Posted on 02/24/2015 7:04:09 AM PST by Beave Meister
Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert McDonald apologized today for mistakenly saying in a videotaped exchange with a homeless man that he had served in the special forces, though his service was entirely with the 82nd Airborne Division.
"Secretary McDonald has apologized for the misstatement and noted that he never intended to misrepresent his military service," a White House officials told ABC News. "We take him at his word and expect that this will not impact the important work he's doing to promote the health and well-being of our nation's veterans."
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
That’s nothing, I rowed General Washington across the Potomac, had to poke polar bears with uzis on icebergs out of the way with my oar!
Obama wasn’t vetted, you expect his underlings to be screened?
If anything, they are vetted for ideological opposition to the administration. Nothing else.
Somebody else read the article and help me out. I read and it does include an blurb about him getting a Ranger title.
Rangers are special forces. I’m confused a bit. Sorry for any ignorance. 82nd Airborne is not exactly mess cook. He also has desert and arctic training (which is part of special forces training as well) as I understand it.
Thanks in advance
(There may be another agenda here especially since it is from alphabet media)
McDonald, former Procter and Gamble CEO, served with the Army's 82nd Airborne Division and completed jungle, arctic and desert warfare training, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
He earned the Ranger tab, the Expert Infantryman Badge and Senior Parachutist wings, the VA added, noting that McDonald, who retired as a captain, was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal after leaving the service.
What is the "Ranger tab"? I thought Rangers were considered Special Forces? No?
Read it again it says he earned his Ranger ba
badge which is SF
The White House is willing to take an admitted liar “...at his word...” How stupid is that? If he lied yesterday, he will lie today and tomorrow....
I would love for this joker to stand face to face with General Patton....:)
He earned the Ranger tab, the Expert Infantryman Badge and Senior Parachutist wings, the VA added, noting that McDonald, who retired as a captain, was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal after leaving the service.
You said, Read it again it says he earned his Ranger ba badge which is SF. This is why I am confused. If a Ranger is SF, why the apology? What did he say that was wrong?
Ranger Battalions indeed fall out under Spec Ops.
Ranger School is considered the finest small unit leadership school in the Army, BUT there are a lot of troops who have the Ranger tab serving in all units. I’ll guess that it is quite common to see Ranger Tabs in the 82nd Airborne. (Never served at Fort Bragg so I am guessing.)
Note the distinction though, he said he served in Special Forces, not Special Ops. Special Forces, or as often referred to as Green Berets is part of Special Ops.
Thank you for the clarification. In light of this information, his “lie” is a little more nuanced than many we have seen. I would expect he would know better so it doesn’t make it any less of a lie.
(Just staying objective and free thinking)
We can nuance it a bit more and make the leap that the 82nd is a Spec Ops unit, or while there may have fallen out under Spec Ops for one mission or another.
HOWEVER, I will tell you that I was once assigned to a Spec Ops unit for a 6 week mission. I know better that to say I was Spec Ops, for fear I will get smacked upside the head.
That’s more of a preening than a vetting.
nuance...has become a liberal code word for your too dumb to understand.
In this application, that fits my inquiry and the corresponding response from a fellow FReeper, does it not? Should I be insulted by your "nuanced" implication?
Thank you.
Hey this guy graduated from West Point, was a paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne and was the CEO of P&G! One could give him a pass on saying he was “Special Forces”.
From a US Army perspective, when one qualifies for Special Forces, a billet in an SF unit is filled by the successful graduate. The SF Q Course is not just a school per se, but a pure qualification/training process. In other words, one doesn't attend the Q Course "just" to earn the Special Forces tab, expecting then to return to one's parent unit. The DOD assigns the graduate to an SF unit. I'm sure there are exceptions. There almost always is... If one leaves a SF unit, or a Ranger unit, that person is authorized to wear the SF tab or the Ranger tab on their uniforms for the rest of their career.
Likewise one can serve in an Airborne unit, and be Airborne qualified if that individual successfully completed basic airborne jump school. The individual would wear the unit shoulder patch... in this case- the 82nd Airborne (AA- All American) and would wear jump wings. Some Airborne units have non Airborne personnel (not the 82nd Airborne) so the Airborne unit shoulder patch would be worn but not the jump wings. The Airborne qualified individual would refer to themselves as Airborne, the non Airborne qualified individual would refer to themselves as being in an Airborne unit, but would not be Airborne. If an Airborne qualified individual were to be reassigned to a non Airborne unit, that person would not refer to themselves as Airborne, but Airborne qualified. Part of the semantics is technical but mostly an earned skill vs unit function definition... with pride or honor at stake as well.
As an FYI: Some individuals have multiple skill qualification badges. Special Forces, Sapper, Ranger, Airborne, Pathfinder, Scuba, EOD, LRRP, Jungle, Air Assault, Parachute Rigger... etc.
Individuals from other US military branches attend SF, Ranger and Airborne qualification/training schools. Also, foreign military members attend these same schools.
The Eighty Deuce- was the tip of the spear of the Rapid Deployment Force, which was established after the Iranians stormed our embassy in Tehran. Not to mention the grand history of the unit. I was at Ft Bragg, in 1983, when Operation Urgent Fury went down. I was attending tryouts for the USAPT. We were about a quarter mile from the end of Pope AFB. Cattle trucks and C-5's thundered in and out of the base for a solid 12 hours.
The U.S. Army's Rapid Deployment Force (1st, 2nd Ranger Battalions and 82nd Airborne Division Paratroopers), U.S. Marines, U.S. Army Delta Force, and U.S. Navy SEALs and other combined forces constituted the 7,600 troops from the United States.
That's some pretty good company right there.
FU- scum gotcha' media!
I don’t think you were insulted, I am just fed up with liberals use of the word, because I believe they think we don’t know what the word means. They often misuse it to excuse some stupid statement.
noun, plural nuances [noo-ahn-siz, nyoo-, noo-ahn-siz, nyoo-; French ny-ahns] (Show IPA)
1.
a subtle difference or distinction in expression, meaning, response, etc.
2.
a very slight difference or variation in color or tone.
I don’t believe that a ringknocker (USMC grad) doesn’t know the distinction between having a Ranger tab and being in the Special Forces.
He’s a RAT appointee so he gets a pass. He is a lying, honor-stealing POS.
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