Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump applauds as he leaves a campaign rally at Cumberland Valley High School in Mechanicsburg. (AP Photo) Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump applauds as he leaves a campaign rally at Cumberland Valley High School in Mechanicsburg. (AP Photo)

At last week’s Democratic National Convention, Khizr Khan, the father of a Muslim American soldier killed in Iraq, posed a question to Donald Trump: Have you read the Constitution? Pakistan-born Khan attacked the billionaire businessman saying that if it was up to Trump, his son would have never been American or served in the military. “You have sacrificed nothing,” he told Trump.

Days later, The New York Times in the course of an investigation, has reported that Trump himself had been deferred from getting drafted and serving in the military five times – four for education, once for a bad heel. In 1968, Trump was reported to be in the best of his health and was eligible to be drafted in the US military after his graduation from college. However, in that year, a bone spurs in his heels – a problem that caused a part of the bone in the heel to grow out – caused a deferment. When this diagnosis was produced in front of the medical officer, Trump got the much desired 1-Y medical deferment which exempted him from military service temporarily. This was during the Vietnam war, when a huge number of American troops were being sent to Southeast Asia.

The paper goes on to report that the public statements he has made regarding his deferments have conflicted with his records in Selective Service. In fact, his recall of the same is often sketchy. The other four deferments he received were for continuing his education. In June 1964, after Trump’s 18th birthday, he registered with the Selective Service System, as was the custom for all men of his age. He submitted his papers in the summer following his graduation from the New York Military Academy.

In the next month, however, Trump got the first educational deferment for completing undergraduate studies and three more deferments during the next four years for completing his education.

WATCH VIDEO: Donald Trump Was Deferred From Military Service Five Times: Report

All his deferments happened during the Vietnam war, where he consequently didn’t serve. The report says that he has often said “he hated the concept of war”. “I was never a fan of the Vietnam War,” Trump was quoted saying. “But I was never at the protest level, either, because I had other things to do.”

The Tet offensive, which was a series of surprise attacks by the forces of North Vietnam against the forces of South Vietnam, United States and their allies in January 1968, which caused a large number of casualties, which escalated the war. In the same year, Trump received his 1-Y medical deferment that changed to 4-F in 1972, disqualifying him from the military permanently.

Many presidents of the US, George Bush and Bill Clinton, for example, have not served in the military. However, after Khan raised the idea of sacrifice, Trump’s deferments come into question. “I think I’ve made a lot of sacrifices,” Trump told ABC News in excerpts of an interview. He said he had worked hard to build his company and had given employment to thousands of people and alleged that the speech given by Khan had been pre-written by the Democrats. He later sought help from Capitol Hill for support in the controversy, especially after Republican lawmakers expressed their dismay at Trump’s response to Khan.

📣 The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines

For all the latest World News, download Indian Express App.

© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd