By Victoria Manning | Restoration News
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) didn’t wait for facts. He went straight to CNN to baselessly accuse American servicemembers of possible war crimes after a missile allegedly struck a former Iranian naval building. As a member of the Naval Academy Board of Visitors, his reckless smear against American sailors is disgraceful.
On March 23, Sen. Van Hollen told CNN the bombing of the school “is possibly a war crime.” While he leveled these accusations against U.S. servicemembers, without evidence, he remained silent about the Iranian regime’s purposeful slaughter of tens of thousands of its own people.
Van Hollen is attacking America’s troops and siding with its enemies.
Media reports claim there was an attack on an Iranian school on Feb. 28. While the U.S. military is investigating what happened, those reports indicate the school building was previously used by the Iranian Navy and located on a military base.
It’s alleged the school was hit by a tomahawk missile—only launched by U.S. Navy ships or submarines. Some analysts say faulty, outdated intelligence may have led the American military to believe the building belonged to the Iranian Navy.
If these reports are true, it’s a horrible and tragic mistake based on faulty information—not a war crime.
Yet Sen. Van Hollen has levied unsubstantiated and politically motivated allegations of war crimes against naval officers that carry the penalty of execution.
I’m the spouse and daughter-in-law of USNA graduates and senior naval officers. Van Hollen’s remarks degrade and belittle the entire military community who place a high value on honor and integrity.
I have neighbors and friends who are deployed to the Middle East, putting their lives in harm’s way in service to our country. It’s contemptible that a top elected leader who sits on the Naval Academy’s oversight board would level such egregious accusations our Navy.
Former Naval Officers Speak Out
Former Naval officer and U.S. Naval Academy (USNA) graduate Fred Stuvek, Jr. sent Sen. Van Hollen a letter. Stuvek rightly pointed out that Van Hollen’s accusations “carry profound implications for individuals in the chain of command, for the integrity of military institutions, and for public confidence in those entrusted with national defense.”
Mr. Stuvek highlighted that as a member of the USNA Board of Visitors, Van Hollen has observed firsthand “the values, integrity, and professionalism instilled in the young men and women” who commission as officers to lead the Navy. Some of those same officers are surely among those Van Hollen accuses of committing war crimes.
Another Navy veteran and USNA graduate, Lawrence Purdy, also spoke out against Sen. Van Hollen’s attack, saying he “owes our military an apology.” Purdy points out that Sen. Van Hollen offered no evidence that the military strike “intentionally targeted innocent civilians,” which would be the definition of a war crime.
I find Van Hollen’s words not only disgraceful but dangerous. His reckless accusations do more than smear Navy sailors, they erode public trust in America’s military.
Our sailors and Marines put their lives on the line for this nation while he sits safely in Washington leveling execution-worthy accusations without evidence.
The U.S. Senate must condemn Van Hollen’s dangerous rhetoric against the military and call for his removal from the USNA Board of Visitors. Our military deserves leaders who defend our troops, not those who slander them.
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Victoria Manning is a Senior Investigative Researcher for Restoration News specializing in education freedom, immigration, and military issues. She is the author of Behind the Wall of Government Schools. Victoria served 8 years as an elected school board member and has a master’s degree in law. She also brings the perspective of a military spouse to her reporting. Email Victoria HERE
First published on Restoration News
Van Hollen should be forgiven his remarks. After all, he is nothing but a useful idiot and Democrat Party marionette. As such, he’s incapable of original thought, and can only parrot the party line, which is all things anti-Trump, and anti-America. His live appearances are regurgitations of left wing talking points, and his emails to constituents are wholly written by his staff, which I suspect are recent graduates of the progressive indoctrination mills. I left Maryland years ago, yet I still receive his manifold lies and slander of America via email. Nobody from his office bothers to respond when I call him out. And as usual, Maryland keeps electing turds like Van Hollen.