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Trump Says Obama Didn’t Call Families Of Fallen Soldiers, Quickly Walks It Back

During a press conference on Monday afternoon, President Donald Trump made the dubious claim that former President Barack Obama and other former presidents did not personally call the families of soldiers who died in combat.

Trump quickly walked back the claim when a reporter followed up.

The President first told reporters that he had written letters to the families of soldiers who died in the recent attack in Niger and said he would soon call the families as well. He then claimed that his approach was unique, and that not all past presidents made those calls.

“The traditional way, if you look at President Obama and other presidents, most of them didn’t make calls. A lot of them didn’t make calls,” he said. “I like to call when it’s appropriate, when I think I’m able to do it. They have made the ultimate sacrifice so generally I would say that I like to call. I’m going to be calling them.”

A former aide to Obama quickly pushed back on Trump’s claim, calling it a “lie.”

https://twitter.com/AlyssaMastro44/status/919988497976582144

A reporter followed up with Trump later in the press conference, prompting Trump to walk back his claim and say that he “was told” that Obama didn’t call the families of fallen soldiers.

“I don’t know if he did. No, no. I was told that he didn’t often and a lot of presidents don’t. They write letters,” Trump said.

“President Obama I think probably did sometimes and maybe sometimes he didn’t. I don’t know. That’s what I was told. All I can do is ask my generals,” the President continued. “Other presidents did not call. They’d write letters and some presidents didn’t do anything.”

Gregg Popovich: Donald Trump a 'Soulless Coward' for Comment on Fallen Soldiers

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich called the sitting president a "soulless coward" Monday.

Dave Zirin of The Nation reported the news, noting Popovich's comments were in regard to Donald Trump claiming former presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush failed to call the families of soldiers who had died.

According to Kevin Liptak of CNN, Trump said Monday he wrote letters to and planned on calling the families of four American soldiers who died in Niger in early October.

"Other presidents did not call, they would write letters, and some presidents didn't do anything," Trump said, per Liptak.

Liptak noted Trump's comments Monday were the first time he's publicly spoken about the four deaths. Liptak also explained "the tradition of presidents reaching out after US servicemen are killed in action is long-established," despite Trump's assertion his immediate predecessors didn't take as much action as he did.

This is not the first time Popovich—who served in the Air Force—has criticized Trump.

He previously said "our country is an embarrassment to the world," after Trump continuously used public platforms to verbally attack NFL players who chose to protest racial inequality and police brutality by kneeling during the national anthem, per Melissa Rohlin of the San Antonio Express-News.

farris2k1 wrote: »

More ppl need to call out trump in real time on his ?

After Vegas, Georgia GOPer’s Campaign Promotes ‘Bump Stock Giveaway’

A Republican candidate for governor in Georgia on Monday suggested that bump stocks—devices that make semi-automatic weapons act more like automatic weapons, several of which were found on the Las Vegas shooter’s guns—may have prevented further casualties in what was the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history.

The candidate, State Sen. Michael Williams, also announced that his gubernatorial campaign would give away a bump stock “as a show of support” for the Second Amendment.

“The tragedy in Las Vegas broke my heart, but any talk of banning or regulating bump stocks is merely cheap political lip service from career politicians,” Williams said in a statement. “In reality, the bump stock is the new, shiny object politicians are using to deceive voters into believing they are taking action against gun violence.”

“Many firearms experts determined the Las Vegas shooter’s use of a bump stock actually prevented more casualties and injures due to its inconsistency, inaccuracy, and lack of control,” he claimed. “There is zero evidence that banning bump stocks would prevent any gun violence deaths.”

Bump stocks increase the rate at which a weapon can fire, and do reduce the shooter’s accuracy, since they cause the gun to bounce. The Las Vegas shooter fired from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel, raining bullets onto a crowd of about 22,000 people attending a country music festival.

Gun expert and former Army Ranger Frankie McRae told the Associated Press that while bump stocks do make guns less accurate, it did not matter in the Las Vegas shooting because the gunman was firing from an elevated position onto a large, confined crowd.

“Because he was firing down, he was able to use the inaccuracy of that to cover a larger area, which inflicted more damage,” McRae said.

In the wake of the shooting, which left 58 people dead and more than 500 others injured, many Republicans have questioned why bump stocks are legally available and pushed for a review of the devices.

However, Williams argued Monday that it’s wrong to go after bump stocks just because police say they were used in the shooting.

“Blaming guns or bump stocks for the actions of a lunatic, is the same as blaming McDonald’s for heart disease,” he said in his statement. “I will stand up for the Second Amendment against liberals and weak Republicans who wish to limit our freedoms. Not only that, I will continue to call out Democrats and Republicans who provide cheap talk and excuses rather than solutions.”