Vivek Ramaswamy, a contender for the Republican presidential nomination, has sparked controversy with his remarks concerning the tragic events of September 11 and the January 6 Capitol attack. In a recent profile published by the Atlantic, the biotech entrepreneur raised questions that have drawn widespread condemnation.
The events of September 11, 2001, remain indelibly etched in history, with a bipartisan commission establishing the details surrounding the day’s catastrophic events. Four hijacked planes targeted key locations, resulting in the death of 2,977 individuals. The World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and potentially the Capitol or the White House were identified as the intended targets.
During the interview, Ramaswamy posed inquiries into the presence of law enforcement personnel on the planes that struck the Twin Towers on September 11. He remarked, “I think it is legitimate to say how many police, how many federal agents, were on the planes that hit the Twin Towers. Maybe the answer is zero.”
“I have no reason to think it was anything other than zero. But if we’re doing a comprehensive assessment of what happened on 9/11, we have a 9/11 commission, absolutely that should be an answer the public knows the answer to,” he added.
Ramaswamy’s controversial comments weren’t limited to the September 11 attacks. He also touched upon the January 6 attack on the Capitol. When asked “What was the truth about January 6?”, he replied, “I don’t know.”
“But we can handle it. Whatever it is, we can handle it. Government agents. How many government agents were in the field? Right?” he added.
Ramaswamy, initially an outsider, has experienced a surge in polling numbers, positioning himself as a serious challenger to Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, for the second spot in the Republican presidential nomination race, trailing behind former US president Donald Trump.
Reactions on Ramaswamy’s comments
Critics have vehemently objected to Ramaswamy’s statements. Charles P Pierce, a writer for Esquire, asserted that Ramaswamy’s remarks effectively disqualified him from being a potential president of the United States.
Ramaswamy himself has slammed The Atlantic for misquoting him. He said he had asked the publication to send the recording before publishing the interview. But, the publication never sent it to him for approval.
“The government lied to us about 9/11 & the Iraq War for over 20 years, just as they lie to us about Hunter Biden & Ukraine. If we don’t learn from our past mistakes, we are doomed to make them again,” wrote Ramaswamy.
Check his response:
Atlantic writer John Hendrickson has said that Ramaswamy was not misquoted. He shared the unedited audio of the interview with the GOP candidate.
www.livemint.com
Source link