ON EDIT: Trump: Ask Gen. Kelly if Obama Called When His Son Died

[spanone]

Last edited Tue Oct 17, 2017, 12:31 PM - Edit history (1)

Sorry to anyone who responded to my earlier header that Gen. Kelly claimed that he didn't receive a call from Obama.
I heard the story wrong when it was broadcast on msnbc...my apologies

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Tuesday defended his false claim that his predecessor didn't call the families of soldiers killed in action by alluding to former Gen. John Kelly's son, a Marine who died in Afghanistan.

"You could ask General Kelly, Did he get a call from Obama?" Trump said in a radio interview with Fox News' Brian Kilmeade.

Kelly, who came on as Trump's chief of staff in July, does not often speak about the son he lost in 2010. 1st Lt. Robert Michael Kelly, 29, was killed in combat in Afghanistan after stepping on a landmine.

"I don't know what Obama's policy was. I write letters and I also call," Trump said, adding he has called "virtually everybody" during his past nine months as commander in chief.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/trump-ask-gen-kelly-if-obama-called-when-his-son-n811446

[Me.]

1. He Has Totally Betrayed Himself

And his son

[spanone]

3. unbelievable.

[still_one]

2. I would like to see a link

[spanone]

9. radio show...fox...don't have link. just reported on msnbc by peter alexander

[still_one]

17. Thanks will wait for indpendent confirmation. MSNBC used fox as a source before for stories that

were not always quite accurate

The Bret Bauer story about a pending indictment against the Clinton Foundation is just one example last year of this

[Ellipsis]

18. Here. Trump infers it.

http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/watch/president-trump-claims-that-general-kelly-did-not-get-a-call-from-obama-after-his-son-died-1075073603706

[WinkyDink]

4. Are Presidents expected to call every single parent of a KIA soldier?

[Not Ruth]

6. Has this discussion come full circle?

I would not want Trump to call me ever

[cwydro]

21. That must have been quite a task during the World Wars,

Or even during Vietnam...

[Old Vet]

30. I was present unfortunately when my neighbor got a yellow letter from the DOD...........

A army car and a local priest got out and informed them there son was dead. It was a local thing with local officers and enlisted men would deliver the horrible news. It was terrible, The family never got over this breaking up and the kids turning to heavy drugs. Back in my day I remember kids crying at school only to find out they lost someone to that fucking war......

[underpants]

36. That's one of the duties of recruiters

They are in the area so generally they make the visit.

I was in the Army from 90-93 (didn't get sent to that war thankfully) with several NCO's who'd pulled recruiting duty. If you're in long enough you will probably have the choice of recruiter or drill Sgt.

They said it was just a horrible part of the job, as you can imagine. Even in "peace time" soldiers die pretty much everyday. Lots people around lots of heavy equipment. These NCO's said in a two year stint they could expect to make 2-5 visits depending on the density of service from that area.

[Achilleaze]

35. American presidents are expected to tell the truth

But clearly there is no expectation that the republican president* will ever speak truth.

* Comrade Casino, republican Draft-Dodger-in-Chief

[MattP]

5. I really dislike Kelly he also labled immigrants criminals for those massive sweeps

[madaboutharry]

7. Trump runs The White House like a Mob Boss.

The White House has turned into the Mafia, once your in you never get out. I wouldn't doubt he put Kelly up to it.

[dhill926]

8. Well...either he did or he didn't....

let's find out.

[cilla4progress]

11. He may not have called,

The expectation is not that every family is called... iIwant to hear Obama's teams' rapid response.

[underpants]

34. Gen. Kelly was at WH Gold Star family breakfast in 2011

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10029720782

[Ellipsis]

10. Did Kelly say that or did Trump infer that Kelly said it.

http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/watch/president-trump-claims-that-general-kelly-did-not-get-a-call-from-obama-after-his-son-died-1075073603706

[Legends303]

12. This was Trump saying it not Kelly

http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/17/politics/president-donald-trump-john-kelly-obama-phone-call/index.html

[dhill926]

13. Aha...

[tymorial]

14. I haven't read or seen Kelly confirm this statement

Trump made the reference to "ask General Kelly" Thus far I haven't seen confirmation or denial from Kelly.

[blueinredohio]

15. Kelly is as much a liar as Trump

[atreides1]

16. Kelly is slag

He knew that retirement would make him irrelevant, and that his time in the sun had come to an end! That's why he put on his SS runes under his coat and jumped on the Trump fascist train!

“I’d love to find a way to keep giving,” Kelly said in 2016 about his post-retirement life. “My fear was of being offered a job that would be kind of a full-time position at a veterans organization or even in the government … I’d prefer to not be that, to come up the Beltway every day.”

I guess he changed his mind!

[tblue37]

19. How did his son die? Was it an unusual situation in which only a few died?

A situation in which a small number of individuals are killed in extraordinary circumstances is not the same as the situation with thousands of troops killed during a war, since the families of those thousands just get letters, not personal phone calls.

Still, a general's son's death should draw a president's attention. I wonder, though, if this is just another "Jim" story from Trump.

[Baconator]

23. Landmine in Sangin in 2010...

2010 was the highest year for military casualties with a total of 496. It was a shitty time for everyone and I was there for it...

There is a difference between then and now. We lose a GB every 6ish week...That deserves a personal call and letter...

496 a year means a call and a half a day-ish...

There's a difference and I say that as someone who has done the Afghanistan and the Niger mission.

[coolsandy]

20. He may not have called him. I am sure he didn't call everyone of the families. He may have visited

or met with him or sent a letter. i want to hear what Kelly has to say. He was in active duty during that time also. No matter what, this is no excuse for 45 not evening mentioning these red soldiers for days.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

22. Great.

So, now Trump's behavior is once again being justified/normalized/excused because of something that a former President may have/may not have done?

[Brother Buzz]

24. To Hell with the General, did Obama reach out to Heather Kelly.....

1st Lt. Robert Kelly's wife?

[Kaleva]

25. It was Trump, not Kelly, who said that. Please revise your title.

[stonecutter357]

26. more #fakenews.

[The_Casual_Observer]

27. Kelly didn't say anything.

[Corgigal]

28. If Kelly had a backbone,

this should make him quit. His dead son should not be used as a political pawn.

[spanone]

32. here's the salon take: Trump exploits John Kellys dead son to back up his Obama falsehoods

President Donald Trump used the deceased son of his own chief of staff, retired Marine Corps. Gen. John F. Kelly, to score a political point in the ongoing controversy over his inaccurate claim that President Barack Obama often didn't call the families of deceased soldiers.

"You could ask Gen. Kelly, did he get a call from Obama?" Trump said on Brian Kilmeade's show on Tuesday morning.

"All I can do is ask my generals. Other presidents did not call, they would write letters, and some presidents didn't do anything. I like, when I can, the combination of a call and also a letter," Trump said on Monday. Those remarks were the first public comments Trump had made about the deaths of four Green Berets and U.S. support personnel who were killed in Niger on October 4.

Trump's effort to use Kelly's deceased son in order to score a political point could add more tension to a relationship that has already had its fair share of difficulties. Reports of Kelly being frustrated with his erratic and unpredictable boss have leaked since August, and as recently as this week it was reported that Kelly was trying to take power to fill important jobs away from the Oval Office as a way of resolving the administration's ongoing staffing problem.

https://www.salon.com/2017/10/17/trump-exploits-john-kellys-dead-son-to-back-up-his-obama-falsehoods/

[Achilleaze]

37. "when I can..." - republican Draft-Dodger-in-Chief...

Yeah, like when he's not squandering our hard-earned tax dollars on his luxurious golden, gourmet golf outings.

By my count he's gone golfing - and squandering our tax money - four times since our four US Green Beret soldiers will killed. And he could not take time to write or call. What a chickenhawk republican a-hole he is.

[peggysue2]

29. Call or no call . . .

Acknowledgment by a president is absolutely expected. The Trumpster hadn't even mentioned these losses until he was caught off guard with his pants down. He was too busy golfing. Doesn't say much for the WH staff either; they're expected to stay on top of things, not support the endless lying.

I read the transcript from yesterday's press conference. The man was off his meds or took an overdose. He was an incoherent, rambling mess.

The biggest security risk to the United States at the moment is Donald J. Trump. People better start waking up to the stark reality: the man's a lunatic, an illegitimate imposter posing as the leader of the Free World. Sarah Huckabee presumably said that people will be begging for Trump to stay in 2020.

They both belong in an asylum.

[Old Vet]

33. +1000

[okwmember]

31. Per Jeff Zeleny at CNN

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Gen. Kelly and wife attended Gold Star families breakfast at WH in 2011 and sat at Mrs. Obama's table, person familiar with breakfast says.</p>— Jeff Zeleny (@jeffzeleny) <a href="

Link to tweet

?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 17, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[Gothmog]

38. John Kelly and his wife sat with Michelle Obama at Gold Star family gathering after sons death

President Obama would have personally called the widow and not the father of the slain solider. Here is some more on this https://www.rawstory.com/2017/10/john-kelly-and-his-wife-sat-with-michelle-obama-at-gold-star-family-gathering-after-sons-death/

Link to tweet

?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rawstory.com%2F2017%2F10%2Fjohn-kelly-and-his-wife-sat-with-michelle-obama-at-gold-star-family-gathering-after-sons-death%2F

Second Lt. Robert Kelly was killed at age 29 while leading a platoon in Afghanistan in November 2010, and his father delivered a speech four days later about military sacrifices and the troops’ growing isolation from society.

His father has largely avoided speaking publicly about his family’s loss since then, and asked the Marine Corps officer who introduced him ahead of that impassioned speech not to mention his son.

“We are only one of 5,500 American families who have suffered the loss of a child in this war,” Kelly told the Washington Post six years ago. “The death of my boy simply cannot be made to seem any more tragic than the others.”