NY Post baselessly claimed that Obama "broke his promise" to military family "when he mentioned" soldier's name during debate
SUMMARY: The New York Post reported that "Barack Obama apparently broke his promise to the family of a fallen Wisconsin soldier when he mentioned the slain sergeant's name in his Friday debate with Sen. John McCain." The article added that "Brian Jopek, the father of the late Ryan David Jopek, told National Public Radio in March that the family asked Obama to stop wearing his son's bracelet, but the Illinois senator continued to do so." However, the Post provided no evidence that Obama ever "promise[d]" the Jopek family that he would "stop wearing" Ryan Jopek's bracelet. In fact, during the March 20 interview, Brian Jopek made no such claim.
In a September 29 article, the New York Post reported that "Barack Obama apparently broke his promise to the family of a fallen Wisconsin soldier when he mentioned the slain sergeant's name in his Friday debate with Sen. John McCain." The article added that "Brian Jopek, the father of the late Ryan David Jopek, told National Public Radio in March that the family asked Obama to stop wearing his son's bracelet, but the Illinois senator continued to do so." However, the Post provided no evidence that Obama ever "promise[d]" the Jopek family that he would "stop wearing" Ryan Jopek's bracelet. In fact, during the March 20 interview with Wisconsin Public Radio, Brian Jopek made no such claim. Further, according to the Associated Press, "After Tracy Jopek gave Sen. Barack Obama a bracelet in honor of her son who was killed in Iraq," she "e-mailed the Obama campaign through its Web site asking that he not mention it during debates or speeches" but "never got a reply."
Moreover, the Post did not mention until the eighth paragraph that Tracy Jopek and her daughter -- Ryan's sister -- were reportedly not upset over Obama's mention of Ryan Jopek's bracelet: "Tracy, who has been divorced from [Brian] Jopek for six years, said Obama's mention of her son in the debate was OK because he was responding to McCain, who first brought up that he was wearing a soldier's 'hero bracelet.' Tracy, who backs Obama, said she was 'ecstatic' that the Illinois senator had used her son's name and did not believe he was doing so for political purposes."
During the September 26 debate, McCain asserted that in August 2007 at "a town hall meeting in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, ... a woman stood up and she said, 'Senator McCain, I want you to do me the honor of wearing a bracelet with my son's name on it.' ... And then she said, 'But, Senator McCain, I want you to do everything -- promise me one thing, that you'll do everything in your power to make sure that my son's death was not in vain.' " McCain added: "That means that that mission succeeds, just like those young people who re-enlisted in Baghdad, just like the mother I met at the airport the other day whose son was killed. And they all say to me that we don't want defeat." In response, Obama stated:
I've got a bracelet, too, from Sergeant -- from the mother of Sergeant Ryan David Jopek, given to me in Green Bay. She asked me, can you please make sure another mother is not going through what I'm going through.
No U.S. soldier ever dies in vain because they're carrying out the missions of their commander in chief. And we honor all the service that they've provided. Our troops have performed brilliantly. The question is for the next president, are we making good judgments about how to keep America safe precisely because sending our military into battle is such an enormous step.
The AP reported on September 28 that Tracy Jopek "gave Obama the bracelet at a Green Bay rally in February." But a "few days" later, she "had a change of heart" and "realized it could be interpreted as a protest against the war, a statement that made her uncomfortable because other military families who suffered losses still supported the conflict." The article added: "So she e-mailed the Obama campaign through its Web site asking that he not mention it during debates or speeches. She never got a reply but said she didn't hear of him mentioning it after that -- until Friday, when Obama and Republican Sen. John McCain appeared in their first debate." The AP reported further: "Obama's comment sparked a number of angry comments from bloggers who suggested Obama was exploiting her son's death to score political points. Jopek said those bloggers might have heard comments that her son's father made on Wisconsin Public Radio on March 20." During the interview, Brian Jopek, who is a staff sergeant in the National Guard, reportedly claimed that "his ex-wife asked Obama not to wear the bracelet at any further public appearances. But Obama was still apparently wearing it, he said." However, according to the AP, "Tracy Jopek said she didn't hear the interview but that her ex-husband, who is currently stationed in Cuba, mischaracterized her viewpoint.' ... I think he knew my intention, he understands it was a gesture between me and Sen. Obama,' she said. 'It was just little piece of peace for us. I don't understand how people can take that and turn it into some garbage on the Internet.' "
Also, the subhead of the Post article read "GI's Kin Irked Over Bracelet." But other than citing Brian Jopek's March 20 remarks, the article provided no evidence that Jopek family members had been "irked" by Obama's mention of Ryan Jopek. Indeed, the Post reported that Brian "Jopek could not be reached for comment. His stepdaughter, Morgan, said he is with the military in Cuba," and cited Tracey and Jessica Jopek's support of Obama's actions.
From the September 29 New York Post article, headlined "Bam's Bangle Bungle: GI's Kin Irked Over Bracelet":
Barack Obama apparently broke his promise to the family of a fallen Wisconsin soldier when he mentioned the slain sergeant's name in his Friday debate with John McCain.
Brian Jopek, the father of the late Ryan David Jopek, told National Public Radio in March that the family asked Obama to stop wearing his son's bracelet, but the Illinois senator continued to do so.
Jopek said his ex-wife, Tracy, was upset that Obama had made her son's death a campaign issue.
In the March 20 NPR interview, Jopek, who lives in Madison, said his ex-wife had e-mailed Obama, asking him not to wear the bracelet.
"She has turned down any subsequent interviews with the media because she just didn't want it to get turned into something that it wasn't. She had told me in an e-mail that she had asked, actually asked Mr. Obama to not wear the bracelet any more at any of his public appearances," he said.
"But, the other night, I was watching the news, and he was on, uh, speaking somewhere, and he was still wearing it on his right wrist. I could see it on his right wrist. So . . . that's a choice that he continues to wear it despite Tracy asking him not to."
Jopek could not be reached for comment. His stepdaughter, Morgan, said he is with the military in Cuba.
But Tracy, who has been divorced from Jopek for six years, said Obama's mention of her son in the debate was OK because he was responding to McCain, who first brought up that he was wearing a soldier's "hero bracelet."
Tracy, who backs Obama, said she was "ecstatic" that the Illinois senator had used her son's name and did not believe he was doing so for political purposes.
Her daughter, Jessica, who is Ryan's sister, told The Post: "When Obama used it after McCain mentioned it, that was fine. We're very happy with his response. It was the perfect response."
Uh, technically the NYP is wrong, but so is Obama and that's even worse. This is erroneous reporting, but I don't see how this qualifies as conservative misinformation.
After actually reading through the article, I don't think Obama did anything wrong. The mom emailed a campaign website expecting a reply. The chances of that happening are miniscule, considering the volume of mail they reserve per day. Even if she included her name and that she was related to a fallen soldier in Iraq in the subjecdt line, it could still get easily ignored. I'm sure she's not the only to email Obama.
Then there's the fact that Obama mentioned the young man's name in response to McCain, who actually brought the subject up.
The biggest wrong is to think that more soldiers should be injured or killed because someone doesn't want their son's death "to be in vain." As a matter of fact, the U.S. already "won" the war. There is nothing to "win" in an occupation.
McCain suffered horribly as a prisoner of war but still thinks Vietnam was "winnable." This is the ugly sin of pride and arrogance that some people in this country have yet to learn.
Pride and arrogance are his great failings. As experienced as he claims to be, he doesn't understand that Vietnam was not winnable and we did not lose. The same will be said for Iraq.
In Vietnam, and hopefully Iraq, we will have won most of the engagements with the enemy. Lost or losing, as McCain imagines it, implies being defeated.
In Vietnam we came to our senses. The nation as a whole decided that they'd no longer send their sons and daughters to fight and die for something that was never explained to the nation.
Hopefully, we'll come to our senses this time too.
Amen to that, bro.
here's a suggestion. if you do not wish your soldier's name brought before the public, do not give a bracelet with their name to a major politician. seems elementary, but apparently not.
Okay, so the report was baseless.
How about we look at the bigger story… the family would now like Barack O to stop wearing the bracelet as they believe Barack’s using it as an anti-war protest and she finds that ‘uncomfortable’.
How about we tell that story?
Why? Because you want to?
The bigger story is that idiots like you cancel my vote.
Practically, you will not cancel my vote, if you live in Utah or Texas.
If you don't, please move there.
Practically, you will not cancel my vote, if you live in Utah or Texas.
He would cancel MY vote if he moved to Texas. I say he should move to Idaho - he'd be right at home with the ultra-right wackos out there.
Actually, the only way anybody can cancel anybody elses vote is if two people get a half vote each. (or with repuglican vote caging, but thats another story) If you get one whole vote (heh,heh) it can't be "cancelled" by someone voting for somebody else.
By "the family" you mean the ex-husband don't you? The mother who gave the bracelet had no problem with Obama mentioning the fact that it was given too him as it showed that not all family members of US service people agreed with the war, which is what McCain was trying to claim during the debate.
Yes, we saw the debate over here too.
That story is baseless too, according to the article, so I'm not sure why you think it would be better to look at that "bigger story".
Who cares what the former husband wants? He's divorced, and if I'm not mistaken, the divorce happened before the son died in Iraq. That deadbeat dad didn't care about his family until now? He was probably offered money for his opinion...
Who cares what the former husband wants?
Well, apparently Barack doesn't care what Ryan’s father wants.
Nice manipulation though; you know, calling him the husband, divorced, and deadbeat while all the while failing to point out he’s the boy’s father.
Intellectual dishonesty at its best.
So you don't care about the boy's MOTHER?
Once again, you demonstrate the flaws you accuse your opponents of having. You're pathetic.
I think it was exploitative and wrong for John McCain to bring up a dead soldier by name in the first place. McCain was attempting to use the individual dead soldier to show wider support for the Iraq war. Obama was placed in a no-win situation of having to show that not every family of a slain soldier necessarily believes in the war.