In a recent article for The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg reports: “As his presidency drew to a close, and in the years since, [Donald Trump] has become more and more interested in the advantages of dictatorship, and the absolute control over the military that he believes it would deliver. ‘I need the kind of generals that Hitler had,’ Trump said in a private conversation in the White House, according to two people who heard him say this. ‘People who were totally loyal to him, that follow orders.’”
The article highlights Trump's troubling and dangerous obsession with authoritarianism, along with several accounts of him disparaging fallen soldiers and expressing contempt for those who serve in the military and their commitment to sacrifice and honor. In one account, he said “only suckers went to Vietnam,” and in another, said he didn’t want to pay for a funeral for a “f—ing Mexican.”
Statement from Terron Sims, Virginia Army Veteran and DNC Chair of the Veterans and Military Families Caucus
“In the United States, soldiers do not follow the orders of a dictator. In Donald Trump’s America, loyalty to one man is demanded over loyalty to the Constitution and the rule of law. Here, fallen soldiers are honored and respected; under Trump, they are called weak and denied the dignity they deserve.
Time and again, Trump has proven he will dismantle the very foundations of our democracy for his own gain, trampling the principles of sacrifice, honor, and respect that our military stands for. We cannot allow him to be Commander-in-Chief again—the future of our nation and the world depends on it.”
Statement from Charley Conrad, Virginia Navy Veteran and DPVA Chair of the Veterans and Military Families Caucus
“Donald Trump is a disgrace to everything our country stands for. Our military is built on sacrifice and honor to the Constitution—not bowing to a dictator who threatens our democracy. As a veteran, I’m not only deeply concerned by his recklessness but also insulted by his constant attacks on the service of active military members, wounded veterans, and fallen soldiers. Someone who calls those who defend our country "suckers and losers" should never hold the title Commander-in-Chief. We must uphold the ideals of duty and respect by rejecting wannabe dictator Donald Trump."