Late yesterday Mike Pence put up the following statement on Facebook:
STATEMENT FROM REPUBLICAN VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE, GOVERNOR MIKE PENCE
Donald Trump and I believe that Captain Humayun Khan is an American hero and his family, like all Gold Star families, should be cherished by every American. Captain Khan gave his life to defend our country in the global war on terror. Due to the disastrous decisions of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, a once stable Middle East has now been overrun by ISIS. This must not stand.
By suspending immigration from countries that have been compromised by terrorism, rebuilding our military, defeating ISIS at its source and projecting strength on the global stage, we will reduce the likelihood that other American families will face the enduring heartbreak of the Khan family.
Donald Trump will support our military and their families and we will defeat the enemies of our freedom.
- Governor Mike Pence
First things first: the statement deliberately is vague in a way to imply that Capt. Khan died as a result of the policies of the Obama administration. He died in 2004, when Barack Obama was still a Illinois State Senator and Hillary Clinton was in her first term in the US Senate. He was there in a country that was a mess because of the policies of George W. Bush, of invading Iraq, an invasion for which Mike Pence voted.
Second, while there are continued deaths of Americans in Iraq, the level is miniscule compared to what happened on Bush’s watch, and ISIS has had very little to with that.
Third, the entire Middle East has NOT been overrun by ISIS: in fact, the territory they control has significantly been reduced. Yes, there are groups related to ISIS in a number of places, but the actions they take are far more common in Europe than elsewhere in the Middle East.
Fourth, as a whole the Middle East is no less stable than it was before Obama took office. There is an implication that the rule by dictators such as those in Libya and Egypt and Syria was better than the people choosing to try another path. There was just as much violence within some of those countries before, or has Pence forgotten that an Egyptian President was assassinated, that tourists were killed at Luxor.
Merely saying that he and Trump consider Capt Khan a hero and that all Americans should cherish Gold Star families does not erase the fact that Trump demeaned and belittled a Gold Star family.
While some supporters and advocates with Trump will try to say this ends the episode, I fear they are greatly mistaken.
Let me rephrase that. They are badly mistake it, but I don’t fear it. They deserve it.