‘I have a pretty dim view of his decision to use his privileged status to fake a disability in order to avoid serving in Vietnam.’
That’s how Democratic presidential hopeful and Afghanistan War veteran Pete Buttigieg responded Thursday when asked by the Washington Post[1] whether President Trump should have served in the Vietnam War.
Buttigieg, who’s been climbing the polls but still trails the favorites, was referring to Trump’s infamous claims that bone spurs kept him from being drafted.
When pressed as to whether he truly believed Trump was faking his condition, Buttigieg drew laughter when he quipped, “Yeah, at least not that one.” He then added, “I don’t mean to trivialize disability, but I think that’s exactly what he did.”
Read: Abrams breaks from Buttigieg over identity politics[2]
Buttigieg, of course, isn’t the first Democrat to raise questions over the claim. Trump, for his part, defended himself in 2016, saying a doctor “gave me a letter — a very strong letter on the heels” to give to draft officials, according to the New York Times. Reports later surfaced that the diagnosis may have been faked[3].
“I don’t have a problem standing up to someone who was working on Season 7 of ‘Celebrity Apprentice’ when I was packing my bags for Afghanistan,” Buttigieg said of Trump during the wide-ranging chat.
Watch the interview:
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References
- ^ asked by the Washington Post (www.washingtonpost.com)
- ^ Abrams breaks from Buttigieg over identity politics (www.marketwatch.com)
- ^ may have been faked (thehill.com)