Pompeo’s “war” record
by digby
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| A nice Republican lady making fun of John Kerry’s war injury |
It looks like Mike Pompeo might be exaggerating his military record a teensy bit:
The question was first raised on Twitter Friday morning by Ned Price, a former CIA officer who served under President Obama, and who very publicly quit the CIA rather than work for President Trump, announcing the decision in a February 2017 op-ed in the Washington Post. Price pointed out that among other places, Pompeo’s Wikipedia page suggests that he was deployed. It currently states that Pompeo “served with the 2nd Squadron, 7th Cavalry in the 4th Infantry Division in the Gulf War.”
It’s correct that Pompeo was in the Army at that time, but that’s not the same as being deployed. And the claim that Pompeo was deployed or fought in the Gulf War has been repeated by, among others, 51 members of Congress, led by Rep. Trey Gowdy, voicing their support for his appointment as Secretary of State.
The claim has also been repeated in numerous media outlets, either due to sloppy writing or outright incorrect information. Here’s one: The Wall Street Journal:
There are many more examples at the link including a video of Marco Rubio saying the same thing on January 23, 2017 in support of Pompeo’s qualifications for CIA.
I wouldn’t expect that he would necessarily be aware of every news story that misstates his military record. But I know of no politician who doesn’t have someone closely monitoring his Wikipedia page. He knew. He didn’t say anything.
This isn’t a big deal when Republicans do it, never has been. Look at the current president who can’t even remember which foot had the “bone spurs” that kept him out of Vietnam. This sort of scrutiny is only applied to Democrats, particularly those who have a claim to be war heroes, so it won’t make a difference for Pompeo. Still, it’s worth noting for historical purposes, I suppose.
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