Skip to content

Twitter Sees Red After Trump Flaunts Purple Heart

"Damn heel spurs," scoff online critics

Armchair pundits Tuesday went to war with Donald Trump after the Republican presidential nominee proudly displayed a newly acquired military decoration typically awarded to soldiers wounded or killed while engaging enemy forces.  

“I’ve always wanted to get the real Purple Heart. This was much easier,” Trump, who avoided serving in Vietnam via a combination of medical and educational deferments, told a crowd of supporters gathered in Ashburn, Virginia.

The real estate mogul thanked Iraq War veteran Lt. Col. Louis Dorfman for bequeathing him such an award, bringing the military man on stage for an impromptu photo op.

Dorfman later told NBC News that he handed over the award to assist Trump in his ongoing battle with the family of fellow Purple Heart winner , late U.S. Army Capt. Humayun Khan.

[

Reports: Trump Asked GOP for Backup on Khans, No One Responded

]  

Political observers marveled at Trump’s choice of words.   

Some questioned his understanding of the award.

A few emphasized his reluctance to serve.

One found the entire episode terribly unsettling.

While others simply chalked it up to Trump being, well, Trump.

Contact Rojas at

warrenrojas@rollcall.com

and follow him on Twitter at

@WARojas.
And Rep. Tammy Duckworth, an Illinois Democrat seeking a Senate seat, shared her own experience: She lost both legs in the Iraq War.

 


Get breaking news alerts and more from Roll Call on your iPhone or your Android.

Recent Stories

Judge blocks latest attempt to slash CFPB

Supreme Court to hear arguments over preventive care task force

Trump puts Italy’s Meloni in high-pressure role as bridge to EU on tariffs

Supreme Court to review Trump birthright citizenship order

At the Races: Only the young

California sues to stop tariffs levied under economic emergency