In several conversations since the story was published on Thursday, Trump has vehemently denied that he made the remarks and clarified what he has done for the military. Two people who spoke to him said it was a clear indication of how much the story was buzzing with Trump – and his fear that it could hurt his support for the military.
When the story first aired on Thursday, Trump was outraged during his flight from Pennsylvania and demanded that aides begin denying it. To tell reporters that wasn’t true, Air Force One included sending their chief of staff, Mark Meadows, behind. His angry response prompted officials to mobilize the massive pushback efforts that began Thursday night.
By the end of the week, however, Trump appeared more distorted than outraged by the allegations against him, based on conversations with him.
On Tuesday morning, Meadows claimed that Trump was not referring to Secretary of Defense Mark Asper, former top lobbyist in Raytheon, or Mark Miley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, when he made the remarks – although it is not clear what the reference would have been.
“All presidents are saying that over the decades, some senior career politicians and Pentagon officials have shown reluctance to end our endless wars,” a White House official told CNN. “This president stands with our troops serving on the front lines and our great generals and wants to end this conflict responsibly to bring our troops home.”
Trump’s relationship with Asper has soured significantly, and CNN reports that they will almost change if Trump is re-elected.
It is also unclear how Trump’s opposition to the “military-industrial complex” fits into his efforts to broker foreign arms sales – a central element of his foreign policy – which includes countries such as Saudi Arabia.
But it is clear to some that those who could have stopped the story have not been ruled out, including former Chief of Staff John Kelly or then-Joint Chiefs of Staff Joe Dunford. Kelly and Dunford traveled to Sne-Marne Cemetery instead of Trump when their trip was canceled due to rain.
This story has been updated with additional reporting.
.
