In a powerful post on X (formerly Twitter), Senator Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) sounded off on ABC News over how the 2024 presidential debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris on September 10, a debate hosted by ABC News and moderated by two of its anchors, went.
Particularly, Sen. Cotton scorched ABC News for failing to fact-check the comment made by Vice President Harris during the debate that no United States service members are deployed abroad in combat zones, a demonstrably untrue statement. They failed to fact-check her on that despite fact-checking Trump over even true statements.
As background, during the debate, Vice President Harris said that”And as of today, there is not one member of the United States military who is in active duty in a combat zone, in any war zone around the world, the first time this century.” That is quite untrue, even leaving aside potential unreported operations, as United States service members are deployed to Syria, an active war zone, amongst other places.
Still, ABC News didn’t fact-check her. Such is what Sen. Cotton sounded off about on X, saying, “ABC allowing Kamala Harris to say “no U.S. troops are in combat zones” without any pushback or fact-checking is outrageous. This goes beyond bias–it’s a media company effectively joining the Harris campaign.”
Others said the claim is incorrect as well. For example, a defense official, speaking about the matter to Fox News, noted that there are troops deployed to areas where hostilities could occur but that those are not wars as designated by Congress, but rather areas to which the executive branch directed the military.
That official told Fox News, “An aspect of military service includes serving in locations where hostile actions may occur. Those locations are designated by executive order and/or the Secretary of Defense.” The official added, “However, it’s important to note that just because a service member is in one of these locations does not mean they are engaged in war. The U.S. is not currently engaged in a war and does not have troops fighting in active war zones anywhere in the world.”
Similarly, Robert Greenway, a combat veteran of the U.S. Special Forces and former senior director for the National Security Council (NSC) during the Trump administration, told Fox News that Kamala’s comment was particularly egregious given the ongoing violence and fighting happening in Syria, where a great many troops are deployed.
Beginning, Greenway noted that an operation had recently occurred, saying, “The assertion is especially egregious, as she is the current VP and should know that we recently conducted a raid in Syria killing a senior ISIS commander, several U.S. troops had to be medically evacuated after another raid against ISIS in Syria.”
Further, he noted that the Navy is battling the Houthis in Yemen in the Red Sea and Iraq remains dangerous, saying, “Several servicemembers were wounded in Iraq when Al Asad Airbase was attacked by Iranian sponsored terrorists less than a month ago, and our ships are under near-daily attack in the Red Sea.”
Watch troops react to Kamala’s claims here:
In a moment that has sparked widespread discussion and reaction across social media platforms, Vice President Kamala Harris made a statement during a debate that there are “not one member of the… pic.twitter.com/uBurHP2Hto
— Off Topic Show (@OffTopicShow2) September 14, 2024
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