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Old 06-05-2019, 11:08 AM
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Question It figures: Trump says he would have liked to join the military (just not during Viet

It figures: Trump says he would have liked to join the military (just not during Vietnam)
By: Leo Shane III - Military Times - 5-6-19
Re: https://www.militarytimes.com/news/p...uring-vietnam/

(Personal note: If you believe this - I would be very surprised - why didn't he say he was just a coward! - Boats)

President Donald Trump in a televised interview Wednesday said he would have liked to have served in the U.S. military but not during the height of fighting in Vietnam because “I was never a fan of that war.”

The comments came during a sit-down on “Good Morning Britain” at the end of Trump’s visit to London this week. Trump said that he “would have been honored” to enlist in the armed forces but that “I think I’m making up for (not serving) as we’re rebuilding the military as we never have before.”

Trump received five deferments during the height of the Vietnam War. Four were for education, while the fifth was a medical waiver for bone spurs in his feet. Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, testified before Congress in February that the injury was made up so Trump could avoid the draft.

Asked about whether he wished he had served in Vietnam, Trump said that “it was a terrible war” and he did not support U.S. efforts there.

“Nobody had ever heard of (Vietnam),” he said. “What are we doing? So many people are dying. What is happening over there?

“This wasn’t like, ‘I’m fighting against Nazi Germany, we were fighting against Hilter.’ I was like a lot of people. I wasn’t out in streets marching. I wasn’t saying I was going to move to Canada, which a lot of people did. But I wasn’t a fan of that war, generally.”

Trump’s critics have attacked him in the past for his attacks on military and veteran critics — including former prisoner of war Sen. John McCain — despite Trump’s lack of military service. The president noted in the interview Wednesday that he has pushed for record-high defense budgets since he became commander in chief, which he sees as a different kind of service to the military.

Trump was also pressed on his decision to overturn Defense Department policy and ban transgender individuals from enlisting in the military, arguing that it was a matter of cost and military rules regarding prescription drug use.

“In the military, you’re not allowed to take any drugs,” he said. “You take an aspirin. And (transgender individuals) have to (use prescription drugs) after the operation. They have no choice. You would have to break rules and regulations to have that.”

When reminded that the military spent more on erectile dysfunction drugs than transgender troops’ medication, Trump repeated that “you have to stick by the standard … They blow it out of the water.”

Officials from the Palm Center, which advocates for LGBT service members, said the comment “shows (Trump’s) ignorance about the realities of military service and regulations, as well as a lack of knowledge of the science and medical research on transgender people.”

They noted that many troops take prescription drugs and the rules Trump seemed to refer to involve illegal substances, not doctor-approved medication.

Trump is traveling to France later this week to participate in ceremonies honoring the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings there.

About this writer: Leo covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He has covered Washington, D.C. since 2004, focusing on military personnel and veterans policies. His work has earned numerous honors, including a 2009 Polk award, a 2010 National Headliner Award, the IAVA Leadership in Journalism award and the VFW News Media award.

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(Personal note: If you believe this - I would be very surprised - why didn't he say (he was just a coward!)

I never was drafted all the guys in our neighborhood enlisted that I know.

Boats
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O Almighty Lord God, who neither slumberest nor sleepest; Protect and assist, we beseech thee, all those who at home or abroad, by land, by sea, or in the air, are serving this country, that they, being armed with thy defence, may be preserved evermore in all perils; and being filled with wisdom and girded with strength, may do their duty to thy honour and glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

"IN GOD WE TRUST"
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Old 06-05-2019, 01:07 PM
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Arrow Trump says he is 'making up' for not serving in Vietnam with increased defense fundin

Trump says he is 'making up' for not serving in Vietnam with increased defense funding
By: ALEX HORTON | The Washington Post | Published: June 5, 2019
RE: https://www.stripes.com/news/europe/...nding-1.584666

Personal comment: (Do you believe this BS!? - I don't!)

Exactly 75 years ago Friday, Allied soldiers stepped on a deadly shore to liberate people they did not know, in a war they did not choose.

President Donald Trump said he would have preferred to serve in that kind of war. One that stirred feelings of deep pride in a U.S. victory and righteousness against a clearly defined enemy.

But his generation got Vietnam.

"I thought it was a terrible war," Trump told Piers Morgan on "Good Morning Britain" on Wednesday. "I thought it was very far away, and at that time nobody ever heard of the country. So many people dying, what is happening over there? So I was never a fan - like we're fighting against Nazi Germany, we're fighting against Hitler."

The exchange occurred after Morgan asked Trump whether he "wished" he had served in the military, particularly in Vietnam, which Trump avoided with a string of student deferments and a medical disqualification for bone spurs.

Those actions have led Democratic challengers to suggest that Trump dodged service because of his wealth. "It's not like there was just some empty seat in Vietnam. Someone had to go in his place," Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., said last month.

Trump appeared to harness a deeply held belief in U.S. memory - that the Vietnam War was fought by reluctant draftees in an unpopular conflict, in turn providing cover for those who sought to avoid it altogether.

But the United States did not send an army of draftees to Vietnam. Between 1964 and 1973, volunteers outnumbered enlisted troops by nearly 4 to 1. In Vietnam, two-thirds of troops had volunteered to serve. They did so for a variety of reasons: a sense of duty, to avoid dim prospects at home or to have control over their assignments that draftees did not.

"I would have not have minded that at all. I would have been honored" to serve, Trump said, though he did not address accusations of draft dodging with Morgan.

However, Trump added, he has increased the Pentagon's budget during his tenure, which he said should be considered as an amends to avoiding service.

"I think I make up for it right now," Trump said, describing a proposed defense budget that will approach $750 billion in 2020. "I think I am making up for it rapidly."

An increasing defense budget has not translated to a potent, agile military, however. For instance, in March, Gen. Robert Neller, the Marine Corps commandant, expressed concern that billions of dollars he needed for hurricane repairs were stalled. Meanwhile, the Pentagon diverted focus and resources to operations on the U.S. southern border.

Later in the interview, Morgan asked Trump why he has effectively banned transgender people from serving after decrying discrimination against lesbian, gay and transgender people in other nations.

"They take massive amounts of drugs. They have to," Trump said. "You're not allowed to take any drugs in the military."

That is not true. Hormones are permissible for service members, as are opioids even amid an addiction epidemic nationwide. Psychotropic drugs are available for naval aviators with mental-health disorders.

Trump has attended D-Day commemorative events to mark the 75th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy, France. Despite pop-culture notions, thousands of men avoided the draft and stayed home in that war.

And then there are soldiers who went, proud of their service and the things they accomplished, and yet decades later, still grapple with the consequence of the horrific things their country told them must be done.
__________________
Boats

O Almighty Lord God, who neither slumberest nor sleepest; Protect and assist, we beseech thee, all those who at home or abroad, by land, by sea, or in the air, are serving this country, that they, being armed with thy defence, may be preserved evermore in all perils; and being filled with wisdom and girded with strength, may do their duty to thy honour and glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

"IN GOD WE TRUST"
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