Mark Milley Reveals Trump Once Made a Disturbing Comment on Disabled Vet: “No One Wants to See That”
Former President Donald Trump's dismissive statements about handicapped veterans have surfaced again, as reported by The Atlantic and confirmed by military authorities. During Gen. Mark Milley's 2019 welcoming ceremony, Army Captain Luis Avila, a critically wounded soldier who lost his leg and faced other health concerns as a result of an IED attack in Afghanistan, was invited to perform "God Bless America." During this event, Trump made ableist remarks on the service member.
When Avila's wheelchair nearly turned over owing to the soft, damp ground, Milley's wife, Hollyanne, and then-Vice President Mike Pence rushed over to assist. This incident took place at the Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall in Arlington, Virginia. Following Avila's performance, Gen. Milley stated that Trump approached him with the following words: “Why do you bring people like that here? No one wants to see that, the wounded.” Trump then instructed Milley not to allow Avila to appear in public again, per The New York Post.
Gen. Milley, himself a combat veteran, was greatly offended by Trump's callous remark. Milley saw Avila and his wife, Claudia, as examples of American heroism and sacrifice, but Trump's treatment of them made him question the former president's grasp of the military.
Despite Trump's early public support during the welcoming ceremony, where he praised Milley for his military career, their relationship deteriorated dramatically over the years. Trump's public support for Milley's departure, combined with later remarks describing Milley as a "Woke train wreck" who had allegedly jeopardized national security, soured their relationship even further.
"This guy turned out to be a Woke train wreck who, if the Fake News reporting is correct, was actually dealing with China to give them a heads up on the thinking of the President of the United States. This is an act so egregious that, in times gone by, the punishment would have been DEATH!"," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post, reports Business Insider.
Donald Trump once told Mark Milley no one wanted to see a disabled vet who had been severely wounded in Afghanistan, report says https://t.co/kcpl91SywW
— Baronian Consulting (@BaronianConsult) September 24, 2023
The current United States Secretary of Transportation, Pete Buttigieg, a war veteran himself, was quick to condemn Trump's remarks. Buttigieg, who served in Afghanistan in 2014, was outraged by the president's previous behavior, per The Guardian. Buttigieg told CNN that Trump's order was “just the latest in a pattern of outrageous attacks [by Trump] on people who keep this country safe." He highlighted that wounded service members deserve respect and assistance, particularly from "the person to whom service members look as a commander in chief," and he called Trump's remarks reprehensible.
The Atlantic reported in 2020 that Trump had described the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery in France, which is home to almost 2,000 American military soldiers who died in France, as "filled with suckers." According to the Atlantic, Trump referred to the 1,800 marines who died at Belleau Wood, a famous World War I fighting site, as "suckers" for dying.
