Speaking to military personnel and their families at a White House Independence Day barbecue on Thursday, President Biden asserted that he has been “in and out of combat.”
“By the way, I’ve traveled with you all over the world. I’ve been in and out of combat,” the president, who never served in the military, said during his time as commander in chief, meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in February 2023 and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in October 2023.
This isn’t the first time Biden has come under fire for comments about military personnel. In 2019, Biden was accused of confusing and misrepresenting war stories after The Washington Post exposed “inspirational but false war stories” he told during his campaign. The former vice president and presidential candidate later defended his comments, saying their “core” was accurate.
Veterans 4 America First Institute, a nonprofit veterans’ group, responded to Biden’s Independence Day claims in an interview with Fox News Digital.
Peter O’Rourke, former Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs under President Trump, is both an Air Force and Navy veteran. Darin Selnick, former VA adviser to the White House Domestic Policy Council, is also a former Air Force veteran. Both now work on veterans’ behalf with Veterans 4 America First.
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President Biden made the gaffe at a White House Independence Day barbecue on Thursday, claiming to service members and their families that they had been “in and out of combat.” (Getty Images)
“It’s always poor etiquette when politicians make themselves the issue and equate their own military service with the military service of the men and women who have served,” Selnick said. “The only people who have served are the men and women who have served, not President Joe Biden.”
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“Our men and women in the military have fought all over the world, so just keep that in mind. Don’t equate what you do with that or try to be close to that. Talk about the military, talk about the country. Don’t make it about you. And that’s what’s sad, because every time Joe Biden talks, he always somehow tries to make it about him,” Selnick added.
“…Every time Joe Biden speaks, he always somehow tries to make it sound like he’s talking about himself.”
Former Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs Peter O’Rourke also criticized the president’s claims.
“What Darrin and I are both disappointed by is the continued lack of respect, whether it’s instances where veterans have been hurt in senseless ways or the lack of real effort we would like to see the president show in expressing his concerns and feelings about veterans,” he said.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an Independence Day event on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, on July 4, 2024. The president is hosting an Independence Day event for military members and their families. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)
O’Rourke continued, “We saw an example of him trying to find any opportunity to politicize and sneakily attack his political opponents on a day that should have been a celebration of our independence. He was there to recognize and honor both veterans and active duty military.”
Veterans 4 America First supports former President Trump’s military policies in the November presidential election. “This is a critical time for our military and for our veterans,” Selnick told Fox News Digital. “We need a commander in chief who will move things forward and do the right thing for our veterans and for the American people.”
U.S. President Joe Biden (center) speaks during a barbecue for active-duty military personnel and their families on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, Thursday, July 4, 2024. Biden’s reelection campaign limped into the U.S. Independence Day holiday, exhausted by a week in which the incumbent president struggled to retain his party’s nomination. (Tierney L. Cross/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Selnick added, “That is why we need to bring Donald J. Trump back as commander in chief, because under him we had a thriving military.”
The mission of the Veterans 4 America First Institute, as stated on its website, is to “preserve and expand the nation’s commitment to veterans, service members, and their families through public education and advocacy.”
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The White House did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
