During Donald Trump’s campaign in 2016, he lashed out at the Muslim parents of a slain American soldier. Trump’s attacks on Khizr and Ghazala Khan, whose son died serving as a company commander in Iraq, appalled Gold Star families who demanded an apology from the former reality show star. That apology never came and conservatives voted in Trump as president after they lost their moral compass.
The Khan’s son, Humayun Khan, was killed in 2004 while serving in Iraq. He was awarded both the Purple Heart and Bronze Star medals posthumously. In contrast, Donald J. Trump was the recipient of numerous deferments in order to avoid serving in the military.
On Tuesday, Gold Star parents Khizr Khan and his wife Ghazala Khan blasted Trump over his delay in responding to the recent deaths of four U.S. Green Berets in Niger, then when a backlash ensued, the so-called president claimed that past presidents, including Barack Obama, did not reach out to the families of fallen soldiers as much as he has.
Trump’s claim was, of course, a lie.
The Hill reports:
Trump’s ‘selfish and divisive actions have undermined the dignity of the high office of the presidency, one more time he has shown the nation him undeserving of the leadership of our great nation,’ the couple said in a statement to The Hill.”
The Khans went on to express solidarity with the families of the soldiers who were killed in the ambush in Niger.
“We stand with the families in their grief and pray for their strength and peace,” the couple said.
“And tell them that this nation will never forget the service and sacrifice the brave hero sons made on behalf of this great nation and for our liberty and safety; their families’ service and sacrifice will also be always remembered,” the statement continued.
Mr. Khan stood next to his wife at the Democratic National Convention last year and asked if Trump had ever read the Constitution, as he held up a pocket-sized version of the document to the crowd.
That was too much for Trump to take in so he lashed out at the couple.
After Trump attacked previous presidents and specifically targeted Obama, reporters pressed him on that. It was a jaw-dropping moment but Trump insisted that he was “told” that Obama didn’t call the families of slain soldiers often.
“And some presidents didn’t do anything,” Trump continued.
Then today, Trump doubled down and said, “I think I’ve called every family of someone who’s died. As far as other representatives, I don’t know. You could ask General Kelly, did he get a call from Obama?”
Apparently, Trump did not call the families of the slain soldiers who were killed in Niger. And as for his claim about Obama not contacting General Kelly, that, too, is a lie. The Obamas attended a breakfast with Kelly after his son’s death.
Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images.
