188 - ATF Director, Medal Of Honor Recipient And Also Clint Romesha | Unsubscribe Podcast Ep 188

Summary

Unsubscribe Podcast Episode 188: ATF Director, Medal of Honor Recipient Clint Romesha

Release Date: November 25, 2024

---

Episode Overview

In Episode 188 of the Unsubscribe Podcast, hosts Eli Doubletap, Brandon Herrera, Donut Operator, and guest Clint Romesha—a distinguished Medal of Honor recipient—delve deep into Clint's harrowing yet inspiring military experiences, his journey to receiving the nation's highest military honor, and his ongoing commitment to supporting fellow veterans. The episode masterfully balances intense storytelling with moments of levity, reflecting the camaraderie and resilience inherent in both military service and friendship.

Clint Romesha's Military Background

Clint Romesha begins by recounting his decision to join the U.S. Army in 1999. Hailing from a small town in Northern California, Clint was motivated by a desire to escape the mundanity of farm life inherited from his father, a Vietnam veteran. Despite his family's rich military history—including a World War II combat engineer grandfather and brothers serving in various branches—Clint was driven by personal ambition rather than tradition.

Clint Romesha [04:25]: "I was tired of just milking cows and digging fence posts. Joining the Army was my way of seeing the world and making something of myself."

The Battle of Kop Keating

Clint's pivotal experience unfolded on October 3rd during the Battle of Kop Keating in Afghanistan. Serving as a senior scout and acting platoon sergeant, Clint led a small contingent of American and Latvian soldiers against overwhelming Taliban forces. Isolated and outnumbered, Clint and his men faced a brutal 15-hour firefight that would test their limits of endurance and leadership.

Clint Romesha [07:00]: "With the help of 50 other Americans and two Latvian soldiers, we pushed through a 15-hour firefight after almost being overrun."

Medal of Honor Recommendation and Reception

Initially nominated for the Distinguished Service Cross by his commander, Clint never anticipated an upgrade to the Medal of Honor. Two years after leaving the Army, while working in the oil fields of North Dakota, Clint received a call from Colonel Davis G.1 of the Pentagon informing him of the prestigious recommendation. Overwhelmed and initially embarrassed, Clint grappled with the recognition, feeling that the true heroes were his fallen comrades.

Clint Romesha [08:20]: "It's for those, not for me. I'm always humbled to say that."

Upon traveling to Washington, D.C., Clint was formally informed of his Medal of Honor. The ceremony, filled with esteemed military leaders, underscored the gravity and honor of the award.

Clint Romesha [14:06]: "I got told I was recommended for an upgrade to the Medal of Honor. It was one of the worst but best days of my life."

Leadership and Camaraderie in Combat

Throughout the battle, Clint emphasized the unwavering support and bravery of his unit. Despite being pinned down by relentless enemy fire and facing dire circumstances, the bond among the soldiers remained unbreakable. Clint highlights the importance of leadership decisions made under extreme pressure, such as calling in artillery strikes to provide cover for wounded comrades.

Clint Romesha [44:20]: "You have to make tough choices. Even a bad choice is better than no choice."

Clint also reflects on the valor of his fellow soldiers, particularly Brad Larson and others, whose actions were pivotal in the fight. He expresses deep respect and humility, recognizing that the Medal of Honor, while a personal accolade, represents the collective bravery of his entire unit.

Clint Romesha [43:46]: "Hard to accept it was because of their recommendations. Those guys are the true heroes."

Post-Military Life and Supporting Veterans

After retiring from the Army, Clint became actively involved with the America Warrior Partnership (AWP) in Augusta, Georgia. AWP focuses on reducing veteran suicides by building strong, supportive communities and addressing the multifaceted challenges veterans face, including mental health, financial struggles, and navigating the Veterans Affairs system.

Clint Romesha [131:52]: "AWP has been amazing with building relationships, advocating for veterans, and collaborating with local communities to solve problems at the grassroots level."

Clint underscores the importance of peer support among veterans, sharing that maintaining connections within his unit has been crucial in preventing suicides and ensuring that no veteran feels isolated.

Clint Romesha [138:16]: "Maintaining those communications and building those relationships is key because you can't just show up and expect to solve all problems."

Humorous Interludes and Running Jokes

Interspersed throughout the episode are humorous segments where the hosts engage in playful banter and running jokes, particularly revolving around Brandon Herrera's mock "Medal of Honor." These light-hearted moments provide a refreshing contrast to Clint's intense narratives, showcasing the podcast's dynamic and personable nature.

Brandon Herrera [28:35]: "It's a joke that went way too far. I now have three Medals of Honor, 42 Purple Hearts, and a couple of Iron Crosses."

Conclusion and Fundraising Efforts

As the episode concludes, the hosts shift focus to their fundraising efforts, proudly announcing that they have raised $72,000 for veteran nonprofits through merchandise sales. They reassure listeners that 100% of proceeds from specific items, such as their "undiagnosed" shirt, go directly to supporting veterans. Clint emphasizes the impact of community support during Veterans Month and encourages continuous contributions to amplify their efforts.

Eli Doubletap [01:36]: "Thank you all. Let’s keep kicking ass and supporting our veterans."

Clint leaves listeners with a heartfelt message about the enduring bonds of military service and the importance of mutual support in overcoming personal and collective challenges.

Clint Romesha [141:20]: "It's better to be here and suffering than being gone without your battle buddies having a chance to help."

---

Notable Quotes

• Clint Romesha [07:00]: "We pushed out a 15-hour firefight after almost being overrun."
• Clint Romesha [14:06]: "I got told I was recommended for an upgrade to the Medal of Honor. It was one of the worst but best days of my life."
• Clint Romesha [43:46]: "It's for those, not for me. I'm always humbled to say that."
• Clint Romesha [138:16]: "Building those relationships is key because you can't just expect to solve all problems."

Final Thoughts

Episode 188 of the Unsubscribe Podcast offers an unfiltered and profound glimpse into the life of a Medal of Honor recipient. Clint Romesha's stories of bravery, leadership, and dedication not only honor his service but also highlight the ongoing struggles and support systems essential for veterans. Through heartfelt dialogue and genuine camaraderie, the episode serves as both an inspiring tribute and a call to action for listeners to support those who have served.

Transcript

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, damn.

[Brandon Herrera]

No, no.

[Clint Romesha]

I just remember calling back to Gregory and I'm like, you guys have got to move and you got to move now. I cannot hold this position.

[Eli Double Tap]

Sand, you're really strong.

[Brandon Herrera]

I would love to see what kind of you gotta do to get a medal of honor in the Space Force, you alien.

[Eli Double Tap]

Do you want to pull it out real quick?

[Brandon Herrera]

You want him to whip it out on the podcast?

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, yeah, whip that out.

[Brandon Herrera]

Didn't see this podcast going this direction.

[Clint Romesha]

Man, if I'm being perfectly honest.

[Eli Double Tap]

What's up everyone? Holy freaking mother of God. We are at, we'll just say $72,000 in money raised for veteran nonprofits. I'm just truly thankful for being able to do this. And that is because of this amazing community we are. $72,000 to go to three amazing nonprofits, veteran nonprofits. And it's all thanks to you all. So thank you so freaking much. And that is from the entire team. It is a blessing to be able to do something like this or for autism or for anything that we want to make a difference in. And that is such an impactful, amazing thing. So thank you from the bottom of all our hearts. Let's blow this out of the water. Let's just keep kicking ass. Let's keep these cells going for Veterans month. And again, 100% of this one, which you all love that shirt. And undiagnosed, 100% of proceeds are going towards those veteran nonprofits. And then a percentage of everything on store will also be going towards those amazing nonprofits. And we have Turkey Day coming up for some amazing sales which will be automatically applied for this stuff.

[Clint Romesha]

So.

[Eli Double Tap]

Thank you all. Thank you so freaking much. I hope each and every one of you know how amazing you are and the that difference you guys and gals make in individuals lives through just that community based aspect of hanging out, talking, interacting with each other, being able to see that in person is one of the greatest gifts you guys could have given us. So thank you so freaking much. And now for one of the big episodes with Mr. Clint Ro. Love y'all, dude. Oh, I'm so happy you're here. We haven't got hang out in so long. So long I forget you existed. We've told many of stories about you angry cops wearing your met.

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh God, I forgot about that.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah.

[Clint Romesha]

Wait, didn't it break on him? Probably I threw it at someone. Well, it was already broken, but I didn't tell him that. And I hum, chucked it at him. We made fun of him so much. He fucking Broke it.

[Donut Operator]

You broke that one.

[Brandon Herrera]

That was basically my introduction to you was chucking the metal at me. I'm like, oh, God.

[Clint Romesha]

Oh, God.

[Brandon Herrera]

I think I physically started sweating.

[Clint Romesha]

I don't know if you can emotionally sweat. Can you?

[Brandon Herrera]

I was gonna figure out a way.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, I'm so excited. We're so excited. Cody, you wanna kick this? Oh, wait, we gotta do this first. Ready, Everyone get your can. You gotta pop it at 3, 2, 1. Ready? Hold it up. To the mic, to the mic. 3, 2, 1.

[Donut Operator]

Hi, everyone. Welcome to the unsubscribed podcast. I'm joined today by Eli Double Tap, Clint Ro, Brandon Herrera, myself, donut operator. We love you and we're happy you're here.

[Brandon Herrera]

What's up?

[Eli Double Tap]

Well, this might. It was one of the last episodes for the Veterans Day month, so the way to do this one.

[Clint Romesha]

Our boy.

[Eli Double Tap]

Our boy. And Brandon, thank you.

[Brandon Herrera]

I love how you.

[Eli Double Tap]

Brandon.

[Brandon Herrera]

You'Re embarrassing me in front of the wizard.

[Eli Double Tap]

Do. Even so, I know this is an episode where it's like, fuck, do it. Oh, God. It's an honor. And then a nightmare at the same time.

[Brandon Herrera]

It's like, oh, this is going to be a really cool podcast. Also, Eli. Eli's going to make this awful.

[Eli Double Tap]

Started as a joke.

[Brandon Herrera]

It took you two minutes.

[Eli Double Tap]

Full circle. Here we are. We're gonna close this chapter after this amazing episode on this joke, the Forced Valor saga. Dude. Our live tour is called Force Valor or Stone Valor. Sorry, I don't.

[Clint Romesha]

I thought it was one of the.

[Donut Operator]

Things forced or stolen?

[Eli Double Tap]

Stolen. Next. That's the third. We'll do Force the third.

[Clint Romesha]

Man.

[Eli Double Tap]

How. Okay, introduce yourself. So all the beautiful people out there that might not know who you are.

[Clint Romesha]

I'm Clint. I drink bush light.

[Donut Operator]

Oh.

[Brandon Herrera]

Name one interesting. Name one interesting fact about yourself. Do you. What instrument do you play?

[Donut Operator]

Bush light.

[Clint Romesha]

The bush bush light. The bush light. It kind of goes like this.

[Donut Operator]

All right. Thank God Nick is back in town.

[Eli Double Tap]

Jeez. I haven't had a bush light, dude.

[Donut Operator]

Right.

[Clint Romesha]

It's been 48 hours since my last bush light, but that's because I was out in Philadelphia and they don't really have them out there.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, I'm sorry. What? You are right now on tour. I don't even know where to start. This is. Okay. So long. I met you. How long ago?

[Clint Romesha]

2018, 2017 Would it have been? I'm trying to remember the first time we did meet official. Was it on range 15? Maybe?

[Eli Double Tap]

Actually, that might have actually been.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, that's. What. I still didn't realize what all this interweb stuff was.

[Eli Double Tap]

And still to this day, you are a true. You literally just live out in North Dakota.

[Clint Romesha]

Still mine out North Dakota. Went up there, got out of the army chasing oil fields, thinking this is going to be my life. Because I was out for two years. I was out for two years before I even got that call. And I'm sitting there in the oil field one day, minding my own business, and I get this call on my cell phone, look down and it's like, oh, it looks like a telemarketer number. I'm a field safety specialist at the time. So I'm like, I got time to kill. I'm going to around with this guy and I answer it and all of a sudden it's, this is Colonel Davis G.1 of the Pentagon. It's like, oh, fuck, what'd they do?

[Brandon Herrera]

First off, what did I do?

[Clint Romesha]

She's lying.

[Donut Operator]

The war crimes are coming back.

[Clint Romesha]

It's like statue of limitations should be up.

[Brandon Herrera]

No, you have the wrong number.

[Eli Double Tap]

He switches to that voice.

[Brandon Herrera]

Mr. Clinton.

[Clint Romesha]

No, you get the Windex?

[Brandon Herrera]

No, no, Lemon.

[Eli Double Tap]

Colonel's just looking at his phone like the.

[Clint Romesha]

What is this stuff? No, I mean, I, you know, did 12 years in the army, joined in 99, just like a lot of guys did back then. And in the course of that, did three, three deployments. Two to Iraq, one to Afghanistan. Afghanistan 09, October 3rd, Battle of Kop Keating. From there. We had a little bit of a hectic day that day, to say the least. But with the help of the 50 other Americans, the two Latvian soldiers, and 15 hour firefight after getting almost overran, pushed out. And for the actions of that day, I got, I don't know if it's nominated or recommended but for the Medal of Honor, which is again, something you don't ever wake up thinking you're gonna try to achieve. Go do it. Just. I'll be honest, that day was one of the worst, but yet best days of my life. Because I got to see so much awesome shit from the guys to my left and right. So much love and just so much just dedication for something more than yourself. Said I might have got selected to wear it, but I'll tell you time and time again, ah, it's for those, not, not for me. And I'm always humbled to kind of.

[Eli Double Tap]

State that that's what I think. You truly go above and beyond and you exemplify what that means is you still to this day, even on that call, you're like, you were like, I didn't that's not. No. And it was your guys that told you like, hey mother. Like, hey, you did something like, nah, man.

[Clint Romesha]

Well, I mean, what was really cool though? Like the recommendation came. Not initially. The recommendation initially came because my commander put me in for a dsc. And at that time, like I said.

[Eli Double Tap]

We were Distinguished Service Cross.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, Distinguished Service Cross. And at, you know, that time, we were three months into a 12 month deployment and I remember just kind of looking at Stony Portis and like, hey, sir, we got nine more months left. Let's get these boys home and worry about awards later. And we got through that next nine months. I was so proud of those guys because not a single guy from Red Platoon said, this was too tough for me, I couldn't do it. They pulled up their big boy pants and they pushed through, got home. I'd already made the decision to get out of the army. Used the last 12 months, made that transition. I said I hadn't heard anything. Like I said, back of my mind, I was just trying to get on with life. So then I went chasing oil fields in North Dakota. And then like I said, two years later, get this random phone call, dude.

[Donut Operator]

Two years later they call you up.

[Clint Romesha]

I don't know if you've ever been around military process, dude, what's the most expedited thing unless. Well, unless you owe them money.

[Eli Double Tap]

Where the fuck is that? At gunpoint, you're like, what the, where.

[Donut Operator]

Are those pants that you left?

[Brandon Herrera]

That's the only thing the government's good at. Yeah, what's.

[Donut Operator]

Dude, what's the first thing you said to them, like after all that when they called you up?

[Clint Romesha]

Well, the first thing, talking on the phone to Colonel Davis, he's like, hey, we need you to come out to dc. We got something to tell you. Like I said, in the back of my mind, I'm like, statue of limitations.

[Eli Double Tap]

Should be up.

[Clint Romesha]

They've taken two years to track me down here in North Dakota.

[Brandon Herrera]

No, no.

[Clint Romesha]

But like I said initially, in the back of my mind I'm thinking, okay, that dsc, the Distinguished Service Cross my commander said he was going to put me in for, it's probably got downgraded to maybe a Silver Star or something. I'll probably have to go to dc, shake a few hands, probably get a free frickin desserts from the De Fact for life award or something like that.

[Donut Operator]

Yeah.

[Clint Romesha]

But I, but I told Colonel Davis, I'm like, hey, you know, just tell me over the phone. He's like, no, you got to do it in person. I'm like, well, I'm working six to seven days a week in the oil fields at that time making some awesome money. I was like, let me talk to my boss and I'll get back to you. Hung up the phone, immediately called. I can't remember if it was Raz or Lars, one of the guys. And I called him up. I'm like, hey, I just got this really weird phone call. You guys know what's going on? And they're like, no, hadn't heard anything. Haven't you ever gotten award for that day? And I'm like, nope, nothing yet. But maybe something's coming down the pipe. I went and I talked to my boss. It was about two weeks later, is kind of processing everything. And I finally went and talked to my boss. I'm like, hey, I need kind of a weekend off. I gotta go to D.C. for this thing. So cool. What thing is it? I'm like, I. I don't really know. Hopefully I'll be back on Monday, but if I can have a couple of days off, the army's going to set travel up and I'll go out. So what? Wasn't until I got out to D.C. show up. First thing I do when I come off the plane, I'm looking around before I clear security to see if there's MPs hiding. Oh, I'm still thinking, man, you like.

[Eli Double Tap]

These motherfuckers are trying to trick me.

[Clint Romesha]

And all of a sudden I see this full bird colonel in fricking class A uniform. And I'm like, oh, okay, so this is real. This is seriously the empties. Well, I go up and I introduce myself and he's like, all right, well we gotta head to the Pentagon. I've never been on the Metro before in my life. That's scary shit. Like, I don't like being underground. But we got on the Metro and headed straight to The Pentagon.

[Eli Double Tap]

The D.C. metro too.

[Brandon Herrera]

I know from Dulles.

[Eli Double Tap]

Or Dulles.

[Clint Romesha]

Reagan. Got it.

[Eli Double Tap]

Beautiful.

[Clint Romesha]

I thought, it's great. People, I'm not knowing.

[Eli Double Tap]

Judgmental eyes.

[Clint Romesha]

I was more terrified of that freaking Metro ride than anything. Because it's just unnatural.

[Eli Double Tap]

That's how you got your second medal.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, well, so we show up to.

[Brandon Herrera]

The Pentagon that poor Michael Jackson impersonated. Why is that so funny, Eli?

[Eli Double Tap]

Nothing.

[Clint Romesha]

So we show up at the Pentagon and I realize, okay, maybe it's not so bad because we didn't even go through security. Like they had a secret door for us to kind of just breeze on through. Didn't go through. Metal Detectors. And like, oh, this is interesting. And in the back of my mind, I'm still sitting there thinking. It's like, okay, they're gonna hand me maybe a broad star with V or silver. Something got downgraded. They're just gonna do a quick ceremony, shake my hand, send me on my way. And they pull me into this room, and there's all these colonels, all these freaking generals and stuff, and they're just like, congratulations, Sar Romeche. Awesome. And I'm like, still have no idea what's going on until I sat down. And as I look across the way, they got the PowerPoint presentation going on. Because the Army's never gonna do nothing without PowerPoint. And right in front of me, just.

[Eli Double Tap]

Like, you still hate the military. God damn it.

[Clint Romesha]

Sitting in front of me are these three posters. And one is of Sal Junta, the first living recipient since Vietnam. The next one's Leroy Petrie. And then the third one was Sergeant Sabo Possum. And it's all Medal of Honor, Medal of Honor, Medal of Honor. And I just remember kind of sitting down and looking, and they're giving their brief, and the PowerPoint's going on, and I'm not hearing a word they're saying. And I don't know if I was looking down for maybe two minutes or 20 minutes. I finally look up, and I'm like, hey, timeout, boys. And the room. Room gets quiet, and I go, what is all this Medal of Honor stuff? And one of the colonels kind of looks over, and he's like, oh, you don't know? Sar Roma Shay. And I'm like, wouldn't be asking a question I knew the fucking answer to. Like, what is this? I got.

[Eli Double Tap]

I know. You said that, too.

[Clint Romesha]

I'm like, I got told I got put in for, like, a DSC or something by Stony Portis. So what's all this Medal of Honor stuff? And they're like, well, you've been recommended for upgrade. Short of the President signing the award, you'll be receiving the Medal of Honor. And I just remember kind of looking back at the guy, and I'm like, for what? I didn't do anything special. And like I said, I made that trend. I'd been out for two years. I thought I'd put all that stuff in a little box and put it in the back of my mind. And I remember just as I was talking to the guys, almost every day driving to the oil fields, the guys they served with, they would bring kind of that stuff up, and that was kind of My processing where I thought I had it all all kind of behind me. And. And then all of a sudden, it was the next freaking day, I had a Wikipedia page, and then everybody knew. I mean, when I got back to work, I was overseeing the pipeline crews at the time. And one of the pipeline guys comes up to me. Hispanic fellow. He comes up and he's Mexican. Comes up and he's like, hey, why.

[Brandon Herrera]

Did you want me to take that higher? You looked straight at me.

[Eli Double Tap]

I don't know. You could have said I wasn't gonna say it.

[Clint Romesha]

He comes up to me and he's like, hey, I heard what you did in the army. My uncle has been kidnapped by the cartel in Mexico. They want $250,000 for his. For his. Now I'm spacing.

[Brandon Herrera]

You were fucking John Rambo. Like, you were just gonna. Yeah. Boat down to you.

[Eli Double Tap]

He's like.

[Clint Romesha]

He's like, cartel kidnapped him. And it was holding this ransom. Ransom. Yeah, $250,000 ransom for his uncle because the cartel knew a lot of the. The Mexicans were coming up working the oil fields in North Dakota, making that good money, so they would kidnap their families that they were leaving back there. And so they literally came up and he's like, hey, we'll pay you the money. If you want to get your guys together and go down to Mexico to go get my alcohol.

[Eli Double Tap]

I just like to see you on the news and like, the white boy at work, well, he's a badass. Bring him a knife.

[Brandon Herrera]

It's what we call a culture barrier.

[Clint Romesha]

I called up Razn, a couple of my buddies. I'm like, hey, do we got contacts in Mexico? Like, we got a quick way to make. Well, the problem was. And I know Avalos is gonna hate me for saying this, but Avalos was our fister, and he's like, the one Mexican that can't speak Mexican.

[Eli Double Tap]

So me and Brandon. Sorry, Brandon and I.

[Clint Romesha]

So we're like, man, if we could get Avalos. Oh, no, he's not going to be an interpreter for us, man. We don't have a solid team together.

[Eli Double Tap]

What's up, bitches?

[Brandon Herrera]

Most of us Americanized Mexicans are barely monolingual.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah. Struggle busing. I just like. The first idea was like, I bet he can save my. He's a hero. We'll just send him down there half.

[Brandon Herrera]

Well, we just there whittling like wood. Just like, I don't do that life anymore.

[Clint Romesha]

That's behind me. I don't want to turn that back on. You don't want to see that it wasn't my war.

[Donut Operator]

Our sponsor for this video is PDS Depp because everything is really expensive right now.

[Clint Romesha]

I spent $400 at the grocery store.

[Brandon Herrera]

I don't even know what I got.

[Eli Double Tap]

Milk. He got milk.

[Donut Operator]

One milk. You may be in debt right now because the economy is in shambles.

[Eli Double Tap]

You know what also comes with debt? Stress. Anxiety. Existential doom.

[Donut Operator]

Zoom. PDS Debt has a solution for you. Help is available, whether it be medical bills, collections, credit card debt. They have customized options for you.

[Eli Double Tap]

If you're making payments on your debt and your balance isn't going anywhere, this is the solution for you.

[Donut Operator]

PDS Debt has options that consolidates all of that debt into one low monthly payment.

[Brandon Herrera]

Everyone with $10,000 or more in eligible.

[Clint Romesha]

Debt qualifies, and there's no minimum credit score required.

[Eli Double Tap]

Save thousands in interest and fees and pay off your debt in a fraction of the time.

[Donut Operator]

PDS Debt is a top rated company on Google and has an A plus rating with the Better Business Bureau.

[Brandon Herrera]

They're personable. Go check out all their reviews and see how many specifically mentioned PDS employees by name.

[Eli Double Tap]

It's incredible.

[Donut Operator]

You can get a free debt analysis right now by going to pdsdep.com unsub. It takes 30 seconds. Go to pdsdep.com unsub go now.

[Eli Double Tap]

So when you so fast forward, you get that and then everyone else, what is that experience like afterwards? Because we'll rewind to the story. I want to hear more of, like, some of the other stuff you've done because you. You were into ID initially and then. And that was. We were. I didn't realize I. I was 2 ID, so I never knew we were part of. Like, we just. You were in Korea and then I was.

[Clint Romesha]

You were up in Louis.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yep.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, that was. Shoot. That was because you were up in Lewis and.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, yeah, just standing up. They stood up in 06, so it was 2cr, then they stood up to. Then we switched to infantry, and then it was like, okay, 2cr to infantry from 06 to 08, and then whatever they did afterwards. But that's. I. I was like, oh, I didn't realize that. And then you came aboard as a tanker initially.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, well, yeah, initially I joined the army as a. As a tanker because here's how motivated I was. Like I said, when I joined the army, I grew up in a tiny town in Northern California. I was tired of just milking cows and digging fence post. Like, that was my motivation to go in. Like, I'm tired of smelling like Frickin bag bomb. I grew up in this town of 100 people. Went to school in a town of like 500. Yeah, I graduated in the top 15 of the 14 kids in my senior class.

[Eli Double Tap]

Holy. So you grew up like actual like small. Small town.

[Clint Romesha]

Small. Small town and farmer in California out of all places too. But when I came in, like I said, I was 17 when I graduated. Not because I was super smart, just because my birthday was in August and I went to my dad who was won a Vietnam vet. He did two tours over in Vietnam as the infantryman. My granddad, World War II combat engineer, he served, you know, he made it through Normandy beach landing, Battle of the Bulge. Like he had an impressive kind of resume himself. My oldest brother, he started off in the army, had a break in service, Air Force. He actually just retired down here two years ago. Out of the Air Force. Second oldest brother, which yeah, my wife reminded me, she's like, if you're going to be down there, maybe you go see your older brother. I'm like, I seen him two years ago when he retired.

[Eli Double Tap]

But that's how I think a lot of us are. We're like, why? I FaceTime him like three months ago. That's like the same thing.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, no, no news is good news when it comes to family sometimes. And my second old or yeah, second oldest brother, he joined the Marines. So there was always kind of this lineage of military service in the family generations. But really for me, I was just like, it's 99, I want to go see the world and I'll get that GI Bill. Maybe I'll grow up and finally get educated enough to actually want to go to college.

[Brandon Herrera]

I hope nothing bad happens in two years.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, total foresight. Well, and that's. And that my dad, because I was 17, I went up to dad and I'm like, hey, you got me luggage for my graduation present. Like I understand the task here.

[Eli Double Tap]

And that's actually. Yeah, that was a real story.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, that was my graduation present from my parents was frickin Samsonite frickin luggage. Which I think they spent like three or four hundred bucks. They were pretty impressed on that stuff.

[Eli Double Tap]

They were.

[Brandon Herrera]

I thought that was an expression at first.

[Eli Double Tap]

That's an old farm town. They're like so son, I'm so proud of you. Get the out of my house.

[Clint Romesha]

You're gonna pay rent or go to college.

[Eli Double Tap]

Join the military. Join the military.

[Clint Romesha]

So when I, yeah, I went to my dad at 17 and I'm like, hey dad, hey. Got my plan. I'm gonna join the Army. You just got assigned for me. Got the recruiter already ready to sign or, you know, have all the paperwork set up. And dad looked at me and he's like, hey, not gonna do it. Back of my mind, I'm like, this son of a bitch. I'm the youngest of the three boys. He wants me around for one more summer of free frickin labor. And he very quickly followed it up with, hey, It's Clint. It's 1999. There's not a lot going on in the world. Maybe not tomorrow, maybe not in 20 years, but if you put that uniform on, you might have to go and do and see things that no one should have to go do and see. Said, growing up, I knew my dad had served in Vietnam. I knew my granddad had served in World War II. But all of the stories they told us, none of them had to do with combat. Not a single one about combat or any of the things they seen over overseas and stuff like that. It was always the stories of the shenanigans that got in with their buddies. And in my mind I'm like, dad, you had a great time in the army. From all the stories you were telling me, I didn't really realize what he was actually trying to say then. And then, of course, join that August, ship off, get to my first duty station, Germany. Well, I gotta backtrack a little bit. When I, when I did turn 18 and said, hey, I'm gonna go down and sign, the only advice my dad gave me was like, don't go infantry. Go find a job in the army that you can do afterwards. Be a welder, be a plumber, be something like that. And I'm like, no, I want to go combat arms. And he's like, well, just please, son, don't go infantry. So I decided to sign up for tanks because I'm lazy and I don't like to walk, so I can't come back. And I told my dad, I'm like, I didn't go infantry. I'm gonna be on tanks. And he just looks at me, he's like, why the hell would you do that? You're just the biggest target on the battlefield, you idiot.

[Eli Double Tap]

I like you, like, don't join combat. It's like, do something that will help you outside the military. Like tanks?

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah.

[Eli Double Tap]

I mean, those are just. I mean, they're just up and down the street.

[Clint Romesha]

I mean, if we had more killdozers, that'd be a popular.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah, that's what's holding your back.

[Brandon Herrera]

We Don't. But we should.

[Eli Double Tap]

That's why he's starting a new.

[Clint Romesha]

Oh, God.

[Eli Double Tap]

His new nonprofit. It builds. It builds Kill dozers.

[Donut Operator]

Prevent.

[Clint Romesha]

Prevent. We get. We get AR 500 plate donated and the H.E.

[Brandon Herrera]

Meyer relief fund.

[Eli Double Tap]

Why is this working so well? Just shipping them out.

[Donut Operator]

So many steel plates today.

[Brandon Herrera]

We've taught 95 veterans how to weld.

[Clint Romesha]

Do you need to learn how to hook up cameras? Eliminate your blind spots?

[Brandon Herrera]

You've been really cool. Don't go to the library today.

[Eli Double Tap]

Where did it go wrong?

[Brandon Herrera]

I think it's a great idea.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, I love it.

[Clint Romesha]

So, I mean, that was kind of my introduction to the army and my pathway in was through all that. So I said I never. Honestly, when I came in, I was like, if I can do four years, maybe make corporal and not go to Leavenworth, that would be the high achievement of my life.

[Eli Double Tap]

I like, that was your goal.

[Clint Romesha]

Like, you got to set them low, achievable things.

[Eli Double Tap]

I don't want to break big rocks into little rocks. You get past that a. Okay. And then your college is paid for. You're like, hey, the 911 kicks off. You fat. You do that. What was that experience? Because we've talked to a couple people, but everyone's experience is different. You're in. You're in your unit now.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, a year.

[Eli Double Tap]

Two years.

[Clint Romesha]

At that point, just over two years, like I said, was on tanks. 911 kicks off, and of course, right away, it's like we're going after bin Laden in Afghanistan. It's like, oh, I'm on tanks. The one place we learn from the Russians that tanks don't mix is Afghanistan. So kind of knew right away, it's like, I'm going to miss it. We'd gotten, you know, right shortly after 9 11, we were already scheduled to go back to Kosovo for another Kosovo deployment Back then. And in my mind, I was like, well, shoot, I'll ride my time out here in Germany. Probably get out. But we just had 9 11. But that's what you joined up for. You want to go to war? You know, being young and naive at the time, you know, it sounds so cool on paper. Oh, man, it looks awesome in those Rambo movies.

[Eli Double Tap]

I can't stress enough. We've talked about it a couple of times. It is the idea. It's like, war sounds so cool until one bullet and then you're like, oh, man, that is.

[Clint Romesha]

No. Sucks. No. No.

[Eli Double Tap]

Wow. That's like paintball. But that kills me way worse.

[Clint Romesha]

Not walking that one off.

[Brandon Herrera]

Eli did. There you Go.

[Eli Double Tap]

This is way worse than mine.

[Brandon Herrera]

No, no, Eli, this is about you. Let's talk about you.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah, let's put it. We can go on to your.

[Brandon Herrera]

You're the real hero, Eli. Brandon, right now, this is real awkward.

[Eli Double Tap]

Brandon, right now, this is a fight. We're just pushing it back and forth. Cody's like, what the fuck's going?

[Donut Operator]

I'm just having a great time.

[Brandon Herrera]

All these.

[Donut Operator]

All these amazing veterans I'm surrounded by.

[Brandon Herrera]

That's two donuts.

[Eli Double Tap]

I will say. Yeah, the running joke is for the year we. Brandon, you explain it, because this is done to you. Well, it was a. It was a fine Veterans Day. I'll say. Yeah.

[Brandon Herrera]

So last year for Veterans Day, Eli's like, hey, do you want to jump on a podcast real quick? We're going to record an extra podcast with, I believe it was Crispy and Jack Vanderbilt.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yep.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah, sure. No, I'd love to just jump on real quick. I live right down the road, so, you know, jump on the podcast. And Eli didn't tell me. The opening bit of the podcast is going to be him attempting to pin his Purple Heart on me for Veterans Day. And I am, of course, I have lived my entire life avoiding any claims of stolen valor, like plague, because I never. I was never in the military. I didn't do any of that stuff.

[Clint Romesha]

You didn't want to be a Tim Waltz?

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah, exactly. I didn't want to, you know, claim, like, when I was overseas. Oh, I never said that, asshole. But he. Good thing we'll never have to hear his name again. But. And then Eli comes over and attempts to pin his Purple Heart on me. I'm like, no, no, no, no, no.

[Eli Double Tap]

No, no, no, no.

[Brandon Herrera]

Like, became the running bit. And then the Internet took off with it because, of course, the fucking Internet did. And now I think I have three medals of honor, 42 purple hearts, pretty sure, a couple of Iron Crosses.

[Eli Double Tap]

I am searching. Brandon Herrera, military. Imagine, never serving.

[Clint Romesha]

Oh, my goodness. That is Google Images.

[Eli Double Tap]

Everything in the world.

[Brandon Herrera]

What's funny is it's mixed. It's mixed in with real photos, though, which is really bad.

[Eli Double Tap]

Brian's like, no, no, no, dude. Is a joke that went way too far.

[Brandon Herrera]

It's all Eli's fault. One year, this joke.

[Eli Double Tap]

So we're like, we'll close it out with a proper closeout. This is the episode.

[Brandon Herrera]

There's only one way. You have to. If you're gonna kill a joke, you have to kill it. In my opinion, anyway, within the universe that it exists. So the only way possible that I think would be fitting. Would be in as Eli has proclaimed it Veterans Day month with a. An actual Medal of Honor recipient. So I think that's the only appropriate way.

[Clint Romesha]

Full circle, full circle.

[Eli Double Tap]

And as embarrassing as it is, it's still something like it's friends like these and it's his best. It did bring a lot of good light and negative light in the election, but past that, it was really good light. Everyone's a good sport about it. Even on social media. He has so much people. Like we did a Veterans Day post with it's like us and like us in service. And it is now unsubs best performing post ever. Which is something to say about like, it's hey, like all the hosts.

[Brandon Herrera]

My favorite is that's Eli's face there.

[Eli Double Tap]

And all the comments are just talking about Brandon's like, is this is. Dude, one of them got me. The one that got me the most was. It was Brandon has oak leaves on his medal of Honor. I was like, bro, you go hard if you have like two or three oak leaves on that medal. I was like, our boy has earned his rep. As you can tell, he despises this.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah, and it almost went away. And then Rich brought it back. That fucking dick.

[Eli Double Tap]

And then it's up there. Someone sent their purple heart in for like.

[Brandon Herrera]

And I just can't. I like, I feel like the only way to do it is to lean into it for the live shows and just be like General Zhukov from the death of Stalin. Just throw off the cloak. Have like a North Korean general uniform full of fake metals.

[Clint Romesha]

Well, when your grandkids start going through some of your stuff to learn about you later though, you know, you think they're gonna open that trunk up when all they have is the Internet. Your grandpa was a badass.

[Brandon Herrera]

Grandpa's dead bodies. If I. If I keep. If I keep that in the attic.

[Eli Double Tap]

Talked about a service.

[Brandon Herrera]

I think it was Connor was saying, like, if I keep that in the attic, I need to. I need to keep it with a post it note explaining to my kids the joke. Like, by the way, if you Google this, you're going to get some conflicting information. They'll probably reply with, what's Google?

[Eli Double Tap]

Never, never bring it up. Just have a. An actual trunk hidden for your like, Great garon kids. It's like a uniform, a fake medal of honor and some random rabbits in there. And they're like, yo grandpa used go.

[Clint Romesha]

Rent like a safety deposit box for like the next 200 years.

[Brandon Herrera]

Wow, Grandpa really like Wolfenstein. Look at this.

[Eli Double Tap]

Cosplay scene.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah. Wow. He's got the armbands and everything. That's. It's kind of crazy.

[Donut Operator]

He's got a cheap book. It's about the final solution.

[Eli Double Tap]

Dude, this dad book's crazy.

[Brandon Herrera]

I didn't know dad spoke German.

[Eli Double Tap]

All alone now. Time to trim the old pubes.

[Clint Romesha]

Hey there, beach babe. Are you ready to soak up those.

[Brandon Herrera]

Summer vibes and get the perfect beach bod?

[Eli Double Tap]

I don't have pants on.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, I noticed.

[Brandon Herrera]

Well, you're in luck.

[Clint Romesha]

Cause our friends [e-mail] have you covered from head to toe with the Performance Package 5.0 Ultra.

[Brandon Herrera]

They'll have you looking and feeling good this summer.

[Clint Romesha]

Trust Manscaped.

[Eli Double Tap]

To unlock the confidence you need to.

[Clint Romesha]

Turn heads this summer season, join the 10 million men who already trust manscaped and use discount code unsub at checkout to get 20% off your order plus free shipping. Let's make this summer your smoothest one yet. Save me.

[Eli Double Tap]

Keep your ear and nose as tidy as your hedges with The Weed Whacker 2.0. Ear, nose, head trimmer. You'll be looking classy as ever.

[Clint Romesha]

The Updated Lawn Mower 5.0 Ultra Groin & body hair trimmer. Got a summer makeover. It's waterproof.

[Brandon Herrera]

Now for all those times you need to shave your groin or body hair at a pool party.

[Eli Double Tap]

So get 20% off plus free shipping. Using code on [e-mail] the Summer sun is here to stay, so trust manscape to keep those pubes at bay. Welcome to the podcast, dude. Clay showed up. He's like, ah, he's. Because we've asked for a while to have you on, but you're. You are not a big social media guy. You're like, fuck that.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, you can tell it's my social media. Just look at the picture and you're like, what the hell is this random stuff? It's like, no, that's probably Clint. And there's been no activity in nine months. That's how you know it's me you are now.

[Eli Double Tap]

Are you still doing oil field stuff or the military stuff with it?

[Clint Romesha]

Powered away from the oil field quite a few years ago before doing the book and then getting more involved with. Because, well, that was the other thing with receiving the medal. I said at first I was super embarrassed. Just blatantly honest. It was. It was super embarrassing because everyone's sitting there calling you a hero, saying, oh, what amazing things you did. And back in my mind, I'm sitting there, I'm like, didn't bring eight guys back. Like, those dudes are the heroes. Like, I was a warrior. I was fighting alongside other great warriors. But to be called a hero and then all the. All of a sudden have that be the. The center of attention just was. Was super awkward to deal with and process.

[Brandon Herrera]

That's something that I'd love to go back to a little bit if we can kind of reverse back to where you were saying that you were in that you were watching that PowerPoint, government issued PowerPoint and you were basically, you were informed that that's. That's what they put you in for. What was your reaction to it in the moment?

[Clint Romesha]

In the moment, I just shut down. I just like everything just. I turned everything off and just got a stop there. Sat there thinking, internalizing. It's just like, Mace isn't here, Gallegos isn't here, Kirk isn't here. Like, those dudes were freaking badasses and they gave up more than anything I ever did. So why am I getting acknowledged? And that's just kind of what I gravitated back toward was why, you know, those guys literally gave up their life for me to be here. So why the hell am I getting the acknowledgement and the attention? Because I made it through. I got to come back home. I got to continue to live my life. And I know, you know, the nation does need heroes and things to look up to. But it's as I continue to kind of gravitate back to. I hated being. I still hate being called a hero because for me, those are the guys that don't come home. Like, I was a warrior. And I'll tell you, like I said, it was bittersweet that day because nasty as things were, it was also one of the best days of my life because I felt like I went through the most ultimate man test with some of the coolest guys I've ever been around. And we made it out on top. And that was also what I'd reflect back to. It's like we used to talk kind of that last nine months in country, the year getting out, when we would talk about the awards process and stuff like that, of guys getting silver stars and certain other guys talking about how cool or how badass they were that day. But the rest of us kind of like, were you though, and would sit there and I remember, you know, talking to Larson and Raz and they're like, hey, yeah, we know what you did. Yeah, well, I know what you did. And like, that was just all we had to say sometimes would be sitting there, Colorado Springs, hanging out, drinking at Hooters or something like that. You just kind of share those quick moments where you just look over it or over at one of your buddies, and you just knew. I know what you did that day, and I don't need any public attention. There's no metal that you'd pin on our chest that would. That would equate to what the same meaning was of that look between each other. So when that all, like I said, came to kind of the. The limelight, I wanted to just put my head in the sand and turn away. But I also realized I've also been given something that so many veterans never get. That's a platform, and that's the ability that when I. For whatever reasons, I keep going back to D.C. to go up on the Hill, I get doors open, and I get to go get in front of congressmen and senators, and it's like, hey, look, fucktards, here's. That's, you know, not getting taken care of for.

[Brandon Herrera]

Please tell me you use that exact language.

[Clint Romesha]

That's what goes on in the inner monologue.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah.

[Clint Romesha]

Normally there's a filter process.

[Brandon Herrera]

I think more of them need the internal monologue to become the external monologue.

[Eli Double Tap]

Sorry, I meant retarded. I mean, you retard. Dynavac. It is. It is.

[Brandon Herrera]

Politicians don't go to heaven. Sorry.

[Eli Double Tap]

So I was like, you guys are all gonna get along so good with. With Clint. Homeboy loves the government so much.

[Clint Romesha]

Oh. The big flex I had is when John Boehner was still speaker of the House.

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh, boy.

[Clint Romesha]

You know, smoking his office. I was.

[Eli Double Tap]

You smoked?

[Clint Romesha]

Oh, yeah, Because John Boehner smoked like a freaking chimney, too. So I got to go smoking that. Well, he had already just gotten done smoking or something, but, yeah, I got to smoke in the speaker of the House's office one day.

[Brandon Herrera]

That's kind of cool.

[Clint Romesha]

That doesn't fly anymore. I don't think anymore.

[Eli Double Tap]

Like, this is dope going through that. It is going back to, like, your feelings towards it, because it is. That is one of the hardest things to put into words for a general person. It's like not wanting to accept something because it is like, no, I did nothing for that. Especially you. You yourself is a very, like, selfless individual. And to have that where all the lights are you. They fly you out and then come to find out your battle buddies are the ones that also put in word for it. Right.

[Clint Romesha]

So the. So that's what I didn't realize till years later. It's like when, when I would talk to some of the guys going to and from the oil fields, catching up with them, we would talk about everything under the sun and not once did they ever mention that they been approached or talked about an upgrade. And so after I'd gotten notified, I'm, I'm sitting there calling Raz and Larson and them up and they're like, I'm like, hey, did the army call you and tell you guys anything? And they're call, yeah, they called like about a year ago or something. They just asked. They believed you did something good that should be, should be awarded. They never said for what or what award? And we just said yes. Like, well that was kind of part of that. Didn't think you'd mention that. All of a sudden I'm getting recommended for upgrade and you've got to, you got someone to call you from the Pentagon eight months ago that said, hey, you think Sergeant Romeche should be, you know, recognized for what he did on October 3rd? Oh yeah, yeah, you should be like, that was like their whole conversation, I'm like, that would have been nice to know. They didn't say, yeah, they didn't say, well, do you think Sergeant Romesha should be recommended for the Medal of Honor? No, they just said, do you think he should just be recognized for his actions? I was like, well that's semantics right there on what they're really asking or not. But that was also part of the humbling thing was to find out that the upgrade recommendation came from the guys that were actually there beside me. Like I said, it was very tough to accept it in the first place, but it was kind of really smoothed it over hearing that it was because of their recommendations, their first hand accounts that kind of kicked it up over the edge. I mean, I still set back to this day and I think honestly the two guys that deserved the medal from that battle was Harp because when he left out the back of those barracks to try to go get Gallegos, that was the last time I'd ever see that dude. And unfortunately with the awards process system is you've got to have, especially for the Medal of Honor, you, you've got to have two living eyewitnesses that see you do what you did and have to be able to read and write English to write that firsthand sworn statement account. And when Hart pushed up there to go get Mason Larson and them and his Humvee got hit with that rpg, the only guy that survived that was Faulkner. But Faulkner came back immediately, got medevaced, came back to the states. And Faulkner was dealing with some demons prior to that deployment. After getting shot in Iraq previous, he ended up overdosing. So there was no eyewitness account. And it sucked because Hart, all we could get him was a Bronze Star that day. No, just by army regulation since we didn't have those two eyewitness accounts. And I'd already always kind of argued no, him leaving out the back door, finding that 50 cal ammo, taking those guys over there like that was the action right there. I said I, I don't know how the whole awards process goes, but that was my kind of argument with it. And the other one for sure was Brad Larson. Larson, I truly believe deserved the other Medal of Honor that day. He was stuck up at that Humvee with Gallegos and Mace and Ty Carter and Sergeant Martin when those guys pushed out, he was trying to provide cover. Him and Ty were trying to prep, provide cover for him. Wasn't able to do it. When Carter goes up and brings Mace, you know, a little, little farther back to cover and puts the tourniquets on him. Larson's providing cover for, for Ty and then him and Ty bring Mace back to the aid station. But then Larson comes back to me for the fight. Larson gets checked out, he shows back up at the front gate area and he's the one that tells us, hey, Griffin's just outside the door here. Last I seen Martin was here. Last I seen Gallegos was here. Have no idea where Hart was. And Larson then came back out in the fight, recovered Griffin, helped recover Martin, Gallegos brought him back. And then when we couldn't find, when we couldn't find Hart's body, Larson was the dude that three times that day left his weapon, left his body armor and left his Kevlar to run and do the frickin bullet dance around that outpost to try and find Hart's body. And three times he, he just wasn't able to find him. And on the fourth time I finally told him he couldn't. So that was the other thing that's always been in the back of my mind. It's like, you know, me and Ty Carter is the other living recipient from that fight. But I've always looked at it, I've always thought that, that Larson and, and Hart should have been the two guys right there.

[Eli Double Tap]

And that's, it's like going through that and it's, it's like, it is something humbling to hear because again, like anything I've done will never equate to that. And I never want to be put in that position. And you were lucky to be here because you stood up and then overcame crazy odds too. I mean, even save as many people as you do. I know you're. It is that hard mindset to break. It's like, hey, this sucks because I lost this many people. Instead of looking at. It's like, hey, I saved this many people because it was through your actions and your.

[Clint Romesha]

Because you. I just, I just thought I had, I had, I just had a stupid idea though. It was like, man, we're getting our asses kicked. Let's. We can do something. It's like, oh, here's an idea, let's go counter attack. These guys got us outgunned, They've got us outnumbered, they've got the high ground. And honestly, when I came up with that idea, it was just like, well, if we're going to die, let's. Let's kind of dictated on our own terms. And again, that's what truly impressed me was I had those five guys that volunteered, like, hey, we're going to go do this thing. And Raz, Delaney, Danley, Miller and Jones. Like, those five guys are like, well, we're going and don't have to. And they're like, we'll follow you anywhere. And it's like, well, why don't those five guys get acknowledged for? And I mean, and I'm not saying they never got their awards or anything, but I mean, that was just so impressive to see that you could get guys that would. I mean, that was truly a token of, of on a personal level, I felt like I was a good leader. When you get five guys that'll say, I'll follow you anywhere. And that did it. That came up. Recaptured the ammo supply point, was able to push the enemy out of the front gate, the Shura building area. You know, that's, that's truly special. As, like I said, as a leader, that's like I said, in the back of your mind, you're like, you're always thinking, I call it like that Braveheart moment. Like, could I ever be tied to that board as they were fricking ripping my guts out? And will I would I sit there and scream freedom into the face of those fuckers. Like, for me, that was those moments that day where I look back and it's like, man, that was, that was going through the ultimate man test to say I could kind of check that.

[Eli Double Tap]

Block, even leading to it for the people out there that don't realize even how shitty that fighting position was. And then you guys ran drills in your head where you're like, ah, if we did this, this is how we would do this. Like, which probably led to a.

[Brandon Herrera]

For those who don't know, because we were just talking about this earlier at brunch, like, just how bad that fighting position was. No, for people who don't.

[Donut Operator]

Dude, you were in a fishbowl.

[Clint Romesha]

Well, yeah, I mean, it was so bad. Like I said, my granddad had passed away by then. But like I said, I'm old school. I don't do social media. But I'll still write. I still pay all my bills by check and mail them.

[Brandon Herrera]

My times have changed anyway, about a strategic fighting position.

[Clint Romesha]

So I wrote my grandma a letter home when we first got there, and it was just a simple, quick letter of, hey, grandma, we're here. We're settled in. The guy's morale is high. Everyone. Everyone's looking Good. We got 12 months here, and we'll be home soon. This place is so gorgeous. It reminds me of growing up in the Sierra Nevada mountains. Every morning I get to look up and see these beautiful mountains. I sent that letter off, and a couple weeks later, grandma sent me a letter back that just said, what the hell are you doing looking up? Everybody knows you take the high ground, Grandma.

[Donut Operator]

Even grand.

[Clint Romesha]

Grand knew, like, that was not the most ideal location. I mean, you just set at the very bottom of that valley, surrounded by mountains on all sides. Every time we'd go out and do patrols and stuff, you'd get just 100 meters up on the hillside, and you'd look down and you're like, man, I could see everything. I can see L. RAS too. I can see the front gate. This is a badass fighting position. I can just bail over the back here. You'd never be able to shoot me. You'd go freaking 20ft the next direction. It's like, oh, this is even better.

[Brandon Herrera]

So that's how Graham. Graham got a consulting job at the Pentagon.

[Eli Double Tap]

She easily could have way better than that strategic fighting point.

[Clint Romesha]

What was.

[Brandon Herrera]

What was their mindset? Did they just pick up? I don't know how that came to be.

[Clint Romesha]

So initially, from what I understand, like I said I was a staff sergeant, that I didn't make foreign policy. Like, I just. We got told where we needed to be, right? Yeah. But the research I've done since then was it was just supposed to be this kind of stopping area in the natural terrain where they could get refuel, refit, and stuff going to the forces that were supposed to Be continuing to attack north and north. But so that happened about right before 2003. They were pushing up in the Nuristan, and what ended up being known as COP Keating was just really a. A grid spot coordinate that they could drop supplies in. Well, we kick off 2003 with shock and awe and Iraq. Now we're fighting a two front war, and there's not enough beans and bullets and everything to fight two front war. So they pause the attack in the north in Afghanistan Nuristan area. And instead of giving up that terrain, they decided, well, we'll just hold on to this. We'll get back to this eventually. Well, eventually was six years down the road where we found ourselves there. So they didn't want to give up that stuff that was already fought for.

[Eli Double Tap]

And what year did they say, hey, we don't want to fight for? Is it 2003, you're saying?

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, it was shortly after. It was like 2003, 2004.

[Eli Double Tap]

Six years later is when it was like, oh, yeah, and you're still there. And like, man, man, that is the US military or government in a.

[Clint Romesha]

In a nutshell, he's. Well, I mean, even my dad would. When he kind of found out, he's like, oh, I see we haven't learned anything from Vietnam. Hamburger.

[Eli Double Tap]

I was telling the guys about Hamburger Hill. I was like, like, we will take a. We will have a 90 casualty rate to take something that has no significance on the battlefield. Just to say we did it and then leave it after a week. You're like, yep, we did it. You're like, at night, there's like, everyone's hurt right now, Nick. Ma. We got it, though.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah. I mean, well, you seen that with the pull out? I mean, that's exactly what the pull out ended up being.

[Donut Operator]

Should never pull out.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, I'm not familiar. The only thing to pull out is the couch.

[Donut Operator]

There we go.

[Eli Double Tap]

I'm glad all of us feel the same way. No, no one at this table pulls out.

[Clint Romesha]

Got six kids.

[Eli Double Tap]

Holy, bro.

[Brandon Herrera]

Pull out, bro.

[Clint Romesha]

You didn't learn either.

[Brandon Herrera]

Motherfucker can't pull out of his own driveway.

[Clint Romesha]

That's why back in.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, so strategic. 2009 whatnot.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, I mean, we were. We were two weeks away from closing that place down and getting out of there.

[Donut Operator]

Like, like for. Bring it up, Jamie. Bring it up right here on the screen.

[Brandon Herrera]

Thanks, Jamie.

[Eli Double Tap]

Jamie.

[Clint Romesha]

Thanks, Jamie. Thanks, Jamie.

[Donut Operator]

This is how ridiculous this fighting position is that you're looking at right now.

[Brandon Herrera]

They did not consult Obi Wan Kenobi.

[Clint Romesha]

Take the high ground Anakin, come on.

[Brandon Herrera]

Come on.

[Donut Operator]

Idiot.

[Eli Double Tap]

They were Anna, he was Anakin.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah, you underestimate my power. Episode three had come out by then. That was. There's no excuse.

[Clint Romesha]

No, it worked the first time for Obi Wan, though, when he was fighting Darth Maul. He didn't have the high ground.

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh, fair true.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, my God. My guy's a nerd. For not interneting, but you still got some nerd knowledge, my guy.

[Clint Romesha]

Get them DV DVDs.

[Eli Double Tap]

Don't lie. It's VHS laser disc. You're still rewinding it after watch it so bad. Fucking literally the worst positioning possible. Imagine a fishbowl, and the bottom of that fish bowl is where you guys are based out of. It's a cob, right?

[Clint Romesha]

Yep. So the only way in and out was by helicopter at that point. And oh, by the way, I did not know that.

[Eli Double Tap]

Holy.

[Clint Romesha]

What? The road. Well, that's how the outpost got named was by Lieutenant Ben Keating. They were trying to move, I believe was the LMTV back to F.O. bostic rolled over and killed Lieutenant Ben Keating, giving the name to the outpost. And that road was no longer serviceable logistically for the US Army. Taliban had taken it over. It had been too narrow, it was just too treacherous. So helicopter was the only way in and out. And oh, by the way, our landing zone was outside of our perimeter and it was in between two rivers that converged together. And so you kind of had to land in this peninsula.

[Brandon Herrera]

It kind of reminds me of like a less advantageous Harper's Ferry, if you ever seen that area. But not to oversimplify too much, I don't even know Harper's Ferry, Virginia. Like that area where there was a. There was like a military arsenal there during the Civil War.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, okay. I was like, where are you? Just not Crawfordsville, Indiana.

[Clint Romesha]

Yes, Gary, Indiana.

[Eli Double Tap]

I was like, I don't know.

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh, no, not Gary.

[Clint Romesha]

Not Gary.

[Brandon Herrera]

But not to oversimplify it, but with what you just said earlier, wasn't the whole point of that location being chosen that it was a convenient middle ground for running supplies and things?

[Clint Romesha]

Yes, that's initially how it started, with.

[Brandon Herrera]

No way to get in or out, except for helicopter.

[Clint Romesha]

Yep.

[Brandon Herrera]

That's just making sure I'm up to speed.

[Eli Double Tap]

Imagine that is. And that if the military. Like, this is.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah, logistics.

[Eli Double Tap]

This seems like a lot of logistics to get in and out of that.

[Clint Romesha]

And so it's funny because like I said, the Chinook pilots. And we're at elevation too, so we could only really get Chinooks and Apaches only had enough kind of power to fly at that elevation.

[Brandon Herrera]

You know how much cargo you could lift with an Apache?

[Clint Romesha]

Well, enough to bring 25 Mike Mike and Hellfires. We don't need you for your cargo, boys.

[Eli Double Tap]

I'll drop the bullets.

[Clint Romesha]

So when they'd resupply us though, those pilots knew that was a crappy spot to be. And at elevation, not having the power, a lot of times they would make every excuse not to resupply us. And we were pissed. Like, we would not get resupplied for ammo. Ammo, well, would normally get ammo and fuel and stuff, but any of the creature comforts, like they would make every excuse not to drop them and would go weeks on end without getting resupplied with freaking care packages or razors or hot meals.

[Eli Double Tap]

You probably like literally every, what, three.

[Clint Romesha]

Weeks we got a hot meal kind of once. We got one meal once every three days and it'd be either a breakfast or maybe a dinner. We got a shower once a week because our water supply issues were. Yeah, not, not the most ideal. But we were, like I said, we were always so mad at those Chinook pilots. Like, oh, you frickin weenies don't. You don't want to come here. You guys aren't hard.

[Eli Double Tap]

You can say other things than weenies if you.

[Clint Romesha]

I'm trying to be nice, Brandon.

[Eli Double Tap]

Use a nice word.

[Brandon Herrera]

I don't feel like I'm in any place to call them anything but like.

[Clint Romesha]

Well, back in the day there was a website called poopcenter.com. so we got on poopcenter.com and we sent them elephant dung.

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh, shit.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, because they're like, you guys, you're not bringing us supplies. So we thought, hey, what better thing? Now we fast forward and Brad Larson gets direct selected by, I believe it was McChrystal to go OCS. And Brad ended up being a Chinook pilot. And so once he graduated Chinook school, went on his first Afghan deployment flying helicopters. I got to ask him like, come on, dude, tell me the truth. You're at cop Kidding. Were those guys little? And he's like, I went through cop Keating and I'd tell you guys to go off. I would not fly a Chinook into that valley. He's like, those guys were so badass to even show up the times they.

[Eli Double Tap]

Did to resupply us because what is your sea level?

[Clint Romesha]

Like we were at. Shoot, now you got me thinking. I think we were like at 9,000ft.

[Brandon Herrera]

Jesus.

[Eli Double Tap]

And you're Talking like for the people that do not know this, like helicopters.

[Clint Romesha]

They'Re not like planes where they can just kind of.

[Eli Double Tap]

You're looking at less air movement. They become unstable as fuck.

[Brandon Herrera]

It's the old saying. It's like engineers hate helicopters because like, okay, planes use the air. Helicopters beat it into submission. It's like that. It makes no sense. Like, theoretically, helicopters should not work, but somehow they do. And everybody's too afraid to ask questions.

[Eli Double Tap]

As to why because it's a gas air. Like all those little things even think when you're a two stroke engine, when you're like dialing in like how much air it's taking in to not run too rich or anything, all that goes into account, just the engine.

[Clint Romesha]

And then the blades have, don't have enough air density to push to, to keep the lift. And then with, like I said, with that valley and those two rivers, like any sort of wind gust that would knock them left or right, they're putting their blades into the side of a mountain.

[Eli Double Tap]

And also think anyone will say you do not if you're camping overnight or anything in the wilderness. It is not camp in the valley because that's the coldest. That's where air travels through ever. That is the issue for everything. So helicopter. The least favorite place is right there at 9,000ft of elevation. And trying to fight that and deliver one warm mill.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, yeah. That was like I said, wait in hindsight, like it was so amazing to see what they did at the time. It was like, you guys, you're getting elephant dung.

[Eli Double Tap]

So they're, they're doing, they're dealing with that. You're dealing with that. And then you're like, okay, well here we are looking up this beautiful.

[Clint Romesha]

They were beautiful mountains. I mean if Afghanistan could ever get their together, that would be some of the best white water rafting, the best snowboarding. Like those mountains. I still to this day are one of my favorite kind of memories to look at those mountains and think of, think about them.

[Eli Double Tap]

Mister. Mister, you'll be fine. Go down right Rafter.

[Clint Romesha]

Well, we did. We might have had an incident where one of the local villagers were bathing their kids and they lost it in the river. And all we could do is just call down to FOB Bostic 30km away. And it's like, hey, if you find a baby floating through, they bait. Wait baby, they were bathing in it. And come, you know, the big water rush time. Like you might accidentally if you lose. And that. Well, that was part of Larson's plan when they were stuck at that Humvee and they thought all of us were dead. Their whole plan was they were hoping for night to hit and they were going to try to sneak to the river and just float back to F. Bostic.

[Eli Double Tap]

No.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah.

[Eli Double Tap]

So leading up to like everything you had, you were getting popped off like.

[Clint Romesha]

Once a. Yeah, about once a day, you know, and like I said, every day was a little bit different, but typically it would be about 6:00 in the morning. We ended up calling that kind of our Taliban alarm clock. Some days it would just be a couple of rounds of AK fire, just.

[Eli Double Tap]

I like Brandon's like terms for everything and it's a great phrase. Yeah, it's called something, something else over there.

[Clint Romesha]

And then, I mean some, sometimes they'd hit you with the little sporadic AK fire on the east and then all of a sudden RPGs, mortars, B10 hitting you on the west. Like every day was something. Not every day was too intense, but it could be. And in fact we found out right away it was actually better to be outside the wire on the patrol than it was to be down in the, in the outpost. We only took two engagements, direct fire engagements outside of the wire. The three months we were there, they didn't want to with us if we were actually out on patrol moving around and stuff. So we always loved being on patrol week because then you could kind of set the tempo and try to go after them. But yet when you're only sitting there with 18 guys, we were very limited on how far they would let us patrol. And it was. Everything was straight up the frickin mountainside. So even though like the village of Kamdesh as a crow flew on the map, was like a kilometer and a half to actually navigate the terrain ended up being almost 9km because there was one time they went after Sernkirk and Gallegos and them went after that B10 recoilless rifle they kept pounding us with. And of course I'm a seasoned sasser and I know better, I bet a Mark 19 position that I'd set up to help support them. And I'm like, I'll sit here on this. And you boys go, you guys are still clear.

[Brandon Herrera]

So I gotta ask you, because I ask everybody who's ever operated one, did you love or hate the mark 19?

[Clint Romesha]

It was always a love hate relationship over. And every time, I mean you just had to, you just had to know how to treat her. And then when you didn't, she let you know. You never knew what it was gonna be like.

[Brandon Herrera]

My ex wife.

[Eli Double Tap]

Thank you, Catherine.

[Brandon Herrera]

If I ever buy a mark 19, that's what I'm gonna engrave on it. Ex wife. That's interesting, because every. I've never had anybody who's ever said, like, it was okay. They always said they either love it or they hate it.

[Clint Romesha]

Yep. All dependent on the day. I know you can shoot 64 consecutive rounds out of it before you get yelled at.

[Eli Double Tap]

That's. That's the real. That's a very short reel. I know this much wisdom from Clint Rome, 2020.

[Brandon Herrera]

That's funny. Just like, it reminds me. That's the sort of wisdom, like the. The Ron White bit of, like, I. I know I've learned two things in my career. One, you can't un the babysitter. And two, anything's a DUI checkpoint when you crash your car into it.

[Clint Romesha]

It's solid life advice.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, it's so much fun right now. It was like, just peek. So you're looking around. You're like, okay, here's all this shit. And again, what was the elevation change from your point to the top of the mountainsides? Just for reference for the people up there? Because this is insane.

[Clint Romesha]

I mean, there was part of the mountain where you could look at, and trees were no longer growing. You hit the tree growth line like, 2,000, like, 3,000ft.

[Eli Double Tap]

Like, true.

[Clint Romesha]

I thought tree growth was like a. What was it, 16,000 or so, 5,000ft?

[Eli Double Tap]

You're looking at elevation. You cannot. You're like, oh, this can look down at us.

[Clint Romesha]

Well, and sometimes it would be a little ambitious when we first got there and like, oh, we'll go to the top. Oh, we can see the top right there. And four hours later, you're like, I'm not even halfway to that. But now that I can see, that is not even the top. That is not even halfway to the top of the top. Like, they just went forever. And in fact, when we were. And they're doing some overwatch stuff, we had the spot and scope out, and we're looking where the trees aren't growing. And there was a family that was raising goats up there. It's like, how do you raise goats? There's no vegetation. How the hell do you get water up there? I bet they hadn't seen human contact in a generation.

[Eli Double Tap]

Imagine that.

[Donut Operator]

Like, that's what I was watching a classic film last night about warfare. Lord of the Rings. And true. There's a lot of mountains, like, large mountains in that.

[Eli Double Tap]

I mean, literally, what they were at, Hell's Deep was in a Shot. Shittier ball. And then it was orgs on every side.

[Brandon Herrera]

They're in Helms deeper.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, no. Helms deeper, dude. Helms deeper. The battle of Helms deeper.

[Brandon Herrera]

Well, that's on Wikipedia.

[Eli Double Tap]

Now those Ur everywhere be in your.

[Brandon Herrera]

W for you're shooting the mark 19. You uri. You dirty Uri.

[Eli Double Tap]

The sand Uri. Really strong. I told you. You have fun, buddy.

[Clint Romesha]

Not that I do sit ups, but I'm definitely not going to have to do sit ups after this.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, God.

[Brandon Herrera]

Well, that's the what 43rd slur we've invented on the podcast. Sand Urokai. We're alarmingly good at that.

[Eli Double Tap]

It's a great new shirt.

[Brandon Herrera]

It's a picture of a Tuscan raider with an AK's.

[Eli Double Tap]

Like, I don't know if I regret this.

[Donut Operator]

It's like I was on Fox News yesterday.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, my God, I love this so much. Right back at home. Right.

[Clint Romesha]

Right back at home.

[Donut Operator]

All right. Not to press on the MOH thing too much. I just. I had one serious question for you. I didn't get to ask it to you last time we were together. So Eli, he has a purple heart. He gets his little gay ass parking space.

[Eli Double Tap]

Right.

[Donut Operator]

All right. What do you. What benefits do you get with moh?

[Clint Romesha]

It's state to state. Like, I know here in Texas, like you can get a license plate, but it's. Your number is based off what recipient you are in the state of Texas.

[Donut Operator]

Really?

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah.

[Clint Romesha]

What's yours? I have. I don't live in Texas. I don't know.

[Eli Double Tap]

Damn it.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, so I can't remember if it's 69.

[Brandon Herrera]

You need to move.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, I would do it.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yes.

[Clint Romesha]

I do it just to register and then leave.

[Donut Operator]

Thank you.

[Clint Romesha]

Be hanging on the wall afterwards.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah.

[Clint Romesha]

So while we. We get invited to inaugurations. That's. So that's a. Well, the last time wasn't a cool.

[Brandon Herrera]

Perk, but this time this is going to be pretty rad.

[Clint Romesha]

This one's going to be.

[Eli Double Tap]

Do you get a plus three?

[Clint Romesha]

He's my service support.

[Brandon Herrera]

He clearly is wearing a vest that says don't pet.

[Clint Romesha]

He's working.

[Eli Double Tap]

My service.

[Clint Romesha]

Give you an hour priority on space available flights. It's another, I guess, perk.

[Donut Operator]

Thanks, Delta Spirit.

[Eli Double Tap]

When you always like, no, if there's space, you get first class.

[Clint Romesha]

No, no, no. I mean for like military flights, you know, we're all jumping aboard on those ones. And then other than that, you get. You get tricare for life. So you get a retirement, the bare minimum medical care. You got to pay for your own dental admission?

[Brandon Herrera]

Yes.

[Eli Double Tap]

For real.

[Clint Romesha]

Well, it's just like being retired. Retired, insurance out of here.

[Eli Double Tap]

You like you have janky ass teeth. You just like, say the word, start taking the teeth back.

[Brandon Herrera]

Man, if this is the best country on the planet, I can't imagine how bad the rest are, man. Imagine I always make that joke where I'm like, man, I just know all the gripes and the failed logistics of the American military and all the things that we just suck at. Imagine having to rely on the Indian military.

[Eli Double Tap]

Jesus.

[Clint Romesha]

Sorry, sir, we lost your lead form.

[Brandon Herrera]

I need fire on this great coordinate. Sir, yelling at me is not going.

[Eli Double Tap]

To make this money faster. Get a medal for calling it service.

[Brandon Herrera]

I need a 10 on the. Hello, my name is John with a 10.

[Eli Double Tap]

I'll call for fire for five hours.

[Brandon Herrera]

Do not redeem.

[Eli Double Tap]

Why do you hit?

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh, didn't see this podcast going this direction, man, if I'm being perfectly honest.

[Clint Romesha]

Oh, I kind of want to go. I kind of want to go in bed with the Indian army now and get on a radio.

[Brandon Herrera]

They're asking you for help. You're like, oh, uno, reverse. We tried turning it off and on again.

[Clint Romesha]

Have you unplugged it? Oh. So perks.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah, all the perks. Flights and college.

[Clint Romesha]

So a lot of it's actually driven from the states, depending on what state you live in. Kind of depends on what kind of additional benefits you get. Honestly, it's. So that's one of the weird things. When you meet someone that has no clue what the Medal of Honor is, the first thing they come back with is, oh, is that like a Purple Heart?

[Eli Double Tap]

Kinda. That's what you reply with a little different.

[Clint Romesha]

But I mean that a lot of the benefits that it's given out either by the federal government or the states are all kind of tied to the Purple Heart stuff. So I can see definitely the confusion on. I mean, it's such a rare award and, you know, we go out and we talk about ourselves all the time and totally brag about, I got a burp. Bless you, that's got some hang time. So, like, we.

[Eli Double Tap]

Whipped it away real quick.

[Clint Romesha]

So we don't do a good job of really kind of explaining to the average, I think, civilian that doesn't have kind of a direct connection to the military of what really the Medal of Honor is. They've got this idea, but since I said everything they think about is, you know, Purple Heart or Navy seals or, you know, Green Berets, stuff like that. Like, it's hard for the average. I Think civilians sometimes to wrap their head around what the Medal of Honor truly is. As you look at the numbers and I'm gonna. I'm giving general numbers here. Don't go off Clint's actual thinking ability and statistical points. I think there's been about 26 million that have worn the uniform of the U.S. out of the 26 million, it's what, 30, just under 3,600 have received the medal.

[Eli Double Tap]

3,600.

[Clint Romesha]

And out of that 60% haven't been awarded it posthumously.

[Donut Operator]

Yeah.

[Eli Double Tap]

So it's such a 40% that's alive. 36.

[Clint Romesha]

And right now I think we've got.

[Eli Double Tap]

1400 living like that were issued from.

[Clint Romesha]

Civil War till now that ever lived.

[Eli Double Tap]

In the last 200 years. Yeah. You've had 1440 people actually alive receive that. To put that in perspective of how rare that is again, out of how many? 30 million. You were saying 26 million.

[Clint Romesha]

It was like 26, 28 million.

[Brandon Herrera]

I think that when you were saying that the Medal of Honor was first created in the Civil War.

[Clint Romesha]

Yes. Came out of the Civil War after the Andrew Raiders they stole a local locomotive from the south, ran it up north, destroying the rail lines.

[Brandon Herrera]

The was. Was that the Great Locomotive Chase?

[Clint Romesha]

Yep.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah. Okay.

[Clint Romesha]

And that was. I want to say I think the. The Navy was a first. First awarded or developed it. Then the army came then because each branch of service has their own.

[Brandon Herrera]

I did not know that.

[Clint Romesha]

Yep.

[Brandon Herrera]

It still to this day.

[Clint Romesha]

Yep. So each. Each of the three branch or not three branches, but the Army Army, Marines and Navy have their own. And their designs are a little different. Of course. Navy, Marine, Coast Guard fall under that Air Force now I think can incorporate the Space Force. And then the army's had theirs.

[Brandon Herrera]

I would love to see what kind of shit you got to do to get a Medal of Honor in the Space Force.

[Donut Operator]

Oh, that's gonna be rad. You fuckin alien.

[Clint Romesha]

You're Ripley.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah, exactly. Wait.

[Donut Operator]

The alien fucks you.

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh, I think you downloaded the wrong Alien movie.

[Donut Operator]

Damn it.

[Brandon Herrera]

Not again.

[Donut Operator]

No, I know the Navy's metal honor is a giant penis. So other than that, I don't know what the other branches would be.

[Brandon Herrera]

I'm actually. I'm learning a lot. I didn't know that about each branch having their own Medal of Honor. It would help me learn it a lot better though if you put this into a concise PowerPoint.

[Clint Romesha]

Project it back.

[Brandon Herrera]

I would really absorb that information a.

[Donut Operator]

Lot more if we could just get our PowerPoint behind a sea lion. Everything we're going to charge a lot.

[Clint Romesha]

Of money for that next slide.

[Eli Double Tap]

Overcharge. This is lots of money dumped into that. Okay. Until we'll get so much viewership once we turn to power slides.

[Clint Romesha]

And this is what I don't know.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah, they so each.

[Clint Romesha]

What was that going in? You don't want to know what the internal monologue was.

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh, I would love to.

[Clint Romesha]

Moving on.

[Eli Double Tap]

The audience out there. I'd also love that.

[Clint Romesha]

Just thinking of a Tuscan Raider with an ak.

[Eli Double Tap]

The sand people.

[Brandon Herrera]

Those fucking Sanurica. That's so harsh. My thing is, anything can be a slur. If you put you.

[Eli Double Tap]

I'm just saying.

[Clint Romesha]

Oh, God, that Tosh skit.

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh, yeah.

[Donut Operator]

Oh, my God, you spoon faces.

[Brandon Herrera]

He's just making up slurs and he's got like a panel. Yeah, the panel. Who finds this up, Raise your hand if you find this offensive. Made up slurs.

[Eli Double Tap]

We're going dirty.

[Brandon Herrera]

San Urukai. Anybody find that offensive?

[Clint Romesha]

Raise the hands.

[Eli Double Tap]

Spoon face does sound very weird in the back.

[Brandon Herrera]

Hands, hands. Show me those hands. All right.

[Clint Romesha]

Not you, Anakin.

[Brandon Herrera]

Hand.

[Eli Double Tap]

Jesus. I never know. I'm like, where do we go? I was like, I put it back on. The story pass is like, here. We've had our nice fun breaks.

[Brandon Herrera]

It's always funny seeing the graph of, like where a conversation goes and unsubscribes, like, where you think it's going. Where it goes. Michael J.

[Clint Romesha]

Fox, draw that line.

[Brandon Herrera]

It's my favorite quote, I think, from his book. He's like, advantages of having Parkinson's. Like, I don't have to buy an electric toothbrush. He's like, I just put toothpaste on the motherfucker and let it go.

[Clint Romesha]

Gotta look at the positives.

[Brandon Herrera]

Always look on the bright side of life, you know?

[Eli Double Tap]

Holy sh. Oh, he's living his best life. Okay, we'll go back on too. Wait. Okay. I know you like how we can. You kind of talked about it. You're telling a story you've told many times. You've gave a different accounts of it. Even here, like, hey, at the end of it, this is my buddies. This is where they were placed. And then you. Because your actions throughout that is going into a leadership position. You were. How much of a leadership role were you before that event?

[Clint Romesha]

So I had been the senior scout in that scout platoon and section sergeant for four years. I was not an overachiever.

[Eli Double Tap]

I'm fine here, brother. They would ask you to go up.

[Clint Romesha]

Well, well. And so that day, I was the acting platoon sergeant because our platoon sergeant had already rotated Back on mature leave.

[Eli Double Tap]

No. Oh, wow. If you. Okay. For people in the military that deployed, that is fucking wild to have that happen during mid tour leave for a NCO in that position.

[Clint Romesha]

And. Well, the double entendre of that, I hope I'm using that correctly, was my lieutenant.

[Eli Double Tap]

I dropped out of high school.

[Clint Romesha]

My lieutenant was the on the scene commander that day because our troop commander, Stoney Portis got taken away the night before and he was a brand new lieutenant. First time over overseas, he ended up being the on the scene commander.

[Eli Double Tap]

So for anyone out there, this is a mad Cody for you guys here. Imagine. Fuck. How do I put this in turn it. What the.

[Clint Romesha]

You put in the backup quarterback. And this is like if we had.

[Brandon Herrera]

Shane Gillis on the podcast and none of the core hosts were here.

[Eli Double Tap]

I. Yeah, almost. I mean, yeah, you're. You're having these individuals that have.

[Clint Romesha]

You're. You've been here.

[Eli Double Tap]

We've been here forever. Forever. We have Chase, actually. Good example. Chase is just editing for a day. He comes to the podcast like, hey, we're tapping out. And then all of a sudden it's like, we need a podcast done. And then also we just hired a brand new person that no one's ever heard of. And then they also have to then step into a leader position and be like, hi, hello. You all have to record a podcast. This is your manager stepping away for two weeks with like, it's a preconceived two weeks, but then a new manager, that is secondary is stepping up also at the same time that you just met that day. That is how that works.

[Clint Romesha]

It is.

[Eli Double Tap]

Brand new bosses are in this role. One you kind of know.

[Clint Romesha]

Yep.

[Eli Double Tap]

You being that one. But it is a somebody not meant for that. To stand up and be like, hey, now you're in control of everyone. Plus, this new dude is also standing up in control of everyone.

[Donut Operator]

Your analogy makes me angry.

[Eli Double Tap]

It should. This is. I mean, it is. I don't. It's probably because I did it bad. But also it's new people just standing up.

[Donut Operator]

No, the analogy in general makes me angry that you didn't explain that better to me because I'm a.

[Brandon Herrera]

He's just.

[Clint Romesha]

No, I understand.

[Brandon Herrera]

Exactly. He's just bad. You're talking.

[Eli Double Tap]

He's like, you stop. I got hit with a beer.

[Donut Operator]

No, that's Brandon.

[Brandon Herrera]

The Browns are talking again.

[Clint Romesha]

Jesus Christ, dude.

[Donut Operator]

I'm surrounded by again.

[Eli Double Tap]

Why do they talk?

[Clint Romesha]

So you wonder why I don't talk. All these brown people.

[Brandon Herrera]

I can speak English, God damn it.

[Donut Operator]

You can Speak American. That'd be really cool. Guess who's in office now.

[Brandon Herrera]

Gonna load you up in that trebuchet over the wall.

[Eli Double Tap]

You divorced? Me and Brandon.

[Donut Operator]

T minus two months.

[Eli Double Tap]

You Brownie. I'm so happy.

[Donut Operator]

Anyways, officers suck no matter what branch they're in.

[Eli Double Tap]

That's a synopsis. It is putting people in charge. It's like one kind of knows, but it's not to that level. And the other is a brand new guy that's just like thrown into the.

[Donut Operator]

They just, they just off and left you.

[Eli Double Tap]

They don't have a chance. It's, it's, it's actually, man.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, it's not like I said, it's one of those things. When things go bad, it's not just because one or two things happen. It's a multitude of things. And, and Butterman, who is my lieutenant, so he was a senior officer for us on Combat Outpost Keating at the time. And because we had leave and stuff and guys rotating through, it's just the way it happened to be. And the day before, Stony Portis, our new commander, had just gotten there. He was taking over the troop. He was doing sensitive item inventories. Goes up to OP Fritchy helicopter gets shot at. They won't bring him back to us. He calls up Bunderman the night before and he's like, hey, you've got the outpost until I get back in about a day so. And then 06:00 in the morning the next day, that's when Bunderman all of a sudden is. He's the commander. Like I said, he had been, he'd been in for. Well, we had the advantage that we worked together in that train up going to Afghanistan for almost a year, which was pretty rare to have an officer that long, especially in a platoon leader position. But you know, it's one of those things you just, you don't think you're going to be that guy until you're that guy. And Bunderman ended up being our guy. And I'll tell you, to this day, I wouldn't have anybody else in that tactical operations center besides him. I mean, it came to the point at one time, I remember going in and he's, he's sitting there and he's got like this book. He's reading this book. And of course I'm like, hey, sir, what the you doing reading a book? We're kind of, we're kind of getting shot at right now. Dumb lieutenant. And as he looks up, I can see he's reading the Army's call for fire manual. And he's like, hey, I'm about to start bringing 500 pounders 100 meters away from our position. There's, like, a good 90% chance because of sitting in that. That bowl, it'll probably land on us. And I just remember looking at it. I'm like, I'd rather it be our bombs than theirs. And he's like, okay. And he started. Him and Schroed started calling in 500 pounders, dropping them 100 meters away, because they also knew that the Taliban was trying to get in tight on us. And typically, coalition forces wouldn't call for artillery or indirect fire on yourself. But because of them doing that, it gave us just enough breathing room. They couldn't continue to kind of tighten that noose around us. And it was at risk versus reward. And I know, like, what a freaking. What a pair of balls you got to do to do something like that. And. And Butterman had those balls, big brass ones that bang them together in stormy weather and.

[Eli Double Tap]

Make that sound. That is. Again, that is a good. And it's a butter bar. At that time.

[Clint Romesha]

No. He'd been promoted to first lieutenant by then.

[Eli Double Tap]

First lieutenant. So in. In the military for a year. So this is for reference. You have been in college for four years, and then you are in service one year, and now you are doing that kind of level of call. You're like, hey, you're. When your NCOs are telling you, it's like, what the are you doing? Because a lot of officers, Cat, even captains, you're listening to your nco, you're listening to your higher enlistment listed, and be like, hey, like, what should I do right now? And for him to be like, I'm calling for fire for Jay Dames, I'm assuming. Yeah, yeah, in a hundred.

[Brandon Herrera]

At a hundred yards.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah.

[Clint Romesha]

Yep.

[Brandon Herrera]

Is wild.

[Eli Double Tap]

Those we've talked about in the podcast, like, we'd be in the strikers, like, call for fire. We'd call jdams in to drop bombs on, like, bridges or houses, and we'd all stand up 500 yards away and like, oh, wow.

[Clint Romesha]

Feel that. Yeah.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah. And you guys are like, yo, don't worry. You don't have to look. It's gonna. You're gonna see wherever this bitch lands.

[Clint Romesha]

So he was so ballsy that he might. Because, you know, we'd gotten our radios taken out. They knocked out our generator, so our FM comms were. Didn't exist anymore. So we were talking most of the day on Taxat. And of course, anybody in the world that's tuned into Taxat can listen in. And in fact, a lot of. A lot of the. Our former. Former buddies and rear detachment guys back at Fort Carson were hearing all the radio transmissions live and in real time back at Fort Carson, because the only link we had for help was on the Afghanistan's tactical satellite frequency. No. Yeah, so Bunderman's talking on that, and he might have said, allegedly, shake and bake the village of Armul. And he brought in a B1 bomber. As we discovered that Larson and Carter were still alive with Mace. He brought in a B1 bomber to give some bomb support and coverage as they grabbed Mace to bring him back to the aid station with the B1 that went Winchester 800 meters away from our position. And I think a B1, the bone carries, like, 26,000 pounds of munition.

[Donut Operator]

They just dumped it.

[Clint Romesha]

They just dumped it on that village. And I'm gonna caveat. That village was cleared out. The Taliban had kicked all the civilians out of there, taking that town over that morning. There were no civilians in that village. It was all enemy. But he dropped literally 26,000 pounds of bombs in the village of our mole to give Larson and Carter that freedom. Freedom of maneuver to get Mace back to the aid station.

[Eli Double Tap]

Because you got a call saying, like, hey. Because you thought you lost both, like, two individuals. And then you got a call, it's like, hey, we have them still. And you're like, what the.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, we'd been cut off. Like I said, things went from bad to worse. And at that point, when we started the counter assault, we had been cut off from Larson, Gallegos, and those guys out to the west for, like, six, seven hours at that point, thought they were all gone. Thought the enemy had either taken their bodies or, you know, the worst was happening. And as we pushed up, got to the ammo supply point, kicked the enemy off that, opened that up to feed everybody else ammo, and then got up to the front gate area. We're sitting there kind of in a holding pattern, waiting to make our next push, when we get the call, thinking that Larson, who I'd served with on my second Iraq deployment, and like I said, me and him were, I mean, boys. Actually, I just seen him last week in Omaha.

[Eli Double Tap]

What's up, bro?

[Clint Romesha]

Actually, I'm gonna. I'm gonna give a highlight story. So that was October 3rd. Larson just had his youngest son, Solomon, October 3rd of this year. Nice to tie back in. You know, great things still happen coming into the future. So when he gets a look at October 3rd. Now he gets to look at his son Solomon and think. Look at. Look at the great things that are happening. But to caveat back, thought Larson had long been dead. I said, love that brother to death. Thought he was just over and done with. Hadn't heard from him in hours and hours and hours. And then I get the call on the radio. Bunderman's like, you won't believe this, but Larson and Carter are still alive. Mace is badly wounded. If you can provide covering fire to the north, I'm going to bring in a B1 bomber to the village of our mool to the west. And as soon as the bombs. As soon as you hear the bombs drop, when they call shot over, over the radio, push out, provide covering fire to the north, and they'll bring Mace back. And sure, we hear shot over, waiting for splash, we push out, start engaging, off to the north, and bombs start hitting. I mean, it's like it was like being in the freaking bass drum at a Metallica concert. Like it was lifting all those bombs hit and was just lifting that rooftop off that building we were trying to take, take us kind of some cover. And then Larson and Carter come running through with Mace on a stretcher. Larson gets back to the aid station, calls me up a few minutes later, and he's like, hey, medics have checked me out. They say, I'm good to go. Where you at? And what do you need? Like I said, this is. What am. I just. I remember this moment so vividly after he said all the other stuff that has gone on is Larson calling me up and saying, hey, where are you at? What do you need? And I'm like, it's been a long day. I'm kind of thirsty, and I haven't had a cigarette yet. And like, five minutes later, here comes Larson with a 12 pack of Dr. Pepper under one arm and a carton of Camelites. And he shows up, and we give each other just a big ass hug, open up the. The Dr. Peppers, crack one of those, start drinking, spark up a smoke. And it was like, okay, this is gonna be. We're gonna make it out of there. Like that moment, just sitting there and that sure building. I mean, there's still going on. I just was like, just gonna be all right.

[Brandon Herrera]

I don't think people understand, like, the average person understands the level of ordinance you're talking about. 26, 000 pounds of bombs, for one. But the other that I'm still hung up on is you're talking about dropping a 500 pounder of high explosives, a football field away from you. Yeah, that's insane to me. Like, that's. That is. There's danger close and then there's. Whatever the fuck that is.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, well, so danger close, I mean is. You think about it. For every pound of explosive, you want a yard of distance. That's kind of the rule of thumb though.

[Eli Double Tap]

So you're well.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah.

[Eli Double Tap]

You are well beyond danger. Clothes. Holy. And these are like.

[Brandon Herrera]

That's like. Eat an avocado. At the end of the day distance.

[Clint Romesha]

Like, it's a very distinct taste.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah, I just like. It is so military. In that midst of everything, you're just like, oh man, it's Dr. Pepper.

[Clint Romesha]

Smoke Dog.

[Eli Double Tap]

That cherry just burning bright. And you don't give a.

[Clint Romesha]

That's middle of the day.

[Eli Double Tap]

Snipers can't see me. I don't think. I don't give a.

[Clint Romesha]

They haven't hit me yet. This lung cancer. This lung cancer is gonna get me.

[Eli Double Tap]

Same mindset across everything when you're in that situation. Like, I don't give a. This.

[Clint Romesha]

Sucks so bad. They're gonna have to drag my body back. I'm too tired to walk to shoot me right now.

[Eli Double Tap]

Holy. Dude. That is. I mean. And then it is. How long was that actual full engagement for everything to be done before they were like, hey. Because they were inside the camp at the.

[Clint Romesha]

They were inside basically within the first hour.

[Eli Double Tap]

That's. They are inside the COB at this point. That's what's crazy is it's not like they're pushing in. They are already inside having these battles inside the cob. Yeah. And you're. How big is the cob in total?

[Clint Romesha]

You're talking about the whole cop was east to west was the longest, maybe about 200 meters. And then north to south was maybe about 125 to 150 meters. So not a very big. Not a very big space.

[Eli Double Tap]

And they're already inside the wire at that.

[Clint Romesha]

And like I said, within that first hour they breached with by kind of that two hours. They had started burning down most of the buildings. We only owned Red Platoon barracks, the tactical operations center and the aid station for most the day.

[Eli Double Tap]

You said it was like 30 or 40% was under your control. The rest was under enemy.

[Clint Romesha]

Enemy control. They cut us off from, like I said, the mortar position out to the west. We had. We'd lost contact with S. Brading and his guys out there. Cut us off from Gallegos. Breached that whole front gate. And then toward the east was where we had about 35 Afghanistan Afghan army guys. And that was kind of their side of the base. First contact, most of those guys just dropped their weapons and walked away. So left that whole east and that's where the first breach came through was a whole eastern side. They just walked on through because there was no, no one there to defend it other than we had Copus, who was one of our young specialists. He ended up being the only gun left in the fight that day. On a mark 19, holding off that whole eastern side of the camp. Damn. He sat in that Humvee for 14, 15 hours and most of the time by himself. Just because we couldn't really put. Normally would put someone kind of out there by him to help provide like some covering fire when he was reloading, but in the position you had to normally kind of, you could get away with putting him in. Was so triangulated and surrounded, anybody outside of that up armored Humvee was going to get blasted. Copas at least had the advantage of, and I use that term loosely, advantage of being in that up armored Humvee. Setting down low enough they just couldn't quite shoot over the kind of side rails of the turret to kind of finish him off if they had the chance. And like I said, he sat there for 14 hours. Lost radio comms three or four times. He thought he was the only person still alive on the outpost for a few hours. And Jesus. But, and I. Like I said, no one would ever blamed him for being like, well, you guys, I'm going home. Let me, let me sneak back to go find someone else still alive or someone to talk to me or anything. He. He literally sat there just slinging rounds. Yeah. All day. God, just, just like, let me load this bitch again.

[Eli Double Tap]

She's being a dirty whore today.

[Brandon Herrera]

I haven't made it to the 64 round mark. When they yell at me.

[Clint Romesha]

63, I'm good. That fourth one that comes with the.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yelling, that's the son of a bitch.

[Eli Double Tap]

I don't want him to get in trouble now. Holy. And then at what point, because you also took a. It was the RPG shrapnel or what hit you and then it was in your arm. I do. Yeah.

[Clint Romesha]

The right side. So we. It came to a point, like I said, things were going from bad to worse. Still had contact with Gallegos and Larson and them out toward the west on that Lraz too. They'd already. Larson had already gotten the 50 cal blown out of his hands by an RPG. No longer operable. The 240 that was out there that supported two had long ran out of ammo. And basically those five guys were just in that Humvee kind of holding on. So myself and specialist Gregory had a machine gun, Mark 48. And we were able to sneak, sneak over and look out toward the west. We only had about 200 rounds because like I said, we'd already been cut off from the ammo supply point. This was kind of the last of the ammo we had left for that gun. And threw that up on the like the 60k generator and had guy had Gregory feeding the gun for me. And I remember just looking out and this is like, this is probably like the first 30 to 45 minutes into the fight at this point and looking out toward the west. And I mean you could just see they're like ants coming down the hill. I mean every direction you're looking, there's yuck. They don't run fast.

[Brandon Herrera]

They weren't sending the best. They're shooting at our pod racers. Little Annie, great guy.

[Eli Double Tap]

Sorry.

[Brandon Herrera]

I feel like that needed a little levity.

[Clint Romesha]

So, so open up and like coming, coming like ants down the hill. And it's just going from target to target to target. Just. There was. There's so much going on. It's like I'll just start aiming that way and going to hit something. And that time I'm. I'm sitting there and trying to call Ghos and them still got FM comms. And it's like, hey, you guys need to move. You can move, move now. Providing covering fire. And Gallegos is just coming back and he's like, brother, you can't bring enough fire. Like we need close air support. We need mortar rounds. We need more than just one machine gun.

[Brandon Herrera]

If just for reference, sorry to interrupt but if like, what's the rough, like the count of enemies at that point? Like how many, how many dudes are you guys going up against versus yourself at that point?

[Clint Romesha]

I mean the ratio, I guess it would have been just looking at, thinking of the targets. I mean there had to been over 50 on that west side going against, you know, R1 machine gun. But they got the high ground, they got cover. I know, I know. After everything was all said and done, they, they said it was probably about 400 fighters that hit, hit us that day.

[Eli Double Tap]

And then what was your total capacity on the base?

[Clint Romesha]

We were sitting at 50Americans and 2 Latvia ins.

[Eli Double Tap]

That's what's insane. You have like that many. And it's not. This is, this is firearms and people that are used to fighting in that terrain.

[Clint Romesha]

Well, and, I mean, those guys, they're. Those weren't like, you're just, hey, let me grab an AK and show up today. And supporters.

[Eli Double Tap]

They're not sporters.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, they are. They're sitting there and they're fixing you. And you can see them try to flank your left. They're flank. Because that's what ended up happening is were engaging out toward the west, trying to get Gallegos and them to move. Didn't realize that they'd breached that front gate just off to our right. And they snuck in an RPG RPG team just to our right, maybe 30 yards away.

[Eli Double Tap]

Holy.

[Clint Romesha]

And luckily they. That RPG was made on a Friday or something at the end of work, because they touch it off and it. It comes in just a little low, and the generator takes most of the blast, so blows me over onto Gregory. We kind of fall down, Remember grabbing him, kind of picking him up, dusting him off. Hey, are you good? You know, he can still move and stuff. And told him, just take off, run it, bud. And I grabbed the machine gun, threw it back up on what was left of the generator, Took care of the problem to the. To the north, out by the front gate. He takes off. I throw in the next. The last hundred rounds we got. I just remember calling back to Gregory, and I'm like, brother, you guys have got to move, and you got to move now. I cannot hold this position. I'm out of. I'm almost out of ammo. And I'm just sitting there, just trying to lay it down as hard as I can. And Gallego's just calling back, and he's like, brother, we can't go anywhere. They got us pinned too hard. I mean, they were just getting pounded from every which way. Like I said, I just remember his last little. A little bit of ammo comes through that feed tray cover and give them the last call. It's like, if you don't leave now, if you don't move now, you've got to move now. And he just calls back and he just gives a simple, well, be here when you get here, brother. Like, he just kind of knew that that was going to be what it was, and it was just shitty because it's like, man, these roles were reversed. I know this. This mother was coming to get me. And I just felt like I abandoned him at that point because, like, I always had a good mindset of. You know, I used to tell my guys, like, dead bodies attract more dead bodies. I don't want you coming out and try to Save someone, kill the enemy first. Because if you don't kill them and eliminate the threat, if you go out there in a blaze of glory, oh, let me go help my buddy that's down, you're just going to be the next guy down. So kill the enemy first. As much as it sucks to sit there and listen to your buddy say, hey, help me, come save me, it makes no tactical sense to do that until you've eliminated the threat. And at that point, I knew I was. I wasn't going to go run across 200 meters to go or 150 meters to go find Gallegos and try to drag them back. It was just like, I don't have a machine gun anymore. My position's compromised, and I'm gonna go displace back and figure something else out. But just to hear him say, we'll be here when you get here, knew, you know, gave me that reassurance that he knew I would eventually, if I could still do it, come back to get him.

[Eli Double Tap]

This hard part of leadership, it is. It's that making the right call, because you have to say it, is that it is the hardest part of leadership is that single moment where, thank God, a lot of people do not have to go through it, is the hard choice. It's like, hey, you want to no matter what? It's like, hey, I want to do this. It's just strategically the worst option. And that's where you have to, like, you have to bite that bullet and live with it. But understand it is the right choice. At the end of the day, there's.

[Clint Romesha]

As I used to say, like, there's. There's no right choices sometimes. But even a bad choice is a better, better than no choice. Like to make no decision to make. No kind of decisive movement will get you killed every time. Or at least a bad choice or a bad decision. You can hopefully learn from that. But at least you're doing something to make a difference. And I mean, Butterman again, going back to him when he had to make that call of Alamo position. He knew he was going to be isolating like nine guys when he made that call. It's like, anybody that can hear this, you get back to these three buildings and we'll hold these. But if you don't get back, I'm sorry, we can't send anybody out. We're literally cutting off the mortar position. We're cutting off L. R.A.S. 2. Like, you've got to get back. And if he wouldn't have made that call, and I know that. That weighs heavily, like you said on a leader, to sit there and be like, do I continue to try to try to fight this kind of broken shamble of stuff, or do I make that call to say, hey, if you can make it back, you make it back. If you don't, you don't. But at least the guys I get back, I can figure out where to go with them next.

[Brandon Herrera]

Where the right call is still objectively shitty.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, I mean, yeah, there's no. There's no right call, but you got to make a call.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah, there's the hardest part in any of that stuff, and being able to. To do that, even for him, like, what that means he was in for a year at that point. You were in six years.

[Clint Romesha]

No, I was in shadows.

[Eli Double Tap]

You were a decade at that point.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, I was a. Yeah, I was the old guy. I was like, I was a whole 20, 28 years old back then.

[Eli Double Tap]

Which Wild. Making those decisions at that age.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, Bunnerman, he had been. Well, he had been in headquarters, Headquarters troop before coming to us. So he did have a little more time than the average lieutenant did. But, I mean, yeah, he'd probably only been in it maybe three years from the time he got done with ROTC to Bullock and all his officer training stuff. I mean, three years to make those kind of decisions. It's a lot.

[Eli Double Tap]

And then not especially officer side. You don't know what you're getting attached to. You're just thrown to the winds of military. And then was he. Did he even have his Ranger tab yet? Perhaps, or. No.

[Clint Romesha]

Butterman was not a. I love that.

[Eli Double Tap]

Guy to death, but you're like, homeboy made some right choices. Ranger school was not one of the ones he was going to make.

[Clint Romesha]

He. He was one of the greatest lieutenants I ever had. Because when he showed up, he showed up. He's like, I got a history. I've got a. A major in history. I like to party and have fun. If you guys don't make me look like an. I'll make sure all the paperwork's taken care of. Great officer right there. Like, he was not going to be the next General Patton or he came in for. To. To do his time to get his college paid for and then move on.

[Eli Double Tap]

That's wild. And then closing that up, you got. How bad was your personal wound? Like, because you took shrapnel from the rpg. And then you were just. You were good to. You were like, still fighting with that afterwards and just like, hey, yeah, it.

[Clint Romesha]

Was just kind of a peppering on the right side. The major thing was just kind of a hole in the forearm. It wasn't a through and through. It just kind of was there.

[Brandon Herrera]

That was. That was shrapnel.

[Clint Romesha]

Yep.

[Brandon Herrera]

Okay.

[Clint Romesha]

Shrapnel from the rpg. And then, of course, just a lingering of. They still come out every now and again in the shower. It's like.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah, it's a little.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, sorry.

[Eli Double Tap]

It's funny.

[Clint Romesha]

What's up?

[Eli Double Tap]

It's funny. Crispy. All the dudes, it's like they. Like, if they've been blown up by an ID or something, it is like, oh, yeah, it's still. It slowly pops out and you're like.

[Clint Romesha]

As more time has gone on, less has came out. And it's like, oh, I'm glad. Most of that generator cowling, though, was freaking aluminum, because that's Don Ferris and it doesn't detect in a metal detector very well.

[Brandon Herrera]

You just get stopped by tsa, like, look, it is a long story.

[Eli Double Tap]

So you just fought on right after that. You're like, okay, slight pad up and then push it through.

[Clint Romesha]

When I. When I came back, like I said, finished up that 100 rounds, the last we had, and I tried to. Or I started displacing back to the barracks. And that's where my other buddy raz, like this 6 foot 5 Minnesotan, he's kind of standing there kind of by the 6. 5. Jesus. He's a big fucker. That's why I would put him as number one guy on the stack team, so he could absorb all the balls. These are the tactics. These are the tactics.

[Donut Operator]

Good luck.

[Clint Romesha]

He was the one that, when I came down, displacing back, sitting there, just trying to get a quick sit rep. And he's like. Looks down at me and he's like, you got a hole in your arm, dude. And I look and I'm like, oh, shit. So then he pulls out my Israeli dressing, stops the bleeding, gets it all wrapped up, and then we fast forward. It's like an hour or two later, and I'm sitting there in the tactical operations center, still trying to figure out what's going on next. And all of a sudden, I can't feel my hand anymore. So I'm sitting there trying to manipulate my fingers to get them working again. And First Sergeant Burton comes over and he's like, hey, are you all right? And I'm like, I don't know. My fucking. I don't think my hand's working anymore. And he goes, let me look at it. And he pulls my hand to the side. And he starts unwrapping my Israeli dressing. And he goes, who the fuck put this on you? I'm like, well, Raz did. He's like. He knows this is a dressing, not a tourniquet. He had put it on so tight that I was losing the use of my hand because of circulation, not because.

[Brandon Herrera]

Of the tree looking at. Thank God it's all aluminum, otherwise the MRI would be real awkward.

[Eli Double Tap]

You make him do push ups. No, smoke the mid.

[Clint Romesha]

How many times have we. You put two feet on that as you're tugging at.

[Eli Double Tap]

Like, J. Oh, that feels way better. Thank God it's my right arm that I use everything.

[Clint Romesha]

We call that the finisher. The left is a sustainer.

[Brandon Herrera]

You've unlocked the mysterious stranger perk.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh. Oh, holy shit. This is where I want to transition to. You actually brought this. You actually introduced it by throwing it Brandon. Before you even shook his hand.

[Brandon Herrera]

Hell of an introduction, by the way.

[Clint Romesha]

That's.

[Brandon Herrera]

Pleasure to meet you.

[Eli Double Tap]

Would you. Would you get tossed at, Brandon?

[Brandon Herrera]

I don't know. It just came at me so fast. I know. It's like a legitimate. Well, a replica, right?

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah, we'll go into that after because.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah, you get the. What is the real one? What occasions would you use that? Just like, if you're actually in formal event or.

[Clint Romesha]

No. So the original one's the one that the President gives you, and then you get the. The duplicate as a backup. Right. For me, my original. I donated it back to 4th ID, so it's setting at 4th ID division headquarters. Oh, that's why I rocked the duplicate, because I don't. I don't have the original anymore.

[Eli Double Tap]

Fourth. You could send that to the unsubscribe podcast. We put it back there, like. Yeah, now it's ours. Go yourself, Clay.

[Brandon Herrera]

That little guy.

[Donut Operator]

Don't worry about that.

[Eli Double Tap]

That's Brandon.

[Brandon Herrera]

Fuck off. No, that's. That's. That's actually really cool. I didn't know what the protocol was, like, what. What people did with it.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, that's. Like I said, you only get. You only get issued a total of two. And like I said, the. The first one that's issued has your. Your name, your rank, your location of action, and then the date it was issued. And that's the one that I keep hitting this damn microphone. That's the one the President actually puts around you. And then the Duke gets as a backup.

[Brandon Herrera]

Are you able to buy more duplicates later? Like, if you lost it, you can.

[Clint Romesha]

Get more ribbons, but the actual award itself. No. Got it.

[Eli Double Tap]

No, at you.

[Brandon Herrera]

Now I feel really good that I caught it.

[Eli Double Tap]

He was surprised he caught it.

[Clint Romesha]

But they.

[Eli Double Tap]

Wow, you caught it.

[Clint Romesha]

But they do have an FBI task force though. If it gets lost or stolen, that will go trackable. Yep.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, no, no.

[Donut Operator]

So if you're mad at someone, you'll.

[Brandon Herrera]

Just leave it in there?

[Donut Operator]

Just like leave it in their car.

[Brandon Herrera]

It's not a Apple air tag, but.

[Eli Double Tap]

Like, well, it is. It's not.

[Clint Romesha]

So last year that might have happened where I'd met. I'd met a National Guard first sergeant. We were at the Masters and we'd met after going to the Masters, having a great time, hanging out, and I decided to drop it into his gift bag, thinking he was coming back to where we were having this after party out. I didn't realize he was driving 45 minutes in a different direction.

[Eli Double Tap]

I love how much you don't give a fuck where.

[Clint Romesha]

We might have had to call him. And it's like, hey, I can't remember the kid's name. I'm so terrible. Space. And I'm like, hey, where's first? Our night. I thought he was going to be here. Like, oh, no, he had to go back home at the. I was like, oh, well, he might have my medal of honor in his gift bag. So needless to say, he had to drive two hours out of his way just for my question.

[Brandon Herrera]

You, hey, where's your gift?

[Eli Double Tap]

The better part. No, first, aren't you call. It's going to be like you back. They're like, who? Who? A big who, Clint. It's like, mother, where's your gift bag?

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh, I threw it away, man. Why? Why are you asking?

[Clint Romesha]

I don't know. Left it a while ago. Needless to say, we didn't have to call the FBI on that one.

[Eli Double Tap]

That's wild.

[Brandon Herrera]

You could have though.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah, self inflicted.

[Brandon Herrera]

This man stole this money.

[Clint Romesha]

He looked at. Holy stolen valor. He wasn't one of those Force Valor guys.

[Brandon Herrera]

Those guys, man.

[Eli Double Tap]

He was stolen. Not one of them. For a true American era.

[Brandon Herrera]

He did literally, for a period of two hours, steal valor.

[Clint Romesha]

Well, is it really stealing if it's unbeknownst, then it's forced. No.

[Eli Double Tap]

He got you. Yeah, he got you. And that's why.

[Clint Romesha]

Force valor once again, I just like.

[Eli Double Tap]

You're like, got this motherfucker and you dropped it. And they're like, yo, where's that dude at?

[Clint Romesha]

It's like, where's fursaurnet? And they're like, oh, he went back home. Where does he live? Oh, like an hour north of Augusta. I was like, oh, we're not even close to there. We're south.

[Eli Double Tap]

Hey, bro, about that. Now one of my favorite things is you bring it everywhere. Wadded up in your pocket.

[Clint Romesha]

It has gone through the wash more times than it should have.

[Eli Double Tap]

Love it. You guys wonder why I love this man? Moments like that, ever since I met you, he was just like, you have been who you are, which is an amazing human. And you brought today. You tossed it to Brandon, so Brandy caught it.

[Brandon Herrera]

Thank God. Yeah, I would have felt like the biggest asshole in the world, which I'm pretty sure is white threw it, but, well.

[Clint Romesha]

And I tried to hum chuck it. I tried to ear hole you like a hockey goalie to get that glove side up, but you're surprisingly got quick hands.

[Brandon Herrera]

A little nimble. Quick hands is what they used to call me in high school for sure. When did you actually get. Get it awarded? Like, what year was that?

[Clint Romesha]

It was February of 2013.

[Brandon Herrera]

Okay, gotcha. Okay, so you've. You've managed to keep up with this one for 11 years?

[Clint Romesha]

Yep. Same one, had to do quick math there.

[Eli Double Tap]

It's plastic. He 3D printed it. He's, like, lost that years ago.

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh, this? That's just the one I got on ebay.

[Eli Double Tap]

Do you want to pull it out real quick?

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah.

[Brandon Herrera]

Well, I mean, you want him to whip it out on the podcast?

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, yeah. Whip that bitch out. YouTube. Blur this. Dude, I love that was in your pocket. God damn.

[Clint Romesha]

Pass it around.

[Eli Double Tap]

We'll pass it around. Brandon, you're gonna wear this thumbnail for the thumbnail. He's pinning this on you. And then we got a double salute you.

[Brandon Herrera]

Hey, you guys, man, do you want.

[Eli Double Tap]

This joke to die or not? This is how the joke.

[Brandon Herrera]

I know what I have to do. I just don't know if I have the strength to do it.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, God, Dude, I just need one. It is so wild compared to every other military, Even the Distinguished service Cross, which is like the second highest one, and you're like, oh, they're downgrading it. And then you're like, why? Oh, they're supposed to downgrade it. I thought it was going to silver star. And then you walk in, you're like, what the. Because in basic. Don't lie. Basic training, you looked and you're like, that's crazy.

[Clint Romesha]

Yeah. Like, coming up through the ranks, you're always thinking, like, oh, metal. That's a Audie Murphy. That's. I mean, just bigger than life. These. These heroes and warriors that you think about that, you know, the Desmond Dosses. And I mean, the links and the.

[Eli Double Tap]

It's hard to conceptualize like any of those stories and to be part of that story for eternity, because it's not something it's like, as you saying, like what you said. 1600. How many people have it? 1440 living. 3600 total period. Have ever had that.

[Clint Romesha]

And that. And that's the thing too, though. It's also. It's also not a popularity contest, and it's not a lifetime achievement award. That was one of the kind of reassuring, coolest things when I met some of the other recipients. They talked about, you know, just because you've received the medal doesn't mean that is your life. Learn how to say no. But you're still who you are.

[Eli Double Tap]

And that's what's crazy about it right there.

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh, gosh, no. I just need doing that myself. I just need one clip for myself wearing it saying, I got this fight in the sand. You're a guy.

[Clint Romesha]

It helms deeper.

[Eli Double Tap]

Elvin. Arvin.

[Brandon Herrera]

Even on the microphone, it makes. Makes me so uncomfortable.

[Eli Double Tap]

Your helmet's crooked.

[Brandon Herrera]

Now, homes. Deeper is where I found the guys who are remodeling my kitchen.

[Eli Double Tap]

I told you. I was like, I hope he knows what he's getting into. On this podcast. As I picture the military and that's it. We call them border your guy.

[Clint Romesha]

Border your guy. They should put up a wall for them guys.

[Eli Double Tap]

Brandon's your third one.

[Brandon Herrera]

I got nothing, man.

[Clint Romesha]

I mean, you're gonna have to go to clothing and sales to get a third Oakley cluster.

[Eli Double Tap]

And walking up.

[Clint Romesha]

I've never seen a silver Oakley cluster.

[Eli Double Tap]

For a medal of honor before shooting.

[Brandon Herrera]

Do you know how hard it is to make me speechless? I got something for everything, man. That's.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, the forest highest of valor of ever.

[Clint Romesha]

I mean, how many promotion points do you need?

[Donut Operator]

Cody, please send me that picture.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, this is what would be the best way for the thumbnail, because the thumbnail is definitely going to be you doing this. We want to recreate your photo, but he is now you. So this is immortalized in all of podcasts.

[Brandon Herrera]

You guys are having such a good.

[Clint Romesha]

Time with this man.

[Brandon Herrera]

I think I might actually be physically blushing. How much did he tell you about this?

[Clint Romesha]

Right now you look like my ex wife trying to give me a mojo. You don't even want to get close to that microphone.

[Eli Double Tap]

Holy. I'm so happy right now.

[Clint Romesha]

Oh, God.

[Brandon Herrera]

So Eli, on one throwaway bit a.

[Eli Double Tap]

Year ago, so good. It peaked.

[Brandon Herrera]

This is officially peaked.

[Eli Double Tap]

This is how we close this chapter. And all of this is going to be. How do we. How. What would be the most respectful way from your end to put it on him or do we put it on him? You let me know on the respect program, because I have zero. I gave him my purple. It's just like this. And he's like, stop. Pushed it away from me. I was like, why are you being gay?

[Brandon Herrera]

And then in that moment, Eli sensed weakness. I know how to ruin your next year.

[Eli Double Tap]

And then Chris, me and Jack, who got shot but didn't get a Purple Heart. Oh, they're trying to give you a purple Heart.

[Donut Operator]

This man that hates veterans over here, apparently.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, by the way, that was.

[Brandon Herrera]

I hate veterans so much that, you know, all of my friends are veterans. You know, that's. It's one of those.

[Eli Double Tap]

Do you know how. What they used against him for his congress run.

[Clint Romesha]

Oh, wasn't that you talking about you hate veterans that commit suicide?

[Brandon Herrera]

Or I see you watch the news.

[Eli Double Tap]

It was.

[Brandon Herrera]

I literally. I quoted a joke that Eli was like, oh, you need to make this joke. Because we. Earlier that day, we had just done a veteran suicide prevention panel. And Eli's like, hey, you need to make this joke. And I'm like, no, it's a little too far. And then I said the joke on the podcast that I didn't make while we were doing a veterans charity benefit that morning. And they clip that one. Seven seconds. They're like, look at this guy. He thinks veteran suicide is funny. I'm like, all the. All the shit I've done. Really? And now.

[Donut Operator]

Okay, that's the one. That's the clip.

[Eli Double Tap]

You're gonna use us.

[Clint Romesha]

Laughing.

[Eli Double Tap]

They cut that out. It's like. It's just. Brandon hates veterans.

[Brandon Herrera]

Like, well, when you got $12 million to spend it, you can make anything look like anything. Politics is so fun.

[Clint Romesha]

It's amazing. When are you getting back into it?

[Brandon Herrera]

Hopefully never, man.

[Clint Romesha]

Hopefully.

[Brandon Herrera]

Hopefully they just vote, right?

[Eli Double Tap]

Wait, what are we doing? Are we doing no? Are we saying no?

[Brandon Herrera]

What? To what?

[Eli Double Tap]

Are you not getting back into them? What are we doing? Brandon, Are we allowed to talk about this on the podcast? Chase is right there, so we can tell them to edit this out.

[Brandon Herrera]

Well, the funny part is the most recent thing. By the time this comes out, either is going to be a thing or it really won't be. So we'll see the ATF director thing.

[Eli Double Tap]

Which, if we had an ATF direct, the number one vote.

[Brandon Herrera]

It started very tongue in cheek and then turned very serious very quickly, which is kind of wild. I started getting A lot of calls from D.C. like, if. If the Trump camp. If the Trump administration is based enough to even consider this. I am so excited for our incoming.

[Eli Double Tap]

Administration and our tax stamps.

[Clint Romesha]

200.

[Eli Double Tap]

So dope. 200. It might be cheaper.

[Brandon Herrera]

I'll just say, I've got some ideas.

[Eli Double Tap]

I got plans. You're like, I can't wait. Metal. How would we do this for a thumbnail? What would be the most respectful rate to do that? And then do Brandon's.

[Donut Operator]

For the.

[Eli Double Tap]

For the lulz.

[Clint Romesha]

Trying to think what would be.

[Eli Double Tap]

This is why you're in the position, not me, because I just put it on. But I want to do everyone. The actual Respect brand's like, he's sweating. He's like, I was more comfortable when he was throwing it at me.

[Brandon Herrera]

Get him another drink.

[Eli Double Tap]

Stray Whiskey or a little whiskey?

[Donut Operator]

Glass of whiskey.

[Brandon Herrera]

Oh, man.

[Eli Double Tap]

Welcome to the podcast.

[Brandon Herrera]

Join my podcast. He said it'll be fun. Listen.

[Eli Double Tap]

Clint's like, why is this like, you're bearing the weight of responsibility.

[Clint Romesha]

They'll have, like, a Flavor Flav chain. We can then hang it, like, super low.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, my God, do we have a chain? We have to have a chain of some type.

[Clint Romesha]

Jake, shut the up.

[Brandon Herrera]

No, we don't. Oh, no, no.

[Eli Double Tap]

We take out the cross, and then we put it around the cross. Dude.

[Brandon Herrera]

Rosary.

[Eli Double Tap]

And then we take off the cross, and then it's very Mexican because you got rosary breeds and the metal hanging right here. Or it's way more offensive.

[Brandon Herrera]

It's one or the other.

[Eli Double Tap]

You're either gonna piss off a lot of Mexicans or a lot of veterans.

[Brandon Herrera]

You know, there's like, five or six moments where you just have that realization in life. You're like, I shouldn't be doing what I'm doing. This is one of those extra strong.

[Eli Double Tap]

God, this.

[Brandon Herrera]

Thank you.

[Eli Double Tap]

This is rusting.

[Clint Romesha]

This is. Well, we could compromise and redo it. Where we present it to your microphone, which you've been talking in for the last 12 months.

[Brandon Herrera]

The medal.

[Eli Double Tap]

Turn it around.

[Donut Operator]

We end it.

[Eli Double Tap]

We're gonna do the ceremony for it.

[Donut Operator]

We're making a joke, right?

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah, we're making a joke. So that's why I want to receive respect, because I know you're going to be big on respecting that, and I just want to respect that. So we will figure this out. And if we just put it on Brandon's mic, which will always forever be the Medal of Honor microphone, it got.

[Brandon Herrera]

The Medal of Honor for having to put up with listening to me for hundreds of hours.

[Eli Double Tap]

Do you want to pin it you can you do this, Brandon? Turn your microphone around. Nope, nope.

[Clint Romesha]

Whoa.

[Eli Double Tap]

Turn it that way. There we go.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yep.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, God. Say, say, but talk to Brandon when you do it. Wait, are we still Brandon? Yeah, this is Brandon's neck.

[Donut Operator]

Are we killing the joke right now?

[Eli Double Tap]

We're retiring. Retiring? We're not killing anything. That's too real.

[Brandon Herrera]

Jokes don't die.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah, they live on forever as. Oh, I'm so sorry, Brandon.

[Brandon Herrera]

No, you're not.

[Eli Double Tap]

I'm not.

[Clint Romesha]

Your dedication to service after receiving not only. This is your third Medal of Honor, fifth Purple Heart. This microphone that you've speaked in will forever be remembered for its heroics. Intrepidity. I don't know what word they use for that.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, dang it.

[Brandon Herrera]

At least Obama didn't give it to me. Thank you.

[Donut Operator]

Eli.

[Eli Double Tap]

Hold on.

[Donut Operator]

We haven't asked this yet. What have we raised for veterans so far?

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh, good segue. We're like 60 grand in 11 days.

[Brandon Herrera]

This is also the 12th.

[Eli Double Tap]

The 12th. 12 days. So 60 grand we have raised in 12 days. And I know that's gonna go through the roof even more in the next however many. 17 days.

[Clint Romesha]

18 days.

[Eli Double Tap]

18 days. 18 days. Oh, for this one. Never mind. It's a weakish. It's gonna be a hundred ish thousand if we do this right. Question mark. I don't know. We are killing it. All of you are killing it. Chase will put up the actual number raised for this and then. Which is awesome. Great segue. You actually have a non profit that you stand behind, which I think out of anyone that knows the trials and tribulations of veterans. Drink? I know it'd be you. So you'd have a good idea. And you actually brought the this up. You're like, hey, I support these guys because they support yourself and they support other veterans if you want to open up on them.

[Clint Romesha]

So I've been with America Warrior Partnership for six years now. It's a great organization out of Augusta, Georgia. And what really attracted me to them because of course, as a Medal of Honor recipient, you get asked to be on a lot of boards and a lot of nonprofits.

[Eli Double Tap]

Why? I'm joking.

[Clint Romesha]

Well, maybe. Maybe other ones too.

[Eli Double Tap]

I was asking Brandon's microphone.

[Clint Romesha]

But it.

[Eli Double Tap]

I just pictured the board. It's a microphone.

[Clint Romesha]

Okay. Missed the hat.

[Brandon Herrera]

It's like the sorting hat from Harry Potter. The board has deemed you Gryffindor.

[Clint Romesha]

So I've been with America Warrior Partnership for six years and what really attracted me to them is you get a lot of, you know, veteran nonprofits out there talking about stuff they're wanting to do. And the big part of AWP's initiative is we hear about ending veterans. Yes, we want to end it, but the reality of it is to get to zero isn't a realistic goal. So to decrease veterans is not a program. It's a result of doing good work. And it's not one pill solves it all. Not one magic wand you can wave to do that. And AWP has been amazing with building those relationships with veterans. Advocate when they hit obstacles, collaborate with local communities because local communities are going to solve the best problems at the lowest levels and then educate the veteran and then sit there and tear down the roadblocks that might come, that might come up as they hit them. Because it's not just a mental health issue, it's relationships, it's financial, it's access to care, it's dealing with the bureaucracy of the va. And AWP has done that along the way since I've been with them. It's been a great organization to be with because of the fact that they don't look at it, like I said, as just a program. We're going to end veterans, but we're going to decrease it by a result of outcomes.

[Eli Double Tap]

That's, I mean and that's. We're going to donate at least at minimum. Like we, as much as we raise, we're allocating 30. It was a 33% towards that non profit because again one of the individuals that knows that's dealt with the VA and then dealt with the military and then knows about hey trials, tribulations and then the PTSD and everything. Drink on that. An individual that has been through all that at every level, you are the one we want to lead. Like if you're the one waving flag like hey, this organization actually does good and needs funds. That is what we will put towards what we're doing this month. And I, I think all the guys are on board for that.

[Donut Operator]

Yeah, to be honest, we're a bunch of dip shits, dude. Like yeah here and make cum jokes. But we got amazing people, you know, like, like him coming on here and Brandon's micro. Awesome dude. Yeah.

[Clint Romesha]

We're sharing life advice about, you know, you only break two or one lot of time.

[Brandon Herrera]

You know, it's just really cool to have organizations that actually like they, they identify the root of the problem and try to help because like there's so many people, like there's still friends of mine that are active duty here in San Antonio and they're you know, they're talking about how their superiors want to do a veterans initiative. And I'm dead fucking serious. Their. Their idea was, oh, let's do a 5K and hold signs on the side like, wow, yeah, I'm sure that's doing wonders for. For veterans.

[Eli Double Tap]

People shot themselves that day.

[Brandon Herrera]

I would. You know what makes me want to not myself? Waking up at 5am to run 5, 5 kilometers.

[Eli Double Tap]

When you're depressed, you're like.

[Clint Romesha]

And that's why it shouldn't be. It shouldn't be a program. It should be a outcome of resources and.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah, yeah.

[Donut Operator]

And then just like, bros being bros. Honestly.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah, just.

[Donut Operator]

That's what we talked about on our panel in Las Vegas. Bros being bros.

[Eli Double Tap]

It's. It's what actually makes a difference. And all of you that reach out, we have had hundreds of thousands of messages to this date of like, hey, I was in a bad place, and this is what got me out of. Of that place. And that is because it is like, hanging out. What we miss, and I guarantee you can speak to. This is the camaraderie from the gang. You're just like, man, you are in. You're. You are wrapped around these guys. You are enveloped in it. And then you do that for 16 months to three years, and then suddenly it's taken away.

[Clint Romesha]

I mean, you. You can sit there and as I reflect back, like, I still know what Raz's freaking stinky feet smell like sleeping next to that guy for 12 months. It's freaking corn nuts and freaking onions. I got atrocious. And one thing I always get to brag about still to this day, knock on wood, is we have yet to lose one of the members of Red Platoon to. It's been over a decade later. Those guys went through that type of shit and are still alive today.

[Eli Double Tap]

And I bet you guys have one of the. I get. Do all of you stay in really tight?

[Clint Romesha]

We have this stupid platoon text that goes on, and 99% of the time we're just talking to each other. But it's those moments when you're like, hey, so and so isn't responding. And then we start kind of tag teaming, hey, what's going on? You know, hit up, hit them on an individual level and find out, oh, man, you're going through a divorce, you just lost your job, your car just broke down. It's maintaining those communications and building those relationships that is key because you can't just like, you can't just show up one day and expect to, like, wave that magic wand and solve those problems. It's knowing what Raz's feet smell like. It's knowing what Copus has been through. Running out his GI bill and wanting to be a be a lawyer and go back to school, but finding him help to figure that out later. And if we're not, like I said as veterans, kind of keeping the pulse on each other, we can't expect the VA to do that for us.

[Eli Double Tap]

We rely on other human connection.

[Brandon Herrera]

That's next year's Veterans Month T shirt. Bullying saves lives.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah. And it truly does.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah, there you go.

[Eli Double Tap]

I love it.

[Brandon Herrera]

That's something that I've harped on on like Darwin Award and stuff like that. Because sometimes that does come up with, you know, people just deciding to end their own lives. It's like, man, if you want to stop veterans, you don't need to necessarily donate to groups. You don't need to get agencies involved. All you have to do is pick up the phone, dude.

[Clint Romesha]

Nope.

[Brandon Herrera]

Yeah, it's free. The answer is free. So you just gotta utilize it.

[Clint Romesha]

And that's what, what I like about awp. Like I said, we're not trying to end veterans. To get it to zero is an unrealistic goal, but if we can decrease it, because there, there are going to be those times, and I'm just going to be real here, that people are going to make that choice and you're trying to put a rational explanation to an illogical result. Some people are just, that's just going to be what it's going to be. And I'm going to be real and say that like, to get it to zero is unrealistic, but if we can decrease it by continuing those relationships. And at times it's either picking up that phone, it's making that derogatory comment, it's letting each and every one of us know that we're not doing it alone. And there's always going to be someone to have your back because it's still better to be here and suffering than being gone and all of your other battle buddies over because you didn't give them the opportunity to step in and have. Have your back.

[Eli Double Tap]

What is the saying? It's a don't be a bitch. It.

[Brandon Herrera]

Permanent solution to a temporary problem.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yeah, exactly. That is, that is the saying. Because it is. It's a wild one. You have the exact opposite where it's like the guys I deployed with, you have 16k and then 28 since being back. And you're like, what the. But then it is the individuals that stopped reaching out or talking. And when you're in platoon size elements, you're like, oh, like that guy was in my company or that guy wasn't in my specific platoon and then or in my team. So you, you don't think about it. But versus you guys, you have that like super tight. Especially after that. Like that is baptism by fire.

[Clint Romesha]

On a different level it is. And that's the thing too though is like I said, there's guys we're not as tight with as other guys. There's always those clicks and a platoon. But as I sit there and like to describe them, we're all one big happy family. Not going to like you all the time. We're going to have those political discussions at Thanksgiving where we're going to flip a table and throw a chair. But at the end of the day, even though I might not like you in a certain moment, always going to love you. And I think that's the benefit we get as veterans is that exposure to love more than all the hate you kind of see around the world. And we are abusing that opportunity we've been given just because we think, well, they're probably handling it okay. Or the mentality is I don't want to be someone else's problem, I don't want to be that guy. That's the other thing that creeps up is the easiest way not to be that guy is I'm going to eliminate myself from the process. That's not the case at all. That it shouldn't be the go to. But that's also kind of the double edged sword of military service is you've been taught kind of that for so long. That's the easiest way to kind of eliminate, eliminate that problem. But again, that's where we haven't, we haven't embraced as much as we should. That camaraderie of taking that uniform off and knowing you've got someone that's always going to be there no matter what. You were talking about the World War II vets you just had on like 90, 99 years old.

[Eli Double Tap]

Yep, 99.

[Clint Romesha]

Still don now. Oh boy. Like it's a, it's such a special thing that we have that so many people that haven't worn the uniform. That's brain's like, that was the part.

[Brandon Herrera]

I was okay with.

[Eli Double Tap]

Brian's like, I'm so comfortable. Thank you. Thank you. Take that away from me. Lift this burden.

[Donut Operator]

I bring him back.

[Brandon Herrera]

Do you know, two years back to my life.

[Eli Double Tap]

Clint, do you know who you're talking to? You stand a Parade rest. When you rub his back.

[Clint Romesha]

I thought it was a parade attention for this one.

[Eli Double Tap]

He's like, oh, dear. Hold on. Sorry, Brandon, I love you.

[Brandon Herrera]

And again, if Eli stopped doing those, I would, I would think he hated me. So there we go.

[Donut Operator]

We gotta bully our friends. Fun.

[Clint Romesha]

Yep.

[Brandon Herrera]

Like whenever I was going through anything, like kind of rough, I would always say like, oh, no. As long as I'm joking about, you guys have nothing to worry about.

[Eli Double Tap]

Oh yeah, that's very true statement. If you guys are like, huh, Look. Hey, dog, what's up? What's going on? Are we good? What's going on?

[Clint Romesha]

America Warrior partnership out of Augusta, Georgia. AWP.org is our website. One of the cool things we, we've done is our partnership with Duke University. We've been doing a study for the last eight years. We're getting into the states because what we've, what we end up wanting to do is to figure out where kind of the red flags are. And instead of going to fish for veterans that might be at high risk, hey, call, call the hotline. We want to go hunt for them because the veteran that's committing suicide in Florida doesn't look like the veteran that's committing in California. And when we can kind of start breaking down the data we're seeing every veteran is unique, kind of geographically, and everyone needs to be addressed in a different way. And it comes back to building that relationship long before real ideations happen. Give you an example. We've been doing this study and for eight years, Florida is one of our biggest case studies. The veteran that's taking their life in Miami is typically a veteran that served four years non combat MOS that's been out less than 10 years and they're dying from drug overdose.

[Eli Double Tap]

It is wild because we have a higher percentage of people that were non combat Moses taking the lives then individuals in combat, right?

[Clint Romesha]

Yep. What do you think?

[Brandon Herrera]

Think that is just.

[Eli Double Tap]

I actually have no idea because I just read that the other day.

[Clint Romesha]

It was a weird part of that is the psychology of they didn't do anything that one. They didn't contribute. They missed their time. They just, they were there in service support, not direct action.

[Brandon Herrera]

Really do feel like I need this microphone over on your side now.

[Clint Romesha]

I was just feeling like you maybe.

[Eli Double Tap]

Maybe you earned that microphone. Cody, close that beautiful episode out before we do the after show. Bye everyone.

[Donut Operator]

Thank you for joining the unsubscribe podcast. I was joined today by Eli Double Tap, Clint Romance, Brandon Herrera, myself, talented operator. Catch us on the unscribe after show on Patreon.

[Eli Double Tap]

Clint, where do we find you or not find you because you never use social media.

[Clint Romesha]

Why not North Dakota? I've been known for playing pull tabs and bingo at the Ranger Bar on Mondays at 8:00.

[Eli Double Tap]

That's that. Let's go.