Trump denies mocking soldiers, says only "a psycho" would have called them "losers" and "suckers"

Denying he referred to dead soldiers “losers," Trump accused the Biden campaign of running a "phony" ad

Published June 10, 2024 2:37PM (EDT)

Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at Sunset Park in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 9, 2024. (JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)
Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at Sunset Park in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 9, 2024. (JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)

Donald Trump is demanding that President Joe Biden take down a "fake" ad that includes quotes of the former president making fun of dead soldiers.

The Biden campaign ad, released last week, features various quotes from Trump, including something he reportedly said to the father of a fallen soldier: "I don't get it, what was in it for them?" It also includes quotes of Trump allegedly calling dead soldiers "suckers" and "losers," as well as audio of Trump mocking the late Sen. John McCain, a Vietnam veteran.

In 2018, after cancelling a visit to the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery, near Paris, Trump told his senior staff members “Why should I go to that cemetery? It’s filled with losers." In a separate conversation on the same trip, Trump referred to the a group of marines as "suckers," as reported by The Atlantic in 2020.

At a rally in Las Vegas on Sunday afternoon, Trump denied that any of the statements were true,  reported The Daily Beast. He claimed the Biden campaign ran the ad despite knowing it was “phony".

“Unless you’re a psycho or a crazy person or a very stupid person, who would say that, anyway?” Trump said, referring to his alleged comments.

The ad was launched by the Biden campaign last Friday, the same day that the president was in Normandy to attend ceremonies for the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings.

“Donald Trump doesn’t know a damn thing about service to his country,” Biden wrote in a post on X promoting the ad. 

On Sunday evening, Trump continued complaining in a Truth Social post, calling the ad a “Democratic hit job” and writing that only “a sicko with an axe to grind would suggest that anyone would make such a statement,” referring to himself reportedly calling dead soldiers “losers and suckers."

"Take down the Fake Ad, Joe," he wrote.

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