On Monday, Donald Trump made a quick stop in Buffalo to get one last dig in at veterans before the New York primary. In a speech meant to pander to what he referred to as “New York values,” Trump declared that 9/11 was the worst attack in our nations history (and he remembered not to call it 7/11 this time).
Still, it wouldn’t be a Donald Trump speech without him finding the most callous and horrible way to say something. So he was quick to clarify that 9/11 was worse than Pearl Harbor because civilians died, not just military.
“This was the worst hit that our country has ever taken, worse than Pearl Harbor, because when they attacked Pearl Harbor at least it was military. This was civilians. These were great people. Everybody in this room practically knew somebody that died or somebody that was horribly injured during that terrible day.”
Apparently the 2,403 men and women who died at Pearl Harbor somehow weren’t “great people.” Yes, he was just trying to stroke the egos of New Yorkers, but to say that somehow the death of military personnel is less tragic because they were voluntarily serving their country is a huge slap in the face to both veterans and current members of the armed forces. These were American lives lost in a horrific and terrible way. Not only does Trump try to make it a competition, but he does so by belittling the memory of Pearl Harbor, by implying that the lives lost there were less significant.
This isn’t the first time Trump has been scrutinized for his ridiculous claims about the military. He’s also said that the elite prep school his parents shipped him off to gave him “more training militarily than a lot of the guys that go into the military.”
It is clear that Trump has zero respect for soldiers, or even basic principals of human decency. It’s sickening and insulting to hear how Trump spins his “views” to win votes, but the worst part is that it’s actually working for him.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjFQ-4KIvOI
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