Friedman feels backlash
The other day, Brandon Friedman, former infantry lieutenant, former VoteVets co-chair, former Veterans’ Affairs Media Director, currently the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, posited the theory that Bowe Bergdahl’s unit leaders were “long on psychopaths and short on leadership”.
Within hours, he quickly backpedaled on the statement, according to Fox News;
“I’d like to clarify tweets I wrote last night on my personal Twitter account concerning the return of Bowe Bergdahl,” Friedman, a veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, said in the statement. “First, I do not speak for the Administration on national security issues in any capacity—public or personal.”
Citing his service, he said he has the “highest regard” for fellow service-members.
Well, no he doesn’t. Friedman has the “highest regard” for veterans who agree with him, but the rest of us not so much. Well, it appears that Friedman’s fellow travelers at Huffington Post aren’t as enamored with Friedman as they used to be, either. They named him “The Most Disappointing Democrat of the Week“.
Without a shred of evidence, a governmental official (no matter how lowly) calling an entire group of soldiers “psychopaths” is beyond disappointing behavior — it is nothing short of disgraceful. He was trying to make a larger point, but his choice of words to begin this point was unacceptable. He has since apologized, but he never should have made this unfounded accusation in the first place. There has been enough “not supporting the troops” this week already, and this certainly doesn’t help the situation one bit.
Which is why, lowly deputy assistant though he may be, Brandon Friedman is our Most Disappointing Democrat Of The Week this week.
Ouch. Given the disappointing performances by a number of Democrats this week, from Susan Rice to Harry Reid, I’m sure the folks at Huffington Post had a hard time choosing just one. How’s the undercarriage of that bus look, Brandon?
Category: Politics
Hey Beeker, go fuck a kite…
The mental image that gave me will scar me for life.
I’d suggest a porcupine instead, Combat Historian.
Let me guess, the instructions are in the manual?
I wonder how fun it was having him as a Platoon Leader.
I’m sure his troops would have followed him to the gates of hell…just to watch him burn.
The inspiration for LT Schneeburger.
Special snowflakes don’t do well when exposed to well deserved heat.
Brandon, Pajama Boy said he’d give you a hug. Special snowflake, indeed.
When you’ve lost the Huffington Post…
Infantry officer?
He strikes me as much of an infantry officer as Captain Sobel (Soble?)…
↑↑↑↑↑ Upvotes for the Band of Brothers reference. I’m sure that Beeker and Sobel would have gotten along very well.
Given that Sobel actually made a positive contribution, wouldn’t it be fair to place him in a higher category than Friedman?
I was thinking perhaps Courtney Massingale from “Once An Eagle”. Great book, well worth a read.
I can see the similarities. One has a name similar to a feminine hygiene product, the other one IS one.
Why do I get the feeling that when Beaker was in the military, he was the unit’s SLJO (Shitty Little Jobs Officer)?
Definitely the Frank Burns of his time
this guy was probably a complete fuck up as “Voting Rights Officer”, “Key Custodian”, “STD Control Officer”, “MWR Coordinator” and most importantly “Field Sanitation Supervisor” (aka Commissioned Shitter Burner)
Even Huffington Post called him a douche? That’s saying something.
Like I said before, the REALLY SHITTY Junior Officers are the ones who don’t even make it to the rank of Captain. That ought to be a clue AS TO what kind of an Officer he was!
Uh yeah, Captain is pretty much automatic unless you shoot your rater in the foot or something like that.
So him being just a Lieutenant says quite a bit.
Yep. As I recall, Army selection rates for CPT have historically been above 90% since at least the early 1980s. A 1LT had to be the proverbial “piece of work” not to make CPT during the last 30 years.
Shit Stain! Skid Mark!
Beeker Friedman is an embarrassment to JROTC programs everywhere.
Bedwetting punk
Not just a bedwetter, he’s a BOOGER-EATING bedwetter!
Why do I have a feeling that any interview with the men that served under Friedman will have a variant of the phrase “friendly fire is a bitch” when asked about him?
Maybe he’ll befired or maybe he’ll be invited to dinner at the White House. I have no idea, but I do know that if he had suggested that psychopathic leadership is present at HUD or the White House itself, he would have been gone already. See how that works? And what the hell is a Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Is that another lengthy way of saying, “Black, no sugar?”
Not exactly, 2/17 Air Cav. More like a do-little make-work job for a political ally.
The current year edition of the “Plum Book” isn’t yet published. However, the 2012 edition is available in PDF at
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/GPO-PLUMBOOK-2012/pdf/GPO-PLUMBOOK-2012.pdf
There are 3 Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs positions at HUD: Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs (Health Affairs), and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs (Public Health). All are noncareer SES appointments not requiring Senate confirmation. They thus can be (and usually are) filled with political appointees as rewards for past political support, regardless of whether the individual is actually qualified to do the job. No Senate confirmation generally ensures no real public scrutiny of the nominee.
I haven’t ever worked in that environment, but some of my former colleagues in a previous job had. Those colleagues told me that the political appointees pretty much did whatever they wanted, work-related or not, and that the career staff were the ones who “kept the lights on and the doors open for business.”
It’s another way of saying that the only reason he worked at the VA was because Tammy Duckworth brought him in and once she moved on, he lost his benefactor so he took whatever position was available.
Well, seeing as how the only person who’s actually been “Fired” was the Twitter guy, in the White House, that is a fair assessment.
Say something bad about Obama and you get fired, say something bad about anyone without lips affixed to Obama’s or the DNC’s ass and you are defended.
His biography says he was born in 1978. By 2002 he was a lieutenant leading infantry platoons in the early parts of the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq at the seasoned age of what- 23? And you see fit to call him names and denigrate his service? He was apparently out of the Army less than the amount of time in service it normally takes to reach 0-3 pay grade. If the man served in infantry as a lieutenant in two different war theatres, only an asshole would trash him without actual evidence of his shortcomings or misdeeds. I refer not to his remarks about Bergdahl’s unit leaders, but to the fact that people here are trashing him for being a lieutenant in the Infantry of the US Army as if that is something to be ashamed of. I’m sure all of you gossips have service records which are more distinguished than the lowly double CIB wearing lieutenant.
GFY
“I’m sure all of you gossips have service records which are more distinguished than the lowly double CIB wearing lieutenant.”
You probably are correct that many, if not most, of us here had much more distinguished careers than did this clown.
But continue propping him up with silly claims like that double CIB thing. Just makes you look willfully ignorant.
Well, “mike” – let’s do a bit of speculative timeline analysis based on known facts and reasonable assumptions, shall we? Because I’m thinking you didn’t bother to check any facts before commenting above. Friedman’s Wikipedia biography (I’ll refer to him as “Beeker” hereafter) says he graduated from LSU in 2000. It also says he left active duty in 2004. Pre-9/11, getting a commission wasn’t particularly easy (the Army hadn’t begun its post-9/11 wartime expansion). So that means he was very likely in ROTC at college. I’d guess he was probably on a ROTC scholarship. If I recall correctly, 4-year ROTC scholarships have a 4-year active duty service obligation. Serving 4 years is consistent with graduating college in 2000 (probably in May or June), being commissioned shortly thereafter, and leaving active duty in 2004. That means Beeker probably had 4 years of active duty. Post 9/11, the Army reduced the normal time-in-grade for officers to make Captain. Prior to 9/11, making Captain occurred at around 4 years (it reverted to about that length of time last year). However, during the Army’s post 9/11 expansion, more Captains and Majors were needed. During this expansion, time to make Captain was reduced to just over 3 years. Beeker appears to have served 4 years (2000-2004), over half of which occurred after 9/11. If so, it appears he served long enough to pin on Captain had he been selected. And even if his year group (2000) didn’t receive the full benefit of the promotion acceleration to Captain, he certainly would have been considered by his year group’s selection board if he served 4 years on active duty. Beeker loves being in the limelight (remember, he’s in the PR business). He also loves to blow his own horn. He exploits his relatively meager military credentials and experience to bolster his credibility. You tell me: had Beeker been selected for promotion to Captain but turned the promotion down to leave active duty, do you think he’d keep that fact to himself? IMO, there’s no way. He’d trumpet that fact, loudly and publicly, in order to bolster his… Read more »