There's Nothing Presidential About Exploiting the Grief of a Dead Soldier's Widow

Ryan Owens, an American Navy SEAL, died during an Al-Qaeda raid that was, by many measures, considered a failure. In addition to reportedly yielding no viable intelligence, the ambush killed 30 Yemeni people, nine of whom were children. So when President Donald Trump honored Owens's widow, Carryn, during his Joint Session address on Feb. 28, the veneration felt exploitative, like a political crutch to vindicate the failed mission.

Indeed, the moment Carryn was recognized with a two-minute standing ovation was powerful, and she absolutely deserves the nation's respect for her and her family's sacrifice. But Carryn's grief shouldn't be a pawn for Trump to be perceived as "presidential" or even as a leader. It would be wrong to describe Trump's reverence for Carryn as insincere, but it's difficult to assess his full intentions by inviting her as a guest.

To be clear, this is not a criticism of Carryn, nor is it a decrial of her decision to attend the Joint Session address. While she has not spoken publicly about her decision to attend, Carryn's presence, along with her three children, at the very least allowed the entire country to remember her husband's heroic legacy.

But even though Trump described the mission as effective, he seemed to acknowledge its failure the morning of his address by blaming it on both the military generals who oversaw the mission and President Barack Obama. The president's inability to accept responsibility for the failed raid is nowhere near presidential and is insulting to Owens's legacy.

Many Twitter users felt similarly, including a host of veterans.

Trump's plan even fooled some of his consistent critics. Van Jones, a frequent CNN pundit, and Katy Tur of NBC, whom Trump infamously singled out during the campaign, both described the moment as a turning point where he became "presidential."

The president's public appreciation of Carryn is especially twisted given that he authorized the unsuccessful assault that killed Owens quite casually over dinner with Jared Kushner, Steve Bannon, and new Defense Secretary Jim Mattis. By exalting Carryn, Trump is also seemingly attempting to validate his efforts combating terrorism, and it sends the message that Owens did not die in vain. But military officials have argued that his death was avoidable and unnecessary. And Owens's father, Bill Owens, refuses to meet with Trump until an investigation into the mission is opened.

Trump isn't the first president to spotlight an American soldier's tragedy in an apparent attempt to garner approval. Obama also praised Cory Remsburg, who was severely injured by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan, during his 2014 State of the Union address. Obama's acknowledgment of Remsburg could be considered an effort to diminish the criticism of an unpopular war by glorifying the war's heroes. The soldiers who have died in combat remain heroes, worthy of honor, but their deaths are far too often used to perpetuate the never-ending cycle that is the War on Terror. George W. Bush did the same throughout his presidency.

Unlike Obama or Bush, Trump actually employed Carryn's grief as a tool to suggest the raid was successful, which is perhaps what makes it so upsetting. American soldiers will inevitably die during combat, but the War on Terror heralded a new type of war, which is dominated by clandestine missions approved by the commander in chief. In an attempt to flex his muscle as tough on terror, Trump authorized a poorly planned mission that endangered soldiers' lives and then used a widow's grief over a tragedy he is partially responsible for to defend the decision. Let's not forget the genuine respect Carryn Owens is owed, but let's also not be blinded by Trump's endeavor to seem presidential.