Former President Donald Trump on Thursday described the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which honors civilians, as being “much better” than the Medal of Honor, because service members who receive the nation’s highest military honor are often severely wounded or dead. Series of Comments Mock Injured Service Members Trump’s remarks follow a yearslong series of comments in which he has appeared to mock, attack or express disdain for service members who are wounded, captured or killed, even as he portrays himself as the ultimate champion of the armed forces. At a campaign event at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, billed as a discussion about fighting antisemitism, Trump recounted how he awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Miriam Adelson, the Israeli-American widow of casino magnate Sheldon Adelson.
Miriam Adelson, who attended the event, is among his top donors. “It’s actually much better, because everyone gets the Congressional Medal of Honor, that’s soldiers, they’re either in very bad shape because they’ve been hit so many times by bullets, or they’re dead.” Trump said, using a common misnomer for the military award.
“She gets it, and she’s a healthy, beautiful woman.” Related Story: Standing in front of six American flags, Trump added that the honors were “rated equal.” Brian Hughes, a Trump campaign spokesman, said that Trump’s comments referred to “how it can be an emotionally difficult experience to give the Congressional.