SerpApi.Org
President Donald Trump compared the ongoing U.S. military conflict with Iran to the wars in Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan and Korea after the Pentagon confirmed additional American troop deaths.
In a post, Trump depicted in chart, “Afghanistan War: 20 years, 2,000 DEAD. Iraq War: 9 years, 4,600 DEAD. Vietnam War: 19 years and 5 months, 58,220 DEAD. Korean War: 3 years and 1 month, 36,574 DEAD. Venezuela War: 1 day, 0 DEAD. Iran Military Conflict: 4 months, 18 DEAD.”
Trump has repeatedly defended the conflict by arguing it has not become a prolonged war like those in Vietnam, Afghanistan or Iraq.
The latest deaths that prompted the post
The graphic followed a deadly period for U.S. forces. The Defense Department identified Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad, 28, of Ozone Park, New York, as the third soldier killed in an Iranian ballistic missile and drone attack on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan.
Rampersad was initially reported missing before U.S. Central Command said search teams recovered unidentified remains at the site, which were later confirmed to be his. He served with the 1st Battalion, 57th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 52nd Air Defense Artillery Brigade, 10th Army Air & Missile Defense Command, based in Ansbach, Germany.
His death followed those of Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas and 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, who were killed on July 17 and July 18 in the same attack. Their deaths brought the number of U.S. troops killed since the war began to 18. The Pentagon said the conflict, which began on Feb. 28, has also wounded more than 400 U.S. troops.
Separately, the Army identified Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton, 30, of Fayetteville, North Carolina, who died during a controlled detonation of a downed Iranian drone at Erbil Air Base in Iraq.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the incident occurred while troops “were decommissioning ammunition and an accident happened in that process.” The death remains under investigation, along with the Jordan attack.
The New York Times report found the military had not disclosed injuries suffered by nearly 100 troops since the fighting resumed. The Pentagon’s casualty tracker lists 447 wounded U.S. service members. The report also said the war has killed more than 1,700 Iranian civilians.
Political reaction
Trump’s comparison drew criticism from both Democrats and some Republicans.
Former Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has broken with Trump over the war, said he was “bragging about killing 18 U.S. soldiers.” She referenced Trump’s pledge to be a “peace president” and argued he had instead gone to war and was “killing and wounding our troops.”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom shared the post and called Trump a “disgusting Little Man,” urging him to “treat our brave American soldiers with some respect.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said boasting about “only” 18 troop deaths in what he described as a reckless and illegal war was “beneath contempt and a new low even for the likes of Donald Trump.”
The graphic was not Trump’s only combative message that week. In another post, he warned Iran would “pay for the killings many times over” following confirmation of the additional deaths, adding that he had directed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Daniel Caine to respond.
When asked about the latest deaths, however, Trump adopted a more somber tone, describing the fallen as patriots who died preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
Trump’s defense of the conflict
Asked about the casualties, Trump said, “We feel very badly, but those great people, those great patriots were out there fighting so that Iran can not have a nuclear weapon.”
Trump has repeatedly described himself as a “peace president,” despite launching military operations in Iran and Venezuela.
Earlier this year, he referred to the January 3 intervention in Venezuela as a “war,” while emphasizing that no U.S. casualties occurred during the operation to capture President Nicolás Maduro on narco-terrorism charges.
