Raja Kristhnamoorthi Praises Oliver Stone's Service In Vietnam During Hearing On JFK Files

2 days ago

At today's House Oversight Committee hearing, Sen. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) questioned Oliver Stone and other witnesses during a hearing about the JFK Files.

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Transcript

00:00Thank you, Madam Chair. President Kennedy's grandson, Jack Schlossberg, said,

00:07conspiracies surrounding JFK's death have shifted focus away from the

00:12important lessons of his life and the critical issues of the moment. So I'd

00:16like to focus a little bit on some of those lessons and issues. Mr. DiEugenio,

00:20it's the start of baseball season. Go Cubs. So let's begin with JFK's 1960

00:26letter to Jackie Robinson in which JFK highlighted Robinson's role in the civil

00:32rights struggle. JFK said, quote, I believe I understand and appreciate your

00:38role in continuing the struggle to fulfill America's promise of equal

00:43opportunity for all. Just last month, President Trump bizarrely ordered DOD to

00:49purge its website of all references to black history, black veterans, and even

00:55the reference to Jackie Robinson's own military service. In response, Mr.

01:00DiEugenio, you posted that what Trump did was, quote, really sick. That's what you

01:07said and that's what you believe, right sir? Yes? Did I say that? Okay, I'm sorry.

01:20I don't recall saying that. Okay, maybe I did, maybe I didn't. Okay. Yeah, I wish

01:26you'd have given me three, four so I could have looked at it. Mr. Morley,

01:31you said that JFK, quote, took great risks on behalf of all Americans in

01:37resisting the forces of militarism and racism. Yes. Donald Trump, on the other

01:43hand, recently eliminated, believe it or not, the prohibition on federal

01:48contractors using or maintaining racially segregated facilities. JFK would

01:54have rejected what Trump recently did, correct? You know, I was invited here to

02:03talk about the JFK files and I don't want to make a partisan political issue

02:08of it. Like I said, I'm a liberal Democrat and if in general I had to

02:11choose between a conservative Republican like Donald Trump and a liberal

02:15Democrat like JFK, I would choose JFK. Well, let me talk about USAID for a

02:21second because that was something that JFK actually established. Sir, recently

02:28USAID is now being shuttered. Again, that is something that is a very important

02:35part of his legacy and that's something that he would have opposed, obviously,

02:39correct? I think President Kennedy would have said that no government agency is

02:43sacrosanct and I'm sure he would have said that any federal agency that should

02:47be abolished should be done in consultation between the President and

02:50Congress. And that hasn't been done here, yes sir? Not that I know of. Let me turn

02:57to another topic. Mr. Stone, some of your films such as Platoon and Born on the

03:054th of July were inspired by your own military experiences in the Army when

03:09you deployed to Vietnam in the 60s, right? That's correct. We have this

03:14picture here of you in Vietnam. Thank you. I thank you deeply for your service. We

03:21actually found a picture of you in Vietnam and you were awarded the Bronze

03:26Star for Valor, correct? That's correct. You've written that your Bronze Star was

03:31because of your actions during a, quote, mean little ambush which had cost you a

03:38lieutenant, a sergeant, and even your scout dog, correct? I'm sorry, I didn't hear that.

03:44What did you say? He said, did it cost you a lieutenant and your scout dog, the ambush?

03:51No, that's another incident, sir. That was later on in another infantry unit. That's

03:58the reason it led to my Bronze Star. Bronze Star came in August of that year.

04:02This wound occurred in October of 67. Can I ask you about that? It's ambushes

04:11like this where sometimes people are waiting opportunistically to fire

04:17upon you, but sometimes they have some type of information that allows them to

04:22lie in wait for a surprise attack, and part of that information could be your

04:26whereabouts or the timing of your arrival, correct? You're talking about a

04:31friendly fire or fragging? Ambush from the enemy. Ambushed, to be

04:38ambushed by your own men, your own troops? Is that what you're saying? Ambushed by

04:43the enemy, the adversary. The adversary. Well, I'm a little confused, but I just

04:50want to make the point that, yes, there was a tremendous amount of friendly fire

04:53casualties in Vietnam, and there's in any war, I believe. In my experience, 10%

05:00doesn't even describe it. I think it's closer to 15 or 20% in terms of friendly

05:05fire deaths and wounds. Yeah, Mr. Stone, we'd like to thank you for your service

05:10to this country. You are a war hero. You have a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart, and I

05:14think this committee reflects that. Thank you. The chair would like to now

05:17recognize Mr. Burchett.

Raja Kristhnamoorthi Praises Oliver Stone's Service In Vietnam During Hearing On JFK Files

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