Trump attacks Blumenthal, demands investigation over military claims

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
Today 08:59

US President Donald Trump escalates attacks on Senator Richard Blumenthal over false military service claims amid a heated Senate hearing.

Listen

United States President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in the Oval Office of the White House, on October 7, 2025, in Washington (AP)

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday escalated his ongoing feud with Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, calling for an investigation into the Connecticut lawmaker over alleged embellishments of his military record.

Trump’s attack came after Blumenthal clashed with US Attorney General Pam Bondi during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.

Richard 'Da Nang Dick' Blumenthal

On his platform Truth Social, Trump described Blumenthal as “Sanctimonious Richard ‘Da Nang Dick’ Blumenthal, perhaps the biggest ‘joke’ in the United States Senate.” He accused the senator of lying about his service, writing:

“'Dick' lied until the midpoint of his political career, convincing everyone, in particular the Fake News Media, that he was a great ‘War Hero’ who lived on the precipice of death in the jungles of Vietnam,” the US president wrote.

“This guy shouldn’t even be in the U.S. Senate. It should be investigated, and Justice should be sought,” Trump asserted.

Trump further compared Blumenthal to disgraced New York Congressman George Santos, imprisoned this year for wire fraud and identity theft, stating that Santos’ lies “were nothing compared to those of Richard ‘Da Nang Dick’ Blumenthal, perhaps the greatest phony in the history of the United States Senate.”

The nickname "Da Nang Dick" is a play on the name of Da Nang, a major US military base in Vietnam during the American-led aggression on the country. Trump used this moniker to accuse Blumenthal of falsely claiming to have been in combat or in dangerous conditions in Vietnam, despite the senator never serving in Southeast Asia.

Blumenthal, 79, has served in the Senate since 2011 and sits on the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee. He received five draft deferments during the Vietnam War before enlisting in the US Marine Corps in 1970, but he never served in Southeast Asia. During his 2010 Senate campaign, he publicly admitted that he had “not been as clear or precise as I should have been about my service in the Marine Corps Reserves,” admitting to misstatements regarding his record.

Fiery exchange with Attorney General Bondi

Earlier, Attorney General Bondi directly accused Blumenthal of lying about his military service during her Senate testimony, sparking a tense exchange with the senator. The hearing also saw sharp exchanges between Bondi and other senators, with Democrats, including Dick Durbin (D-IL), criticizing her for politicizing the Justice Department, while Republicans such as John Kennedy (R-LA) questioned her over other investigations, including probes related to the 2020 election.

Bondi defended her actions, asserting that the department was focusing on “real crime” and ending the “weaponization of justice,” highlighting the deep partisan divisions surrounding the Trump administration’s approach to the Justice Department.