Jim Hoft reports [updated]

Over at Gateway Pundit, Jim Hoft reports a story that I am quite sure will not be picked up by the New York Times or MSNBC: “Obama honored fallen SEALs by sending their parents a form letter signed by electric pen.” Jim writes:

On August 6, 2011, 30 US service members were killed when a CH-47 Chinook helicopter they were being transported in crashed in Wardak province, Afghanistan. It was the deadliest single loss for U.S. forces in the decade-long war in Afghanistan. 17 members of the elite Navy SEALs were killed in the crash.

Yesterday, Karen and Billy Vaughn, parents of Aaron Carson Vaughn, spoke at the Defending the Defenders forum sponsored by the Tea Party Patriots outside the RNC Convention in Tampa. Karen brought a copy of the form letter they were sent following their son’s death.

It’s a form letter.

It was signed by an electric pen.

That’s not all.

Karen Vaughn reached out to the parents of the other SEALs killed in that crash.

Their letters were all the same.

Form letters – signed by an electric pen.

Jim’s post is full of links and images. It’s the kind of story that would have gotten major play during the Bush administration through the offices of Cindy Sheehan or the like, though the contrast with the Bush administration couldn’t be greater. Now the story is enveloped in the mainstream media’s Cone of Silence. Funny how that works.

The story has already rotated off Jim’s home page. It is brought to us this morning by Lucianne. Please pass it on.

UPDATE: Perhaps I should point out that the link above on “the contrast” is to the Washington Times story “Bush, Cheney comforted troops privately.” In the Washington Times story John Solomon reports: “Mr. Bush…has sent personal letters to the families of every one of the more than 4,000 troops who have died in the two wars, an enormous personal effort that consumed hours of his time and escaped public notice.”

It should also be noted that Jim Hoft has updated his story today with “Obama sent personal letter of condolence to rapper’s family…”

JAKE TAPPER REPORTS: The White House denies the assertion that Obama used an autopen to sign the (conceded) form letters. Tapper lumps the White House’s conduct in with that of President Bush while missing the Washington Times story linked above, which I believe indicates otherwise.

LET IT BE NOTED: After a tweet from me, the scrupulous Mr. Tapper immediately revised his story to indicate, as it reads now:

But in December 2008, John Solomon of the Washington Times reported that as part of a private effort to comfort the families of those killed in war and during 9/11, then-President Bush sent personal letters to the families of “every one of the more than 4,000 troops who have did in the two wars, an enormous personal effort that consumed hours of his time and escaped personal notice.”

Notice: All comments are subject to moderation. Our comments are intended to be a forum for civil discourse bearing on the subject under discussion. Commenters who stray beyond the bounds of civility or employ what we deem gratuitous vulgarity in a comment — including, but not limited to, “s***,” “f***,” “a*******,” or one of their many variants — will be banned without further notice in the sole discretion of the site moderator.

Responses