Congresswoman accuses Trump of making an 'insensitive' remark to widow of fallen soldier


A Florida congresswoman is upset over a comment President Trump made to the widow of U.S. Army Sgt. La David Johnson, one of the four troops killed earlier this month when they were ambushed by Islamist militants in Niger.
Rep. Frederica Wilson (D) told Local 10 News that Trump called Myeshia Johnson on Tuesday afternoon and they spoke for about five minutes, with Trump at one point telling Johnson: "He knew what he signed up for ... but when it happens it hurts anyway." "Yes, he said it," Wilson said. "It's so insensitive. He should have not said that. He shouldn't have said it." Myeshia Johnson is pregnant and due in January, and has two other children with her late husband, a 6-year-old daughter and 2-year-old son. After the phone call with Trump, Myeshia Johnson, her family, and friends went to Miami International Airport to wait for the Delta flight to arrive carrying her husband's flag-covered casket.
La David Johnson, 25, was a Walmart employee before becoming a member of the 3rd Special Forces Group at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Details surrounding the ambush that killed him on Oct. 4 are still murky, but the troops reportedly did not have any air cover and were in unarmored trucks when the attack took place. Trump has come under fire for not saying anything about the deaths or the botched mission, and he tried to turn things around by erroneously telling reporters that former President Barack Obama didn't call the families of fallen troops; he later tried to backtrack, saying Obama "probably did sometimes" call and "maybe sometimes he didn't. I don't know. That's what I was told." Catherine Garcia
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.
-
AI scammer fakes Rubio messages to top officials
Speed Read The unknown individual mimicked Rubio in voice and text messages sent to multiple government officials
-
SCOTUS greenlights Trump's federal firings
speed read The Trump administration can conduct mass federal firings without Congress' permission, the Supreme Court ruled
-
New tariffs set on 14 trading partners
Speed Read A new slate of tariffs will begin August 1 on imports from Japan, South Korea, Thailand and more
-
Elon Musk launching 'America Party'
Speed Read The tech mogul promised to form a new political party if Trump's megabill passed Congress
-
Judge blocks Trump's asylum ban at US border
Speed Read The president violated federal law by shutting down the US-Mexico border to asylum seekers, said the ruling
-
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