Khizr Khan and wife Ghazala have responded to Donald Trump’s comments on the outspoken father’s speech at the DNC, carrying a far angrier tone than what we’ve seen in the past few days. Khan’s DNC speech gained attention when the father of fallen US Army Captain Humayun Khan pulled out his own copy of the Constitution and informed the Republican candidate that he had sacrificed nothing.
After a few days of silence on the matter, including several Trump representatives noting the candidate wouldn’t comment on the matter, Trump finally spilled while talking with ABC News host George Stephanopoulos. He made note of all the sacrifices he had made — spawning a fine hashtag in the process — and went on to make personal remarks about the Khans:
Trump appeared to try to brush the speech aside, saying that Khan “was, you know, very emotional and probably looked like a nice guy to me.”
Trump also said, “If you look at his wife, she was standing there. She had nothing to say. She probably, maybe she wasn’t allowed to have anything to say. You tell me.”
This appears to be Trump tipping his hat to some on far-right wing and nationalist Twitter, who have suggested that Ghazala Khan was silent during her husband’s speech because they are Muslim that Khizr Khan prohibits his wife from speaking.
ABC News spoke to the couple following Trump’s response, receiving a fiery response in return that called for shame on Trump and his family:
Sacrifice — I don’t think he knows the meaning of sacrifice, the meaning of the word,” Ghazala Khan, mother of slain Army Captain Humayun Kahn said. “Because when I was standing there, all America felt my pain. Without saying a single word. Everybody felt that pain…
“Running for president is not an entitlement to disrespect Gold Star families and [a] Gold Star mother not realizing her pain. Shame on him! Shame on his family!” Khizr Khan said, struggling to hold back his anger. “He is not worthy of our comments. He has no decency. He is void of decency, he has a dark heart.”
Khan insists that he invited his wife to speak during the convention, but noted she refused due to her emotions getting in the way. It’s also something she reiterated while asking Trump to feel her pain:
“Mr. Trump feel that pain and you will feel better. Please. I am very upset when I heard when he said that I didn’t say anything. I was in pain. If you were in pain you fight or you don’t say anything, I’m not a fighter, I can’t fight. So the best thing I do was quiet.”
Khizr also spoke to the Washington Post about Trump’s response:
“What he said originally — that defines him . . . People are upset with him. He realizes, and his advisers feel that [his original statement] was a stupid mistake. That proves that this person is void of empathy. He is unfit for the stewardship of this great country. You think he will empathize with this country, with the suffering of this country’s poor people? He showed his true colors when he disrespected this country’s most honorable mother… all the snake oil he is selling, and my patriotic, decent Americans are falling for that. Republicans are falling for that. And I can only appeal to them. Reconsider. Repudiate. It’s a moral obligation. A person void of empathy for the people he wishes to lead cannot be trusted with that leadership. To vote is a trust. And it cannot be placed in wrong hands.”
In response to Trump’s attack on his wife, Khan said the Republican nominee’s words were “typical of a person without a soul.”
Additionally, Ghazala Khan penned an open letter to Trump for the Washington Post.
Donald Trump has asked why I did not speak at the Democratic convention. He said he would like to hear from me. Here is my answer to Donald Trump: Because without saying a thing, all the world, all America, felt my pain. I am a Gold Star mother. Whoever saw me felt me in their heart.
Will this finally be the moment that warrants a Trump apology?