerry took his third hit of shrapnel, Commodore Charles F. Horne, an administrative official and commander of the coastal squadron in which Kerry served, forwarded a request on Kerry's behalf to the Navy Bureau of Personnel asking that Kerry be reassigned to "duty as a personal aide in Boston, New York, or Washington, D.C." Soon afterwards Kerry was transferred to Cam Ranh Bay to await further orders, and within a month he had been reassigned as a personal aide and flag lieutenant to Rear Admiral Walter F.Schlech, Jr. with the Military Sea Transportation Service based in Brooklyn, New York.
Kerry served with Admiral Schlech until the end of 1969, when he requested an early discharge from the Navy in order to run for a Massachusetts congressional seat. Admiral Schlech approved the request, and on 3 January 1970 Kerry received an honorable discharge, six months early.
I give Kerry credit for putting himself in harms way, more than once. But maimed as a result of that?
#183. To: SOSO, Liberator, GarySpFc (#181) (Edited)
Exactly how was Kerry maimed a la Dole, Stockdale or even McCain?
I said "Bob Kerrey". Not Lurch.
Kerrey's MOH citation:
| For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a SEAL team leader during action against enemy aggressor (Viet Cong) forces. Acting in response to reliable intelligence, Lt. (j.g.) Kerrey led his SEAL team on a mission to capture important members of the enemy's area political cadre known to be located on an island in the bay of Nha Trang. In order to surprise the enemy, he and his team scaled a 350-foot sheer cliff to place themselves above the ledge on which the enemy was located. Splitting his team in 2 elements and coordinating both, Lt. (jg.) Kerrey led his men in the treacherous downward descent to the enemy's camp. Just as they neared the end of their descent, intense enemy fire was directed at them, and Lt. (jg.) Kerrey received massive injuries from a grenade that exploded at his feet and threw him backward onto the jagged rocks. Although bleeding profusely and suffering great pain, he displayed outstanding courage and presence of mind in immediately directing his element's fire into the heart of the enemy camp. Utilizing his radio, Lt. (jg.) Kerrey called in the second element's fire support, which caught the confused Viet Cong in a devastating crossfire. After successfully suppressing the enemy's fire, and although immobilized by his multiple wounds, he continued to maintain calm, superlative control as he ordered his team to secure and defend an extraction site. Lt. (jg.) Kerrey resolutely directed his men, despite his near unconscious state, until he was eventually evacuated by helicopter. The havoc brought to the enemy by this very successful mission cannot be over-estimated. The enemy soldiers who were captured provided critical intelligence to the allied effort. Lt. (jg.) Kerrey's courageous and inspiring leadership, valiant fighting spirit, and tenacious devotion to duty in the face of almost overwhelming opposition sustain and enhance the finest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service. |
And Kerrey did lose that injured lower leg as a result.
In a nod to Trump's point about McCain, this is a lot more heroic stuff. Scaling a 350' sheer cliff at night, risking discovery from elite enemy bodyguards around local Commie honchos? Classic SEAL derring-do.
I don't like Bob Kerrey or John Kerry. But both had much better records as fighting men than McCain.
Look back at the classic example of an American war hero: Audie Murphy.
He was a real war hero.
#189. To: TooConservative, SOSO, Liberator, GarySpFc (#183)
Look back at the classic example of an American war hero: Audie Murphy.
I have to get some Navy folk into the mix.
I had the honor to serve under RADM Fluckey, awarded the MoH for WW2 service.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_B._Fluckey
Medal of Honor citationFor conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as commanding officer of the U.S.S. Barb during her 11th war patrol along the east coast of China from 19 December 1944 to 15 February 1945. After sinking a large enemy ammunition ship and damaging additional tonnage during a running 2-hour night battle on 8 January, Comdr. Fluckey, in an exceptional feat of brilliant deduction and bold tracking on 25 January, located a concentration of more than 30 enemy ships in the lower reaches of Nankuan Chiang (Mamkwan Harbor). Fully aware that a safe retirement would necessitate an hour's run at full speed through the uncharted, mined, and rock-obstructed waters, he bravely ordered, "Battle station — torpedoes!" In a daring penetration of the heavy enemy screen, and riding in 5 fathoms [9 m] of water, he launched the Barb's last forward torpedoes at 3,000 yard [2.7 km] range. Quickly bringing the ship's stern tubes to bear, he turned loose 4 more torpedoes into the enemy, obtaining 8 direct hits on 6 of the main targets to explode a large ammunition ship and cause inestimable damage by the resultant flying shells and other pyrotechnics. Clearing the treacherous area at high speed, he brought the Barb through to safety and 4 days later sank a large Japanese freighter to complete a record of heroic combat achievement, reflecting the highest credit upon Comdr. Fluckey, his gallant officers and men, and the U.S. Naval Service.
- - - - -
USS Barb (SS-220)In November 1943, he attended the Prospective Commanding Officer's School at the Submarine Base New London, then reported to Commander Submarine Force, Pacific Fleet. After one war patrol as the prospective commanding officer of the USS Barb (SS-220), (her seventh), he assumed command of the submarine on April 27, 1944. Fluckey established himself as one of the greatest submarine skippers, credited with the most tonnage sunk by a U.S. skipper during World War II: 17 ships including a carrier, cruiser, and frigate.
In one of the stranger incidents in the war, Fluckey sent a landing party ashore to set demolition charges on a coastal railway line, destroying a 16-car train. This was the sole landing by U.S. military forces on the Japanese home islands during World War II.
Fluckey ordered that this landing party be composed of crewmen from every division on his submarine. "He chose an eight-man team with no married men to blow up the train," Captain Max Duncan said, who served as Torpedo Officer on the Barb during this time. "He also wanted former Boy Scouts because he thought they could find their way back. They were paddling back to the ship when the train blew up." The selected crewmen were Paul Saunders, William Hatfield, Francis Sever, Lawrence Newland, Edward Klinglesmith, James Richard, John Markuson, and William Walker. Hatfield wired the explosive charge, using a microswitch under the rails to trigger the explosion.
Fluckey was awarded the Navy Cross four times for extraordinary heroism during the eighth, ninth, tenth, and twelfth war patrols of Barb. During his famous eleventh patrol, he continued to revolutionize submarine warfare, inventing the night convoy attack from astern by joining the flank escort line. He attacked two convoys at anchor 26 miles (42 km) inside the 20 fathom (37 m) curve on the China coast, totaling more than 30 ships. With two frigates pursuing, Barb set a then-world speed record for a submarine of 23.5 knots (44 km/h) using 150% overload. For his conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity, Fluckey received the Medal of Honor. Barb received the Presidential Unit Citation for the eighth through eleventh patrols and the Navy Unit Commendation for the twelfth patrol.
- - - - -
On June 8, 1967, Israel attacked the USS Liberty, leaving 34 dead and 174 wounded.
William McGonagle. the commanding officer of Liberty, was awarded the Medal of Honor.
Medal of Honor citation
The President of the United States of America, authorized by an Act of Congress, March 3, 1863, has awarded, in the name of Congress, the Medal of Honor toCAPTAIN WILLIAM LOREN MCGONAGLE
UNITED STATES NAVYFor conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as Commanding Officer, USS Liberty (AGTR-5) in the Eastern Mediterranean on 8–9 June 1967. Sailing in international waters, the Liberty was attacked without warning by jet fighter aircraft and motor torpedo boats which inflicted many casualties among the crew and caused extreme damage to the ship. Although severely wounded during the first air attack, Captain (then Commander) McGonagle remained at his battle station on the badly damaged bridge and, with full knowledge of the seriousness of his wounds, subordinated his own welfare to the safety and survival of his command. Steadfastly refusing any treatment which would take him away from his post, he calmly continued to exercise firm command of his ship. Despite continuous exposure to fire, he maneuvered his ship, directed its defense, supervised the control of flooding and fire, and saw to the care of the casualties. Captain McGonagle's extraordinary valor under these conditions inspired the surviving members of the Liberty's crew, many of them seriously wounded, to heroic efforts to overcome the battle damage and keep the ship afloat. Subsequent to the attack, although in great pain and weak from the loss of blood, Captain McGonagle remained at his battle station and continued to command his ship for more than seventeen hours. It was only after rendezvous with a United States destroyer that he relinquished personal control of the Liberty and permitted himself to be removed from the bridge. Even then, he refused much needed medical attention until convinced that the seriously wounded among his crew had been treated. Captain McGonagle's superb professionalism, courageous fighting spirit, and valiant leadership saved his ship and many lives. His actions sustain and enhance the finest traditions of the United States Naval Service.
#190. To: nolu chan, GarySpFc (#189)
I had the honor to serve under RADM Fluckey, awarded the MoH for WW2 service. ... William McGonagle. the commanding officer of Liberty, was awarded the Medal of Honor.
Wait a second. How can they be war heroes if they didn't get an expensive warplane shot down (or a ship sank) and then spend most of their service years as a POW?
Yet McCain is the one war hero that most people could name.
I prefer these older definitions of a war hero, where an intrepid commander or fighter overcomes long odds with audacity and skill and inflicts crippling blows on the enemy.
#196. To: TooConservative, nolu chan, GarySpFc (#190)
I prefer these older definitions of a war hero, where an intrepid commander or fighter overcomes long odds with audacity and skill and inflicts crippling blows on the enemy.
So only John Waynes are war heroes.
Replies to Comment # 196.
So only John Waynes are war heroes.
Yep.
Suffering in captivity doesn't win a war or shorten it (thereby saving the lives of other Americans).
In many ways, McCain has broken the standard mold of "war hero".
End Trace Mode for Comment # 196.
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