Vets blast Trump for implying U.S. troops stole Iraq cash

Presidential candidate Donald Trump is facing renewed criticism from veterans activists after comments Tuesday that appeared to accuse U.S. troops of stealing money earmarked for reconstruction efforts during the war in Iraq.

During a campaign speech in North Carolina, the presumed Republican nominee talked about cutting government waste and improving oversight of taxpayer dollars, then transitioned to the costly war in the Middle East.

“Iraq. Crooked as hell,” he said. “How about bringing baskets of money, millions and millions of dollars, and handing it out?

“I want to know who are the soldiers that had that job because I think they're living very well right now, whoever they may be. Think of it, the money that went out.”

After the speech, Trump’s campaign issued a statement saying the comments were directed at Iraqi troops, not U.S. forces in charge of managing hundreds of millions of dollars in reconstruction funds.
But officials from VoteVets.org, who describe themselves as the largest progressive organization of veterans in the country, called the comments the latest in a series of offensive statements about the military that should disqualify Trump from serving as commander in chief.

"Trump's attack against the courageous American men and women who heroically worked to restore law and order in Iraq is at once uninformed and irresponsible,” said retired Maj. Gen. Paul Eaton, senior adviser to the group.

"For him to smear our troops and veterans as he has, it is disqualifying, as far as I am concerned."
A Politico report noted that Trump has made similar comments in the past about reconstruction funds theft, and a 2015 Center for Public Integrity report listed 115 cases of U.S. troops committing theft and contract-rigging crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan.

VoteVets.org officials also listed a series of military missteps by Trump’s campaign in the last year, including comments questioning Arizona Sen. John McCain’s military service because of his capture during the Vietnam War and writings where he compared his boarding school experience to serving in the military.

During the North Carolina speech, Trump repeated his assertion that he opposed the war in Iraq from the beginning, even though news reports have cast doubt on that claim.

He also repeated his call from earlier in the week that Muslim leaders need to step up efforts to police their own religious communities for signs of terrorism, implying that the recent mass shootings in Orlando, Florida, and California could have been prevented by greater cooperation with law enforcement.
“People knew bad things were going to happen, and they didn’t report it,” he said. “We have to have people reporting.”

He said most Muslim Americans do not pose any threat, but officials need to better identify the “7 percent or 9 percent or 11 percent or 1 percent” who do.

Democratic leaders, including President Obama and presumed presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, have condemned those comments as contrary to American values of religious freedom and due process.