VFW Rips ‘Asinine’ Trump in FIERY Statement For Saying Medal of Freedom ‘Much Better’ Than Medal of Honor

Veterans of Foreign Wars, one of the country’s most prominent military service advocacy groups, ripped former President Donald Trump in a Friday night statement after he said a day earlier the Presidential Medal of Freedom was equal if not “better” than the country’s highest military honor.

Trump was speaking Thursday in Bedminster, New Jersey, at an event when he recalled awarding the country’s highest civilian honor to Miriam Adelson – the widow of late Las Vegas casino magnate Sheldon Adelson – in November 2018.

“I watched Sheldon sitting so proud in the White House when we gave Miriam the Presidential Medal of Freedom,” Trump said. “That’s the highest award you can get as a civilian. It’s the equivalent of the Congressional Medal of Honor, but civilian version.”

“It’s actually much better because everyone gets the Congressional Medal of Honor, they’re soldiers,” Trump added. “They’re either in very bad shape because they’ve been hit so many times by bullets or they are dead. She gets it and she’s a healthy, beautiful woman. And they’re rated equal, but she got the Presidential Medal of Freedom.”

The comment drew immediate condemnation.

Friday night, VFW National Commander Al Lipphardt blasted Trump for equating the Medal of Honor to an award often given to artists, athletes, and others for their cultural contributions. Lipphardt said:

On Thursday, former President Donald Trump spoke at an event where he made some flippant remarks about the Medal of Honor and the heroes who have received it. In the video that has circulated online and in the media, the former president was recognizing Miriam Adelson in the audience who he awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom during his time in office. As he described the medal as the civilian version of the Medal of Honor, he went on to opine that the Medal of Freedom was “much better” than the military’s top award, because those awarded the latter are, in his words, “ … either in very bad shape because they’ve been hit so many times by bullets or they’re dead.” He continued by comparing Miriam to MoH recipients saying, “She gets it and she’s a healthy beautiful woman. They are rated equal.”

The VFW further stated, “These asinine comments not only diminish the significance of our nation’s highest award for valor, but also crassly characterizes the sacrifices of those who have risked their lives above and beyond the call of duty.” The VFW concluded:

When a candidate to serve as our military’s commander-in-chief so brazenly dismisses the valor and reverence symbolized by the Medal of Honor and those who have earned it, I must question whether they would discharge their responsibilities to our men and women in uniform with the seriousness and discernment necessary for such a powerful position. It is even more disappointing when these comments come from a man who already served in this noble office and should frankly already know better. While the Presidential Medal of Freedom maybe our nation’s highest civilian award, the Medal of Honor is more sacred as it represents the gallantry and intrepidity of courageous and selfless service members, often at the cost of grievous wounds and even their lives.

It’s because of our Medal of Honor recipients that great Americans like Miriam Adelson have the freedom to live to their fullest potential and make such lasting contributions to our great nation. We would like to remind Mr. Trump that the 12 times he had the honor of awarding the Medal of Honor as president of the United States, those were heroes not of his own choosing. He bestowed those medals on behalf of Congress, representing all Americans of a grateful nation. We hold the donation of their lives in service to our country in the highest esteem, and so should he.

According to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, only 3,538 people have received the award since its inception in 1861.

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