Dear Editor,
In at least one respect, our President is correct in his assertion that he is “no king.” Unlike Alexander the Great, Charlemagne, Henry V, Richard the Lionheart and countless other monarchs, Trump has never led troops in battle, let alone fought alongside them. He has never even worn the uniform of his country – a family tradition since grandad first came ashore in 1885 and which continues today through the five Trump heirs.
J.D. Vance served for 6 months as a military journalist in Iraq. He was never in combat.
Pete Hegseth served in Iraq and Afghanistan as a civil affairs officer and adviser. He was never a leader of combat troops under fire.
Stephen Miller is the consummate chickenhawk, i.e., one who has never served in the military, yet furiously beats the war drum.
These are the people who are instructing our generals and admirals in how to do their jobs. The people who toss American soldiers, sailors and airmen like darts, day to day, at whatever they declare to be a bullseye. These are people who regard “enemy” civilians as rubbish to be incinerated and rant like neglected adolescents about the glory of actions considered by most to be war crimes. People whose idea of a good time is circling back to kill helpless survivors clinging to floating wreckage.
Operation Desert Storm, in 1991, was the last time an actual combat veteran took us to war. President George H.W. Bush presented a clear objective – the expulsion of Iraqi invaders from Kuwait. By the time the first shot was fired, the U.S. was backed by 42 allied countries – a dozen of them Muslim. An unequivocal military victory and the liberation of Kuwait was achieved in 6 weeks.
Today, Trump and his of gang of chest-thumping, trash-talking poseurs stand practically alone in the Persian Gulf, with objectives that change weekly and no apparent plan other than blowing up stuff. Meanwhile, economic havoc is spreading across the globe and only those winning bets on the spasms of the stock market have reason to applaud the much acclaimed “warrior ethos” in action.
Michael Brandt Spring Green, WI