Sarah Palin says son's arrest linked to PTSD


Calling it the "elephant in the room," Sarah Palin told the crowd at a Donald Trump rally in Oklahoma on Wednesday that her son Track's arrest on domestic violence charges earlier this week was due to post traumatic stress disorder.
In 2008, Track Palin, 26, served with the Army in Iraq. "My son, like so many others, they come back a bit different, they come back hardened, they come back wondering if there is that respect for what it is that their fellow soldiers and airmen, every other member of the military so sacrificially has given to this country," Sarah Palin said. "It starts from the top. The question though it comes from our own president, when they have to look at him and wonder, do you know what we go through, do you know what we're trying to do to secure America and to secure the freedoms that have been bequeathed us?" Because of her son, Palin said she can "certainly relate with other families who feel these ramifications of some PTSD and some of the woundedness that our soldiers do return with."
Paul Rieckhoff, the head of the nonpartisan Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, told NBC News he's glad Palin is using her platform to bring awareness to PTSD, but added: "It's not President Obama's fault that Sarah Palin's son has PTSD. PTSD is a very serious problem, a complicated mental health injury and I would be extremely reluctant to blame any one person in particular." On Monday, Track Palin was arrested in Wasilla, Alaska, after he allegedly punched his girlfriend in the face, kicked her in the knee, and threatened to kill himself with an AR-15 assault rifle. He was charged with assault, possession of a firearm while intoxicated, and interfering with the report of domestic violence.
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.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Magazine solutions - July 4, 2025 / July 11, 2025
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - July 4, 2025 / July 11, 2025
-
Magazine printables - July 4, 2025 / July 11, 2025
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - July 4, 2025 / July 11, 2025
-
Controversial GOP plan to sell millions of federal acres hits major roadblock
IN THE SPOTLIGHT Republican Sen. Mike Lee says he'll revisit legislation to sell millions of acres of federally held land to create 'freedom zones' of single family homes
-
Weinstein convicted of sex crime in retrial
Speed Read The New York jury delivered a mixed and partial verdict at the disgraced Hollywood producer's retrial
-
'King of the Hill' actor shot dead outside home
speed read Jonathan Joss was fatally shot by a neighbor who was 'yelling violent homophobic slurs,' says his husband
-
DOJ, Boulder police outline attacker's confession
speed read Mohamed Sabry Soliman planned the attack for a year and 'wanted them all to die'
-
Assailant burns Jewish pedestrians in Boulder
speed read Eight people from the Jewish group were hospitalized after a man threw Molotov cocktails in a 'targeted act of violence'
-
Driver rams van into crowd at Liverpool FC parade
speed read 27 people were hospitalized following the attack
-
2 Israel Embassy staff shot dead at DC Jewish museum
speed read The suspected gunman chanted 'free, free Palestine'
-
Bombing of fertility clinic blamed on 'antinatalist'
speed read A car bombing injured four people and damaged a fertility clinic and nearby buildings in Palm Springs, California
-
Suspect charged after 11 die in Vancouver car attack
Speed Read Kai-Ji Adam Lo drove an SUV into a crowd at the Lapu Lapu Day festival