President Trump, in a personal phone call to a grieving military father, offered him $25,000 and said he would direct his staff to establish an online fundraiser for the family, but neither happened, the father said.
Chris Baldridge, the father of Army Sgt. Dillon Baldridge, said that Trump called him at his home in Zebulon, N.C., a few weeks after his 22-year-old son and two fellow soldiers were gunned down by an Afghan police officer on June 10. Their phone conversation lasted about 15 minutes, Baldridge said, and centered for a time on the father?s struggle with the manner in which his son was killed ? shot by someone he was training.
?I said, ?Me and my wife would rather our son died in trench warfare,? ? Baldridge said. ?I feel like he got murdered over there.?
Trump?s offer of $25,000 adds another dimension to his relations with Gold Star families and the disclosure follows questions about how often the president has called or written to the parents or spouses of those killed.
The Washington Post contacted the White House about Baldridge?s account on Wednesday morning. Officials declined to discuss the events in detail.
Trump offered a grieving military father $25,000 in a call, but didn?t follow through