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Never Forget: Trump’s Military Slander Includes Disrespecting Sgt. La David Johnson’s Pregnant Widow

Trump is nothing if not consistent.

Funeral Held For Army Sergeant La David Johnson Killed In Ambush In Niger

Source: Joe Raedle / Getty

Even with Donald Trump‘s steady denial that he ever called U.S. military soldiers killed in combat “suckers” and “losers” — as first reported in the Atlantic and co-signed by a former senior administration official — the truth of the matter is that the president has a long and detailed history of disrespecting American servicemen, especially those who have died for their country. Case in point: Army Sgt. La David Johnson.

And while no one can forget the way Trump maliciously mocked the late Sen. John McCain in death for having been a prisoner of war in Vietnam — “I like people who weren’t captured” — it just hits a little different when the president mixes his special brand of racism with his disrespect for veterans killed in action.

That was certainly seemed to be the case nearly three years ago in an unfortunate episode when Trump denied telling Sgt. Johnson’s widow — Myeshia Johnson — that her husband “must’ve known what he signed up for.”

But Myeshia Johnson, who was pregnant at the time with their third child, had a sitting member of Congress listening to the condolence phone call on which Trump all but shrugged at the notion of a widow grieving her soldier husband’s death in combat. Florida Rep. Frederica Wilson was in the same vehicle with Myeshia Johnson when Trump called and later confirmed Trump’s callous comments.

Prior to Wilson telling the media about Trump’s remarks, the president had not made any public comment about La David Johnson 25, of Miami, and three other U.S. service members killed in an ambush by militants during a train-and-advise mission in the African country of Niger on Oct. 4, 2017.

A report on the Pentagon’s investigation into the ambush said Johnson was captured after being hit by enemy fire up to 18 times while taking cover in thick brush. A news report from Tongo Tongo, the village near the location of the ambush, said that villagers discovered Johnson’s body with his hands tied behind his back and the back of his head smashed. An earlier media report blamed poor planning, a lack of military intelligence and reckless behavior by U.S. Special Forces in Africa for what was described as a military “fiasco.” The U.S. soldiers, lightly armed, were overpowered in an area that was a stronghold of the militants.

Trump’s disrespectful reaction to Johnson’s death ended up making the headlines as the president, once again, tried to center the news cycle on himself regardless of the circumstances or stakes. He denied all the reports and called Myeshia Johnson and Wilson liars in the face of growing evidence that it was he who was not telling the truth — again.

Sound familiar?

Myeshia Johnson later said on ABC’s “Good Morning America” that Wilson’s version of the conversation was “100 percent correct.”

An ironic aspect of the fallout from the piece about Trump calling fallen soldiers “suckers” and “losers” is its inclusion of General John Kelly, the Iraq War hero and former White House chief of staff who people are calling on to confirm the Atlantic’s report. Kelly — who once disregarded slavery as a cause of the Civil War and praised Confederate General Robert E. Lee during an interview with Fox News — is the same person who seemingly confirmed that the president did callously tell Myeshia Johnson that her soldier husband “knew what he had signed up for” before dying in action.

Funeral Held For Army Sergeant La David Johnson Killed In Ambush In Niger

Source: Joe Raedle / Getty

Trump, of course, denied the claim, insisting in a tweet that he had “proof” he never said that. Kelly would later, perhaps inadvertently, indicate that there was actually no proof at all, exposing another Trump lie. The concession was taken as all but a confirmation that Trump did indeed make the callous remark to the widow of Sgt. La David Johnson, whose name the president was accused of not even knowing during the phone call.

Meanwhile, the wife of a soldier who was killed with Johnson in the Niger ambush — both of whom are white — said she was comforted by Trump’s “gracious” call in the days after her Special Forces husband Bryan Black’s death.

Nearly a year later, Omarosa Manigault Newman said she made a secret recording on Oct. 27, 2017, when Trump walked into a meeting of the White House communications team and began discussing the Niger situation with staff members who lacked the security clearance to discuss the matter. Trump and his staffers are heard laughing on the recording, said the president’s former aide who was famously — and allegedly — was fired by Kelly, who ordered her “escorted” out of the White House.

“You have to question how seriously he takes the people who put their lives on the line for this country,” Newman said at the time as she promoting her tell-all book about Trump that includes an allegation that the president used the N-word.

SEE ALSO:

Trump’s Silence On Details Of Sgt. La. David Johnson’s Death Speaks Volumes

White Gold Star Widow In Niger Ambush Breaks Silence On Trump Condolence Call To Her

Two Soldiers

Veterans Day: 100 Vintage Photos Of Black Soldiers Fighting Foreign Wars For America

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Veterans Day: 100 Vintage Photos Of Black Soldiers Fighting Foreign Wars For America

Continue reading Veterans Day: 100 Vintage Photos Of Black Soldiers Fighting Foreign Wars For America

Veterans Day: 100 Vintage Photos Of Black Soldiers Fighting Foreign Wars For America

UPDATED: 6:00 a.m. ET, Nov. 11, 2020 -- As the country observes Veterans Day, it's important to remember that the history of especially Black people in the American military is a complicated one. On its surface, it's yet another one of the countless ways that Black people have helped build this country and keep it safe. However, beneath that veneer lies some ugly truths that haunt the U.S. military's legacy to this day. And while much of that has to do with Black soldiers' time enlisted in the armed forces, the way that Black veterans have largely been treated has been the subject of much scrutiny since Crispus Attucks became the first American casualty of the Revolutionary War. During the War of 1812, Black soldiers helped defeat the British in New Orleans. By the end of the Civil War, 10 percent of the union forces were Black. The 54th regiment, which was an all-Black fighting unit, was immortalized in the movie “Glory” and fought a number of important battles, eventually losing more than half of its troops. Two of Frederick Douglass’ sons also fought in the Civil War and Harriet Tubman severed as a scout for the 2nd South Carolina Volunteers. During World War I, Black soldiers were given full citizenship, although they still fought in segregated units. Many credit Black soldiers for bringing jazz music to Europe and France. In World War II, Black soldiers had an increased presence. The NAACP pushed for the War Department to form the all-Black 99th Pursuit Squadron of the U.S. Army Air Corps, otherwise known as the Tuskegee Airmen, the only U.S. unit to ever sink a German destroyer. Like the 54th Regiment, the Tuskegee Airmen were immortalized in a movie of the same name. The Marines first opened themselves to Black volunteers in 1942. To the dismay of the Marines, only 63 African Americans joined. Lieutenant Colonel Campbell C. Johnson, a Black officer, decided that he would actively recruit Black Marines. Due to his efforts, African Americans began joining the Marines at a rate of more than 1,000 a month in 1943. Despite the opposition to the Vietnam war from Black leaders and athletes like Martin Luther King and Muhammad Ali, many Black soldiers both volunteered and were drafted to fight in the Vietnam war. Colin Powell joined the ROTC at City College and would go on to be a captain in Vietnam, later becoming a major. Powell would go on to be National Security Adviser (1987–1989), Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Army Forces Command (1989), Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (1989–1993) and eventually the Secretary of State for President George W. Bush in 2001. While that Black history in the American military is undeniable, so is what the Equal Justice Initiative reminded readers was how Black soldiers returning home "were more likely to face discrimination, disrespect, violence, and even death." According to the New Yorker, much of that treatment was blamed on white people who "speculated that, while stationed in Europe, black soldiers had enjoyed wartime liaisons with white French women, increasing their lust—which, in the white imagination, was already dangerously high—for sex with white American women." On top of that, research from the Department of Veterans Affairs found that "African-American and Hispanic Veterans said they had more negative experiences in obtaining access to health care than whites." With that rich history in mind, scroll down to see dozens of vintage images of Black soldiers fighting foreign wars for the United States Of America.

Never Forget: Trump’s Military Slander Includes Disrespecting Sgt. La David Johnson’s Pregnant Widow  was originally published on newsone.com

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