As the news began to trickle out that not three but four U.S. soldiers had been killed in the ambush in Niger on October 4, President Trump and his Christian lapdog Mike Pence were tweeting about NFL football players kneeling for racial justice. For almost two weeks, nothing substantial came out of the White House. After Sarah Huckabee Sanders delivered her best version of a non-statement, it was leaked last night that the president called Sgt. La David Johnson’s widow to offer “condolences,” and allegedly told her that her late husband “knew what he signed up for.”
Yes, he said it. The days since the attack in Niger have passed with Trump quietly playing golf and attacking black people, including an incoherent swipe at President Obama and his handling of fallen soldiers’ families. But that doesn’t change the facts, nor does it change the important questions being asked. Initially, reports coming out of Niger were of three dead U.S. soldiers. The announcement and naming of Sgt. Johnson as the fourth soldier killed in Niger happened days later, and has been accompanied by sketchy reports surrounding why and when U.S. forces realized Sgt. Johnson was down.
As CNN explains:
- Why did the intelligence indicate it was 'unlikely' the 12-man team led by Green Berets would run into opposition?
- Were there missed indicators that ISIS was operating in the area?
- Were the villagers the team met with potentially ISIS loyalists?
- After multiple visits to the area, why was there an attack at this time?
- Once the ambush broke out, how did the body of Sgt. La David Johnson get left behind? Did he survive the ambush or was he killed instantly?,
- Where was his body found in relation to where the gun battle happened?
- Is it still accurate that a "beacon" was emitting from the battlefield, leading to some indication he might have been alive for a period of time?
- Was the evacuation and quick reaction plan that relied on the French sufficient? If it took them 30 minutes to arrive, what about the team being in a firefight for 30 minutes with no help?
- What led to the decision to deploy Navy SEALS for a possible rescue?
- Did the wounded get the medical care they needed in time?
And this is no small statement.
If you think that Trump and his administration hasn’t royally fucked this up, just read about how he offered $25,000 to the father of a slain U.S. soldier and then … disappeared. Who does that? Trump is—and has always been—a stain on the universe.