In a brief video on Thursday night, former President Donald Trump praised the dozen military personnel killed by terrorists in Kabul as heroes, maintained such an attack would not have occurred if he were still president, and told thousands of veterans of the war in Afghanistan that their sacrifices were not made in vain.
The following is a transcript of Trump’s 2-minute, 15-second speech, which was posted on Facebook by Don Trump Jr.:
“As one nation, America mourns the loss of our brave and brilliant American service members in a savage and barbaric terrorist attack in Afghanistan. These noble American warriors laid down their lives in the line of duty. They sacrificed themselves for the country that they loved, racing against time to rescue their fellow citizens from harm’s way.
“They died as American heroes, and our nation will honor their memory forever. I want to express my deepest condolences to the families of those we have lost. Today, all Americans grieve alongside you. Today, we also pray that God will heal the other courageous service members who were wounded in this heinous attack.
“In addition, our hearts are with the families of all the innocent civilians who died and with the many men, women, and children who were terribly injured in the act of evil. This tragedy should never have taken place. It should never have happened. And it would not have happened if I were your president.
“Over the past few weeks, I know that many Americans have felt profound sorrow and even pain watching the events taking place in Afghanistan and perhaps none more so than the veterans of that 20-year war. Many of them answered the call proudly and without hesitation after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Every American who has served in Afghanistan has made tremendous sacrifices for our country.
“On behalf of your fellow citizens, I want you to know that those sacrifices were not made in vain. We know what you did. We know how brave you were – and we thank you, we salute you, and we honor you for all time.
“I hope that every American will join me in continuing to pray for the safe return of all U.S. citizens and soldiers from Afghanistan in the coming days. Thank you, God bless you and God bless America.”
After playing his father’s comments, Trump Jr. condemned President Joe Biden’s “pathetic display of leadership.”
At one point, the younger Trump noted Biden had put his head down on the podium when briefing reporters. That gesture, Trump Jr. said, was “almost like surrender. That’s not what America’s about.”
He also criticized the Biden administration and the “woke” generals leading the military as “pathetic weaklings.”
“This wouldn’t have happened under Trump. That’s right. Because these people and Our enemies were afraid of Trump,” said Trump Jr.
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