Republican Sen. Joni Ernst, who was elected in the midterms last November, was trolled by Huffington Post last week for allegedly misleading the public by calling herself a “combat veteran.”
An article written by Andrew Reinbach suggests that, while Ernst’s title is “technically true,” she isn’t really a combat veteran in the American people’s eyes because she was never shot at.
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From the Huffington Post:
The piece goes on to allege that Ernst’s military experience does not satisfy the “average citizen’s idea of combat duty,” citing “real combat veterans” that believe Ernst to be exaggerating.
Interestingly enough, one of the individuals quoted in the article — a certain Lt. Col. Alayne Conway — actually blasted the Huffington Post scribe after the piece was published for the way that his statements were “manipulated.” Conway said plainly that “Joni Ernst is a combat veteran.”
Ernst responded to the criticism Monday, defending her status as a “combat veteran” and deeming herself proud of such a title.
“I am very proud of my service and by law I am defined as a combat veteran,” explained Ernst, according to the Omaha World Herald. “I have never once claimed that I have a Combat Action Badge. I have never claimed that I have a Purple Heart. What I have claimed is that I have served in a combat zone.”
“It was only by luck and the blessings of God that my soldiers did not encounter an assault, that we did not run over an IED,” the senator continued. “And to dishonor our service by saying we’re not worthy of being called combat veterans is insulting to the majority of men and women who serve their country honorably. Just because I’m not an infantryman and I wasn’t kicking in doors, I don’t believe I’m less of a player.”
She insisted that fighters on the front lines would be “nowhere” if she and her transportation company didn’t ensure they had enough fuel, food and ammunition.
H/T Daily Caller
