To the editor:

President Joe Biden finally made it to Vietnam after requesting to be deferred from serving his nation during the Vietnam War five times as a student, then given a medical classification for asthma. It took a G20 Summit to get him to Vietnam over 50 years later.

I wonder if he made those claims of asthma when he was required to pass the physical testing during that time he was a lifeguard and football player. All this occurred in the same time period, and apparently this claim of asthma didn’t come into play then.

Draft evasion was generally considered to be a criminal offense. Making false claims in avoidance of serving, by any means, fell under this criminal offense. I am, by no means, excusing any of his predecessors that were also guilty of this criminal offense.

As a combat-wounded Vietnam veteran who answered the call of my nation, and who served with many of my heroes, when asked, “Ask not what you country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country,” I am appalled by many of those in the political arena who raise their hand to their head to salute our military or dignitaries. Their cowardice by evasion does not equate to the sacrifices made by those real heroes in protecting our nations freedoms. For those who truly served this nation over the years we all realize that, “For those who fought for it, Freedom has a flavor the protected will never know.”

So President Joe and those before you, who try to equate yourselves to those great leaders of this nation who knew the true meaning of sacrifice, please discontinue dishonoring our heroes that truly gave so much.

In reading the many letters to the editor it is easy to pick out those writers with a partisan agenda. Those writers, with their infinite wisdom, as professed in their rhetoric, are for the most part the wannabes that know how to save the world, but would never write a blank check to the United States of America, as our veterans did, for up to and including their life.

And you, President Joe, are one of those wannabes.

So please don’t embarrass yourself by your actions in demeaning those true heroes that afforded you and all in our nation our freedoms.

Jack Wagner

Cape Coral