The family of a soldier who died got a call from President Joe Biden. He told them that he understood their loss because his son had served for a year in Iraq and “died because of it.”
The parents of SPC Kennedy Sanders, Oneida and Shawn Sanders, called Biden and were told that their daughter would be given the rank of Sergeant after she died. Soon after, though, he changed the subject and talked about the death of his own son.
Along with two other American soldiers, SPC Sanders was killed in Syria over the weekend in a drone strike by rebels backed by Iran.
“Shawn, I wish I did not have to call you. I know that no one can say or do anything to make you feel better.” Biden began, “I’ve been there.” “Just know that I’m thinking about you and praying for you.”
Biden then told Kennedy’s parents that she would be getting her raise after she had died, which made them cry.
“Wow, thank you so much, that is the best news I’ve heard all day.” She answered, “You have no idea how much that means to us.”
“Well, it means a lot to me. That’s how I lost my son—he spent a year in Iraq,” Biden said. “You know what? These 1% kids are the ones who look out for 99% of us.”
There isn’t much proof to support Biden’s claim that his son Beau Biden’s death from brain cancer in 2015, years after he came back from serving in Iraq with the Delaware National Guard, was caused by his service. His claims have changed over time. Sometimes he says that his son died in Iraq, and other times he says that his son’s brain tumor was caused by breathing in harmful fumes from which have been linked to digestive and liver cancers.
