Trump calls military KIA ‘losers.’ Another reason to disavow him | Opinion

One of the surest ways of gauging a person’s true qualities is by what they’re willing to say or do behind closed doors. This has never been more true than with former President Donald Trump as, over the last few years, multiple revelations have exposed his real character.

John Kelly, the longest-serving White House chief of staff for Trump, provided CNN his assessment of his former boss’s abilities, temperament and disappointing opinion of the U.S. military.

It’s revealing.

“What can I add that has not already been said?” Kelly wrote in a statement, after he was asked if he wanted to weigh in on recent officials’ comments about Trump. “A person that thinks those who defend their country in uniform, or are shot down or seriously wounded in combat, or spend years being tortured as POWs are all ‘suckers’ because ‘there is nothing in it for them.’”

Kelly also insinuated that Trump didn’t want to be seen publicly in the presence of military amputees because the image didn’t look good for him. Kelly recalled how Trump demonstrated “open contempt for a Gold Star family — for all Gold Star families” during the 2016 campaign, referring to members of the military killed in action as “losers.”

“A person who is not truthful regarding his position on the protection of unborn life, on women, on minorities, on evangelical Christians, on Jews, on working men and women,” Kelly continued. “A person that has no idea what America stands for and has no idea what America is all about. A person who cavalierly suggests that a selfless warrior who has served his country for 40 years in peacetime and war should lose his life for treason — in expectation that someone will take action. A person who admires autocrats and murderous dictators. A person that has nothing but contempt for our democratic institutions, our Constitution, and the rule of law.

“There is nothing more that can be said. God help us,” Kelly concluded.

A 2020 story in The Atlantic, written by editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg, revealed similar details of Trump’s lack of respect for members of the military. At Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day 2017, Trump allegedly turned to Kelly and said of those killed in action, “I don’t get it. What was in it for them?”

Comments like this should come as no surprise — almost everyone knows by now that Trump has a penchant for lacking empathy or tact — but it is still jarring to hear the former president smear the U.S military, particularly the men and women who have died defending our country. Trump had held some popularity with members of the military while in office, but an October 2020 poll by the Military Times showed that support slipping. Just 38% held a favorable view of Trump, while 50% had an unfavorable view.

A large percentage of Texans serve in the military. Texas has the fifth highest enlistment rates per capita nationwide, and the second highest number overall after California, which has a much higher population. Texas is also home to some incredible service members, both in recent memory and going back to Sam Houston. The Chris Kyle Memorial Highway, named after the Navy SEAL sniper from Odessa whose story was told in “American Sniper,” runs through Midlothian, southeast of Fort Worth. Kyle’s incredible service history and sacrifice, like many other members of the armed forces, is worthy of respect and remembrance.

There are a lot of reasons Texans should disavow Trump during this next presidential cycle. His legal woes continue to plague him. On Monday, his trial on charges of civil fraud began in New York. He remains stuck on the 2020 election, unable to accept the results, and he is unwilling to step aside for another Republican candidate more fit for office to run in 2024.

But now, we’ve seen Trump’s hypocrisy and what he says behind closed doors about some of our most selfless members of society. The way Trump smeared members of the military who have died defending our country — the heroes who are owed our endless gratitude — is unbecoming of the office of the president.

Texans, regardless of whether they’ve worn the uniform, should not dignify Trump’s offensive antipathy to our war heroes with blind fealty. Texans must demand a better Republican candidate, someone who truly represents our values and those of other red states. Someone worthy of the sacrifice made by so many Americans for their country.