For a president who claims to love the military, Trump is awfully comfortable disparaging the brave men and women who serve in our armed forces when it suits him. He exploits their service to rile up his base and wrap himself in the flag but doesn’t hesitate to insult Gold Star families. It’s all performative, lacking any kind of sincerity or understanding of what our soldiers actually sacrifice.
This morning, Trump took his tradition of shameful disrespect towards the military to a new low. During a call-in segment with Fox & Friends, Trump made the incredible statement that Representative Devin Nunes (R-CA) should “get the Medal of Honor” for “what’s he gone through and his bravery.”
Trump then pivoted to suggest he should perhaps instead get the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest distinction awarded to civilians. It should go without saying that Nunes deserves neither. He doesn’t even deserve his current Congressional seat.
The comments are deeply inconsiderate of the men and woman who actually earned the Medal of Honor, many of whom died for their country. Devin Nunes, on the other hand, is a sniveling little partisan hack, a man willing to compromise national security in order to advance his own career and his toxic party’s agenda. One would be hard-pressed to come up with a man less deserving of the honor.
TRUMP, ranting, says @DevinNunes should get the "Medal of Honor" for his efforts to expose purported anti-Trump bias within the FBI pic.twitter.com/VexWyyOQnz
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 11, 2018
Now, Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) has taken to Twitter to check Trump’s ignorance. Duckworth, herself a veteran and war hero who lost limbs serving this country, tweeted that it doesn’t matter who you are, you should “Never insult real Medal of Honor recipients with your fake hyperbolic rantings.” She included a link to an article from The Hill about Trump’s comments.
I don’t care who you are. Never insult real Medal of Honor recipients with your fake hyperbolic rantings. https://t.co/vu1SVgivfu
— Tammy Duckworth (@SenDuckworth) October 11, 2018
Duckworth followed up her tweet with another and linked to the Wikipedia page of Medal of Honor recipient Mike Novosel. Duckworth said that Novosel was her friend and explained that he is interred at Arlington National Cemetary.
“His headstone reads simply ‘A good Soldier,” Duckworth wrote. The message is clear. Those who serve and sacrifice in the military do it for love of country, not for self-aggrandizement or accolades. They are the exact opposite of egomaniacal blowhards like Trump or politicking cowards like Nunes.
This is Mike Novosel, a real MOH recipient who I was honored to call my friend. He lies at rest in ARLINGTON’s sacred grounds. His headstone reads simply “A good Soldier.” https://t.co/eMsCIrQvqw
— Tammy Duckworth (@SenDuckworth) October 11, 2018
Trump would be wise to heed Duckworth’s advice. He refused to serve himself, instead taking numerous deferments for “bone spurs.” The man doesn’t understand the meaning of honor and never will.
