Trump Chooses Saudi LIV Golf Over Fallen Troops

Summary

Bulwark Takes: Trump Chooses Saudi LIV Golf Over Fallen Troops – Detailed Summary

Release Date: April 4, 2025

In this compelling episode of Bulwark Takes, hosts Sam Stein and Ben Parker delve into the controversial decision by President Donald Trump to prioritize attending a Saudi LIV Golf event over participating in a dignified transfer ceremony for fallen U.S. troops. The discussion interweaves substantive analysis of the tragic incident in Lithuania, Trump's historical stance on military honors, and the broader implications of his actions on national and international fronts.

---

1. Introduction: Trump’s Controversial Absence

The episode opens with Sam Stein highlighting President Trump’s absence from a dignified transfer ceremony commemorating four U.S. troops who perished in a training accident in Lithuania. Instead of attending the solemn event, Trump opted to engage in activities at his golf club in Florida, including negotiating a settlement between the PGA and LIV Golf, and hosting a high-profile fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago.

Quote:

Sam Stein: “[Trump] is at his golf club... trying to negotiate a settlement between the PGA golf and live golf to warring factions in the golf wars. He also has a, I believe, a fundraiser tonight at Mar a Lago, a million dollar per person fundraiser tonight in Mar a Lago.”
(00:00)

Stein criticizes the optics of Trump’s choice, labeling it as "repulsive" and raising questions about his priorities, especially during a period of national mourning.

---

2. The Tragic Incident in Lithuania

Ben Parker provides a detailed account of the Atlantic Resolve training exercise in Lithuania, emphasizing the collaborative efforts between U.S. forces and their Estonian, Polish, and Lithuanian allies. The mission, aimed at demonstrating readiness to defend against potential threats, tragically resulted in the deaths of four American soldiers when their recovery vehicle sank into a mudhole.

Quote:

Ben Parker: “So this was a unit originally based out of Georgia that had rotated through to do exercises in Lithuania... The four of them lost their lives in this training accident. Just a freak thing.”
(01:16)

Parker underscores the emotional toll on the families, particularly noting that one of the fallen soldiers left behind seven children. He also highlights the Lithuanian President's heartfelt message during a vigil, contrasting it with Trump’s lack of presence.

Quote:

Ben Parker: “It almost seems like the president of Lithuania is taking this more seriously than the President of the United States.”
(03:00)

---

3. Trump’s Historical Stance on Dignified Transfers

The conversation shifts to Trump’s past behavior regarding dignified transfers. Stein recounts that during his first presidency, Trump attended a similar ceremony but faced criticism, leading him to refrain from participating in subsequent ones. Instead, Vice President Mike Pence and other officials took on these solemn duties.

Quote:

Sam Stein: “In his first presidency, he attended a dignified transfer. He was criticized for it... he decided he was never going to do it again.”
(03:00)

Ben Parker adds context by recalling an earlier incident where Trump’s insensitive remarks towards a fallen soldier’s family further illustrate his contentious relationship with military honors.

Quote:

Ben Parker: “He called the widow and said, well, he knew what he signed up for... he called American war dead suckers and losers.”
(04:05)

---

4. Criticism of Trump’s Priorities and Optics

Stein elaborates on the negative perceptions surrounding Trump’s decision to focus on golf and business ventures amid national crises. He draws parallels to historical figures, likening Trump’s behavior to "Fiddling while Rome burns," suggesting a blatant disregard for critical national issues.

Quote:

Sam Stein: “…it's kind of an unsettling image of a president caring more about golf than these real world moments. Kind of a Nero. A little Nero. Ish.”
(05:31)

The hosts discuss Trump's financial interests in LIV Golf, indicating potential conflicts of interest and questioning his commitment to national duty over personal gain.

Quote:

Sam Stein: “...he does have a financial stake in Live. Live hosts golf tournaments at his club. So he does have a desire personally to make sure that this goes through.”
(06:10)

Ben Parker suggests that Trump might be prioritizing his relationship with Saudi Arabia and his friend Mohammed bin Salman, which could undermine U.S. interests.

---

5. Comparison with Joe Biden’s Dignified Transfer

Stein contrasts President Trump’s actions with those of former President Joe Biden, who faced ridicule for his own dignified transfer ceremony. Biden was criticized for appearing disengaged during the event, leading to a flurry of Republican attacks and mockery. Stein highlights the irony of Republicans' harsh criticism of Democrats for their handling of dignified ceremonies, while Trump himself neglects these duties.

Quote:

Sam Stein: “Republicans have been outwardly critical of Democrats for not being properly dignified at the dignified transfer. And yet Trump doesn't even show that.”
(07:32)

He references a Republican ad that parodies Biden’s watch-checking moment at Dover, further illustrating the polarized political environment surrounding military honors.

Quote:

Sam Stein: “There’s an ad that Donald Trump allies ran in which they spotlighted that moment from Biden at Dover, checking his watch.”
(07:59)

---

6. The Implications of Trump’s Approach

The hosts explore the broader implications of Trump's dismissive attitude towards dignified transfers. They discuss how his nonchalant behavior during national tragedies could set a concerning precedent for presidential responsibilities and national sentiment.

Quote:

Sam Stein: “If you just act nonchalantly about it. If you just say, I don't give a fuck, then it doesn't really hurt.”
(09:22)

Ben Parker reflects on Trump’s ability to maintain a loyal base despite these controversies, suggesting that his disregard for traditional presidential duties may resonate with his supporters.

Quote:

Ben Parker: “His superpower is that he gets people to hold him to the standards he sets for himself rather than the standards that everyone else has to live by.”
(09:36)

---

7. Conclusion: Assessing the Landscape

In their concluding remarks, Stein and Parker assess the current political landscape, pondering the ramifications of a president who prioritizes personal interests over national responsibilities. They express concern over the potential erosion of respect for ceremonial duties and the message it sends to both allies and adversaries.

Quote:

Sam Stein: “It is a presidential duty like that. This is, I mean, it should be, frankly, this is the highest, you know, it's one of the highest responsibilities and burdens of the Commander in chief.”
(08:42)

The episode wraps up with a reaffirmation of the importance of dignified transfers and a call for leaders to uphold these solemn traditions, ensuring that the sacrifices of fallen soldiers are appropriately honored.

---

Final Thoughts

This episode of Bulwark Takes offers a critical examination of President Trump’s priorities in the wake of a national tragedy, juxtaposing his actions with the gravity of military honors. Through insightful dialogue and poignant quotes, Stein and Parker underscore the tension between personal interests and presidential duties, prompting listeners to reflect on the broader implications for leadership and national respect.

---

Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

• Sam Stein (00:00): “Trump... is at his golf club... trying to negotiate a settlement between the PGA golf and live golf to warring factions in the golf wars.”

• Ben Parker (01:16): “This was a unit originally based out of Georgia that had rotated through to do exercises in Lithuania... The four of them lost their lives in this training accident.”

• Ben Parker (03:00): “It almost seems like the president of Lithuania is taking this more seriously than the President of the United States.”

• Sam Stein (05:31): “…it's kind of an unsettling image of a president caring more about golf than these real world moments. Kind of a Nero. A little Nero. Ish.”

• Sam Stein (07:32): “Republicans have been outwardly critical of Democrats for not being properly dignified at the dignified transfer. And yet Trump doesn't even show that.”

• Ben Parker (09:36): “His superpower is that he gets people to hold him to the standards he sets for himself rather than the standards that everyone else has to live by.”

• Sam Stein (08:42): “This is, I mean, it should be, frankly, this is the highest... responsibility and burdens of the Commander in chief.”

---

Subscribe to Bulwark Takes for more in-depth analyses and insightful discussions on the latest news and political developments.

Transcript

[Sam Stein]

Hey, guys, it's me, Sam Stein, managing editor at the Bulwark. I'm joined by Ben Parker, one of the great cogs in the machinery over here. We're here to talk about the dignified transfer that is happening, sadly, Today, Friday, involving four U.S. troops who died in a training exercise in Lithuania. The reason we're talking about is that Donald Trump, President United States, is not attending. Donald Trump will be down in Florida. He's at his golf club, I believe, right now. It is reported that he's going to be at an event and trying to, I guess, negotiate a settlement between the PGA golf and live golf to warring factions in the golf wars. He also has a, I believe, a fundraiser tonight at Mar a Lago, a million dollar per person fundraiser tonight in Mar a Lago. And frankly, it's kind of repulsive, honestly, from a, from a standpoint of optics, let's put it that way. Ben, let's start with what happened in Lithuania, because I don't want that to get lost in our discussion about why Trump is doing what he's doing. You've edited a couple pieces on this, including one from Mark Hertling, which I recommend that people read, but go through the circumstances in what transpired in this training exercise.

[Ben Parker]

Yeah, General Mark Hertling has a piece on the site, recommend everyone read it, goes through the details of exactly what happened. He even has some pictures that people sent him really worth taking a look at. So we train very often with our allies. They're still our allies, especially in Europe. This exercise was called Atlantic Resolve. It's designed to show that we are ready and willing to fight with our allies if need be. So this was a unit originally based out of Georgia that had rotated through to do exercises in Lithuania. At this training ground, they were three expert mechanics and an artilleryman who had been called in the middle of the night to go fix a broken down truck. Simplest thing in the world, happens all the time. They're driving down this road and what looks like a big puddle turns out to be a sinkhole. And their recovery vehicle that they're, the four of them are in sinks down into this unbelievable mud hole. And they all four lost their lives in this training accident. Just a freak thing. The story that hurtling tells of all the effort that not only Americans, but also our Estonian allies and our Polish allies and our Lithuanian allies went through to recover the remains of these four soldiers, who among them have seven children who will now grow up without fathers. It's really an incredible story. It's, it's tear Jerking. One of the details he includes is that there was a vigil at the center, the central Cathedral in Vilnius, Lithuania, and the president of Lithuania sent a message to the mass they were holding his personal message about the brotherhood of the Lithuanian American people and how close we are. And it almost seems like the president of Lithuania is taking this more seriously than the President of the United States.

[Sam Stein]

Yeah. Well, so that. Let's get to Trump then, because there is some history here. In his first presidency, he attended a dignified transfer. He was criticized for it, and as contemporaneous reporting has it, he just decided he was never going to do it again. And I don't think he's attended another one during his first presidency. I believe Mike Pence used to go to them. I'd have to double check on that stuff. But obviously, that's, you know, turned over into his second term here, where this is the first time where there will be a dignified transfer at Dover. And he's decided, you know what? I'm just not gonna go. And there's a little bit of pressure on him, a little bit of criticism, frankly. Not that, um, I'm kind of curious about it.

[Ben Parker]

There's more history here, too. I mean, you remember early in his first term, there was a camera, if it was a Navy SEAL or an Army Ranger, a member of the Special Forces who was killed in an Africa, I think, in Niger.

[Sam Stein]

Yes.

[Ben Parker]

And he called the widow and said, well, he knew what he signed up for. Right, Right. And this is the same guy who called American war dead suckers and losers. And when he was a plan planning a military parade, he said, don't include any wounded veterans because, quote, no one wants to see that. I mean, there's a lot of history here. It shouldn't be surprising that he doesn't see it as a fitting part of his job. He doesn't want to be around people who've given the ultimate sacrifice.

[Sam Stein]

Yeah. I'm reading a piece from the HuffPost in 2020. It says Bill Owens, the father of William Ryan Owens, refused to shake Trump's hand at a February 1, 2017, encounter, and then told Trump that he was responsible for his son's death for approving raid in Yemen without bothering to understand the risks. Quote, he refused to go back for two years. He was so rat, an aide said, adding that the main reason Trump had approved the raid just five days after taking office was that his predecessor, Barack Obama, had refused to do so. What's more, Trump made the decision at a social dinner that included his son in law and top advisor Jared Kushner and then chief strategist Steve Bannon. In this case, though, there's the added sort of optics of the fact that, you know, he's doing this live golf deal, he's at his own club. And then the market, of course, is completely crashing around him because this trade tariffs regime that he's put in place. And so you have this kind of unsettling image of a president caring more about golf than these real world moments. Kind of a Nero. A little Nero. Ish.

[Ben Parker]

Yeah. Fiddling while Rome burns. And it's. It's not just that he's playing golf. He is helping.

[Sam Stein]

We don't know. Just to be clear, he hasn't. He hasn't taken out the sticks yet. I. I don't know if he's going to go that far. You're right.

[Ben Parker]

He might not even play golf. He might be there for the sole purpose of helping the Saudis and his friend Mohammed bin Salman. He's.

[Sam Stein]

And he hash there. He has a financial stake and Live. Just. This is the other element of it. Like, we get. It's like there's three different layers, maybe four or five. He does have a financial stake and Live. Live hosts golf tournaments at his club. So he does have a desire personally to make sure that this goes through.

[Ben Parker]

And Liv wants to take over the pga. Right. Or at least. Or at least display.

[Sam Stein]

They want. They want a. They want a alliance that it's kind of a. It's tough to figure out who would run it, but clearly live would have some investments and profit from it.

[Ben Parker]

Yeah, they want an alliance. Kind of like. Kind of like Putin wants an alliance with Ukraine and Trump's trying to negotiate that, too. It's probably going just about as well.

[Sam Stein]

Sure.

[Ben Parker]

So, yeah, this is, this is what's occupying him while. While he has all these other important things to attend to.

[Sam Stein]

I know we do this a lot, but I don't tire doing it. But the whole, like, imagine if this happened to another person. It doesn't take that much to imagine another president doing something. Well, it actually does take a lot, but it doesn't take much to imagine how Republicans react if another president did this. Because for months, if not years, Joe Biden was ridiculed for going to a dignified chance. We actually went. This was after the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan and for being caught checking his watch twice. The. The Republican National Committee hammered him relentlessly for it. I'll put up a tweet after the fact that they posted where they wondered if he would ever go back to another dignified transfer because it was such a humiliation the first time. And then there's this ad that Donald Trump allies ran in which they spotlighted that moment from Biden at Dover, checking his watch. Take a look.

[Donald Trump]

As commander in chief, he always had his soldiers backs, was always there to support them and their families. He kept his promise to keep them out of endless wars and to never forget about them after they served. America learned having a weak leader can tragically lead to American deaths, which is why America needs strength now more than ever.

[Sam Stein]

I'm Donald J. Trump and I approve this message. Obviously, there's no shame in politics, but it is one of those cases where it's like, imagine if someone else did it. And you don't have to imagine because first of all, no one else would go and do a live deal during this. But we know that Republicans have been outwardly critical of Democrats for not being properly dignified at the dignified transfer. And yet Trump doesn't even show that.

[Ben Parker]

Yeah, and look, I mean, I can, I can see arguments where it would be fine if he didn't want to do this and if he thought, you know, it's, the Vice President can do it, the Secretary's defense can.

[Sam Stein]

Hexseth is going to do it this time, for what it's worth.

[Ben Parker]

Yeah, totally fine. If, and if the President wants to make that his policy, that, like, it doesn't have to be a presidential duty. I don't think that's. But it's the fact, like, oh, what.

[Sam Stein]

What'S more important that you're doing. But why, why? Yes, but let's, let's, let's untangle that part.

[Ben Parker]

Right.

[Sam Stein]

It is a presidential duty like that. This is, I mean, it should be, frankly, this is the highest, you know, it's one of the highest responsibilities and burdens of the Commander in chief. And if you can't do that, I kind of think that that should come with the job. But that's just me.

[Ben Parker]

I don't have strong feelings. Like, I think if the President says, like, you know, I can foresee situations in which he says, like, I'm engaged in a different high level negotiation or I'm. There are other things that are more important that I just have to do right now. Live the other. Right, exactly. For Trump, the other thing is golf and it's a deal for the Saudis. Right. And it's, and it's, it's kind of.

[Sam Stein]

Crazy hanging out in Florida. It is kind of wild that he's just doing it. And he doesn't give a. Like, he just doesn't. We're in this place where he just doesn't give a shit. And there's something to it. It's like, if you just don't give a shit, maybe the laws of political gravity don't apply.

[Ben Parker]

Well, that sort of seems like. Yeah, he. He gets people. His. His superpower is that he gets people to hold him to the standards he sets for himself rather than the standards that everyone else has to live by.

[Sam Stein]

But maybe that's the. Maybe that's the future. It's like, if you just act nonchalantly about it. If you just say, I don't give a fuck, then it doesn't really hurt.

[Ben Parker]

You, just hurts everyone else. Yeah. Great. Thanks.

[Sam Stein]

Cool.

[Ben Parker]

Sam, thanks.

[Sam Stein]

Well, I'm just. Look, I'm just assessing the landscape. I'm not saying I like it. All right. Ben Varger, thank you so much, man. Really appreciate it. As always, subscribe to the feed. We appreciate that, too. Take care.