Terry Stulce“He is not my kind of guy.”
So said Donald Trump of the late John McCain. To hear such profound truth from our pathological liar-in-chief is jarring. Mr. President, you are so right. John McCain was not the kind of guy who would shirk his duty to defend our country by claiming he has bone spurs. He did not think that those who were willing to put their lives on the line in Vietnam were “stupid”.
He would not sexually assault women or brag about it like someone in middle school. He would not bring shame on our nation by being a lapdog for Vladimir Putin in Helsinki. He would not seek to enrich himself at the expense of our nation. He would not advocate for torturing prisoners or imprisoning children in cages. He would not tell more than 10,000 lies in just two-plus years. He would not fan the flames of racism or scapegoat minorities to win votes.
So, Mr. President, you’re right. John McCain is everything you are not. The worst nightmare for an American pilot was to be shot down, captured by NVA and carted off to the Hanoi Hilton. John lived this nightmare. Fortunately, he had the intestinal fortitude, strength of character and emotional tenacity to maintain himself through his imprisonment.
On Oct. 26, 1967, John McCain was flying his 23rd mission over Hanoi when a Russian SAM severed his right wing, sending him and his plane into a death spiral. When he ejected, he broke his right leg, his left arm, his right arm in three places, and was knocked unconscious. He was pulled from a lake by an angry mob of Vietnamese. He was beaten, his foot was bayoneted and his shoulder was smashed with a rifle butt.
Clueless people like Donald Trump will say that he is considered a hero because he was captured. No, he is considered a hero because of the way he conducted himself in captivity.
In two years of ground combat as a combat and recon platoon leader in the 101st Airborne and senior adviser to Vietnamese Ranger battalions, I was privileged to witness several acts of great valor. But those heroic acts paled in comparison to the courage that John McCain demonstrated on the 4th of July 1968.
On that date his father was named the commander in the Pacific theater. Releasing John would have been a major propaganda coup for the Vietnamese. He was offered his freedom, but he refused. John had been in captivity for eight months so he knew what that decision meant for him. His freedom, well-being and his life were at stake. He was willing to sacrifice it all out of his sense of duty to America and his loyalty to his fellow prisoners.
Sacrificing your own best interest for your country’s well-being is a concept totally unknown to Trump. While John McCain was being beaten, tortured, starved and locked in “tiger cages,” Donald Trump was living the high life in New York, lavishly spending his father’s money and enriching himself at the expense of others.
Trump’s critique of McCain is disgraceful. However, the most disgusting part of this affair is how few Republican politicians are willing to defend the reputation of this proud American hero from the verbal assault of an inferior, narcissistic parasite. It is very frightening to know that our national security is in the hands of those cowards. Americans must ask ourselves, would any of those cowards who quake at the possibility of a primary challenge be relied upon to charge across Omaha Beach on D-Day or survive years being tortured in a Vietnamese prison camp? We should expect – no, demand – more courage in our “leadership.”
Terry Stulce served in Vietnam for two years and was awarded the Combat Infantryman’s Badge and two Bronze Stars for Valor and Meritorious Service in Ground Combat.