Rep. Duncan Hunter Admits He Probably Killed 'Hundreds of Civilians' in Iraq
California Rep. Duncan Hunter, previously best known for investigations into his misuse of funds while in office and vaping on the floor of Congress, went on a Barstool Sports podcast last week and inexplicably admitted to killing hundreds of innocent people while serving in the U.S. military during the Iraq war.
Hunter has long been an outspoken supporter of Eddie Gallagher, a Navy SEAL who is charged with stabbing an Iraqi teenager to death among other war crimes. Now, Hunter’s support of Gallagher is starting to make a bit more sense, given that he seems to think doing war crimes is normal.
On the Barstool podcast, which was released last Monday, Hunter discusses his deployment to Fallujah in 2004.
“I was an artillery officer, and we fired hundreds of rounds into Fallujah, killed probably hundreds of civilians, if not scores, if not hundreds of civilians,” Hunter says. “Probably killed women and children, if there were any left in the city when we invaded. So do I get judged, too?”
Uh, if that is true, yes, you should in fact “get judged” for murdering hundreds of people.
Hunter’s argument seems to be that shooting and killing hundreds of civilians is fine, so stabbing a teen to death is also fine. He says on the podcast that Gallagher’s victim “might have been killed in a way that you don’t personally agree with, because you say it’s against the laws of war.”
“As opposed to artillery killing civilians, women and children, because it’s kind of indiscriminate in a way,” he adds. “It’s not a sniper weapon, right. Which is worse?”
The answer is that they are both extremely bad!
It’s worth remembering that stabbing someone isn’t the only crime of which Gallagher is accused.
Among the accusations against Gallagher are that he stabbed and killed a wounded person, shot at noncombatants, posed for a photo and performed his re-enlistment ceremony next to a corpse, according to a charge sheet from November. Lawyers in the courtroom said earlier this year that the male stabbing victim in question was an ISIS fighter, who witnesses told investigators appeared to be about 15.
This is all totally fine with Hunter, who is an elected Congressman.
“I frankly don’t care if [the teenage ISIS fighter] was killed, I just don’t care,” Hunter said on the podcast. He added that “even if everything that the prosecutors say is true in this case, then, you know, Eddie Gallagher should still be given a break, I think.”
Cool. Very cool. Not at all psychotic or sociopathic.
Incredibly this is NOT THE FIRST TIME that Hunter has said publicly that he probably did war crimes. Just last week, he said during a speech that he also has taken a photo of the dead body of an enemy.
“Eddie did one bad thing that I’m guilty of too—taking a picture of the body and saying something stupid,” Hunter said, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune. Great job dude!
Hunter never misses an opportunity to stand up for an accused war criminal. Back in February, he went on TV to complain about the treatment of accused war criminal Army Maj. Matthew Golsteyn, and about the rise of what he calls “compassionate combat.”
“What I think we have here is what the U.S. government would call ‘compassionate combat,’” Hunter said on Fox & Friends. “The U.S. government over the last five years under President Bush, and crystalized under President Obama, has wanted us to kill the bad guys, but in the right way. Meaning compassionate and only under the rules of engagement that they say to you.”
Golsteyn is charged with murder for allegedly executing an Iraqi prisoner and burning his body.
By the way, Hunter and his wife are also currently facing federal charges for allegedly misusing campaign funds by flying themselves and their friends around the world and spending camping money on personal dinners and entertainment. He has subsequently tried to blame his wife for the spending.