What the performative patriotism of Donald Trump reveals about his character

When I was preparing for deployment for Iraq in 2007, we were required to do grenade training. Before we started, our master sergeant asked who would jump on a grenade to save the lives of others. More than half of the Marines (mostly guys who hadn’t deployed yet) raised their hands. When we finished training, he asked the same question. After seeing what grenades actually do, no one raised their hands.

Our master sergeant then told us that is what separated Cpl. Jason Dunham from the rest of us Marines, and why Dunham earned the Medal of Honor. We all sacrificed in the military, but Jason’s sacrifice is on a level even Marines might struggle to understand.

Earlier this week, Donald Trump, looking to jump start his struggling campaign, decided to make a campaign stop at Arlington National Cemetery. This hallowed ground had been avoided by Trump for the last three years, but now was a perfect opportunity to engage in what he has mastered better than most politicians; performative patriotism.

However, there was something that would inhibit his goals and that was the actual rules of Arlington National Cemetery which prohibit political campaigning and photography for political purposes. Of course, that wouldn’t stop Trump and his team from getting what they wanted. An altercation ensued, and we were presented with a picture of Trump smiling over the graves of the fallen with a thumbs up.

This pursuit of the photo op, despite rules, decorum, decency and tact is the latest illustration of Trump appearing to view fallen military and their families as props and not people. And it plays into the feelings that Americans have about a word that Trump knows how to manipulate. Sacrifice.

This isn’t the first time that Trump has run afoul of his view of military members. We all remember what he said about late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), his words to his chief of staff and Gold Star father Gen. John Kelly about “suckers and losers.” And in his latest insult, he asserted that the nation’s highest military award, the Congressional Medal of honor, is no better than the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

But there was one incident back in 2016 that I want to touch on because it speaks volumes about how Trump views sacrifice.

After Khizr and Ghazala Khan shared the story of their son, Humayun Khan, who had died in Iraq in 2004, Trump decided to discuss the loss of their son in the context of his own personal sacrifices. Speaking to ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, Trump said “I think I’ve made a lot of sacrifices. I work very, very hard.”

Trump went on to talk about the buildings and jobs he created, putting his business career on the same level as an officer who had died preventing a suicide bomber from killing his men.

Of course, Trump (his writers) put out a carefully worded condolence later. But since then, we have been treated to a slew of insults to people who served and their families. We have also been doused with the performative routine that Trump uses to rally some of his followers. From hugging flags to altering the Bible, Trump has made millions from his followers.

Now this performative patriot routine will always appeal to certain people. Slap a flag on a beer can, truck, t-shirt sleeve, bag of coffee or underwear and people will pay for it, regardless of its quality. And you really can’t blame them for this and Trump being the businessman that he is, taking advantage of that.

But on a deeper level, we also need to understand this. Trump seems to truly believe that the sacrifices that Americans have made in battle are on the same level as the ones he has made in his business and political career. And that is something that no true patriot should accept.

Sure, we all sacrifice in some sense. Parents sacrifice for their kids, immigrants sacrifice their old lives to start a new one here, people give up time with their families to start a new business, and teenagers sacrifice fun times with friends to work toward college acceptance and success. But most of us have the cognizance to realize that what we give up pales in comparison to the sacrifices that service members endure.  

It is easy to hug a flag, sell an “American” Bible or stage a photo op at Arlington. But Trump has never been able to answer whether he truly knows what it is like to sacrifice for his country. Does he understand that whatever he did pales in comparison to those who had died for us? And is he humble enough to admit it?

Jos Joseph is a master’s candidate at the Harvard Extension School at Harvard University. He is a Marine veteran who served in Iraq and lives in Anaheim, Calif.