It appears that there are a lot of military veterans who have either quit, been fired, or speaking out about their time serving in the White House. It appears that the constant lies, unwillingness to adhere to presidential norms, and consistent bullying on twitter and in rallies is playing a part in why so many veterans are publicly leaving the current Presidential Administration. It appears that the White house has been emboldened to do what they want with no one being held accountable for their actions. This lack of integrity appears to be making some veterans struggle with supporting the President on many issues.
Steve is one of my clients who is struggling. He came into session fuming about the way the President is disrespecting the office, military, and veterans. Steve is an Iraqi veteran with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) who struggles with the Presidents consistent tweeting and attempted bullying of veterans who oppose him. Steve now questions what he had fought for. Military members and veterans who serve in the Presidents administration are being fired and criticized for doing their job and what is right. Steve made the statement; this is not how a President is supposed to act, it is not what is best for the country. I work with a lot of veterans and most of them, even those who support him, struggle with the way the President is handling himself and the office of the Presidency. Veterans appear to also be concerned about national security issues released by tweet. Causing confusion and a disruption among our allies and the military. Many of the moves and decisions the President has made has turned a lot of veterans away from supporting him.
Steve is not the only veteran to speak out while talking to me in sessions. The President’s actions appear to be causing a lot of anxiety in the veteran’s community, especially with the younger veterans. With the President appearing to involve himself in legal issues and trying to use other countries to gain information on his opponent’s veterans are beginning to question the President’s loyalty to the country. The known conversation with the Ukrainian president looks like the President is using his office for personal gain, even if it wasn’t. It was questionable enough to make an Army officer to speak up and risk his career over. It is also not helpful when the President pulls money from military projects for the border wall. Veterans are starting to question the Presidents support of them and the military. These are just a few of the issues, there are a lot of more questionable things the President has done.
With all the issues the President has dealt with it appears the last straw for some veterans was the treatment of Lt. Col Vindman. I believe the firing of the Lt. Col. for doing what he felt was right and following his oath of office has made a lot of veterans uneasy. The subpoena from congress, right or wrong, was something Lt. Col. Vindman had to do if he was going to follow his oath of office. By following military protocol, the Lt. Col. drew the wrath of the President. As history has shown, this President publicly removes anyone who he feels does not support him, disagrees with him, or does anything he feels is not in his best interest. The President also appears to be trying to get the US Army to investigate the Col’s motives, which to me was clear. Most of the veterans I have talked to believe the Col’s motive was clear… he did what he thought was right and appears to be paying the price for his integrity.
The definition of integrity according to the military I served in is doing the right thing even when no one is looking. That is in its simplest form, the dictionary defines it as the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness and that is what the Col. did, and it appears to have cost him. The fact that Lt Col Vindman did what he thought was right is something that most veterans can get behind. Almost all veterans believe that integrity is a key piece of their lives, and most veterans feel it is a key element to who they are. They feel that what is going on is detrimental to the US and what they had fought for. I know most politicians appear to lie, and are in it for themselves, but I also know that most politicians will not do anything to destroy the country for their ego. I believe as a mental health therapist, and retired Air Force NCO that the lack of integrity in the oval office has caused a lot of veterans to question what they fought for.