Donald Trump is offering Iowans free tickets to the new Benghazi movie 13 Hours


Donald Trump has rented out an Iowa movie theater in order to give out free tickets to the new Michael Bay film, 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, The Des Moines Register reports. Despite mixed reviews —13 Hours currently holds a middling 57 percent on aggregator Rotten Tomatoes — Bay's film is seen by the anti-Hillary Clinton crowd as an evisceration of the former secretary of state's decisions in 2012.
"Mr. Trump would like all Americans to know the truth about what happened at Benghazi... The theater is paid for. The tickets are paid for. You just have to RSVP," Trump's Iowa co-chair Tana Goertz said Thursday.
The Des Moines Register describes 13 hours as "depict[ing] the terrorist raid on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi" but that it "reportedly makes no mention of Clinton... but has again raised the topic of the Democratic presidential candidate's role in the tragedy."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In its 1-star review of the film, The Guardian called 13 Hours "Michael Bay play[ing] politico for the Fox News crowd."
"Michael Bay's bloody bonanza about the 2012 U.S. compound attack is atrocious, shrewdly timed for the presidential race, and so scornful of foreign intervention it could be pacifist," the review reads.
The New York Times didn't mince words: "Clarity isn't the objective."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Japan's surname conundrum
Under the Radar Law requiring couples to share one surname hinders women in the workplace and lowers birth rate, campaigners claim
-
How successful would Elon Musk's third party be?
Today's Big Question Musk has vowed to start a third party after falling out with Trump
-
Music reviews: Bruce Springsteen and Benson Boone
Feature "Tracks II: The Lost Albums" and "American Heart"
-
Thai court suspends prime minister over leaked call
Speed Read Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been suspended, pending an ethics investigation
-
Senate passes GOP megabill after Alaska side deal
The pivotal yes vote came from Sen. Lisa Murkowski, whose support was secured following negotiated side deals for her home state Alaska
-
Trump sues LA over immigration policies
Speed Read He is suing over the city's sanctuary law, claiming it prevents local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities
-
Obama, Bush and Bono eulogize USAID on final day
Speed Read The US Agency for International Development, a humanitarian organization, has been gutted by the Trump administration
-
The last words and final moments of 40 presidents
The Explainer Some are eloquent quotes worthy of the holders of the highest office in the nation, and others... aren't
-
Senate advances GOP bill that costs more, cuts more
Speed Read The bill would make giant cuts to Medicaid and food stamps, leaving 11.8 million fewer people with health coverage
-
Canadian man dies in ICE custody
Speed Read A Canadian citizen with permanent US residency died at a federal detention center in Miami
-
GOP races to revise megabill after Senate rulings
Speed Read A Senate parliamentarian ruled that several changes to Medicaid included in Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" were not permissible