Billy and Karen Vaughn, the parents of a Navy SEAL who died in combat, recently called President Obama’s handling of terrorism “cowardly” and suggested he step down from office.
Billy Vaughn visiting Aaron at Arlington Cemetery on Father’s Day 2013.
“Please vacate the people’s house and allow a man or woman of courage and substance to seize the [reins] of this out-of-control thug-fest,” they wrote in a letter addressed to the president.
Billy and Karen’s only son, Aaron Carson Vaughn, was one of 30 Americans killed in August 2011 when his Chinook helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan. Aaron was a member of SEAL Team Six, which is best known for taking out Osama bin Laden earlier that year in May.
Citing the on-camera execution of James Foley, an American photojournalist beheaded by the Islamic State, the Vaughns had some harsh words for Obama’s handling of the terrorist network.
As you bumble about in your golf cart, slapping on a happy face and fist-pounding your buddies, your cowardly lack of leadership has left a gaping hole—not only in America’s security—but the security of the entire globe.
Obama’s actions, they added, “cost lives.”
>>> James Foley’s Life in Pictures: ‘A Man of Incredible Bravery and Courage’
In the letter published Wednesday on World Tribune, the Vaughns also listed a number of “unprecedented national security leaks” that have occurred under the president’s watch:
“…The outing of SEAL Team VI on the [bin Laden] raid, the outing of the Pakistani doctor who provided the intelligence for that raid, the outing of Afghanistan’s CIA station chief, and the outing of your personal ‘kill list’ to make you look tough.”
In addition, they pointed to statistics listed on icasualties.org, which state that 75 percent of U.S. deaths in Afghanistan and 83 percent of Americans wounded-in-action have occurred while Obama’s was in office.
First and last Vaughn family photo with Aaron. Taken just weeks after Chamberlyn was born and the week before Aaron left on deployment.
The Vaughns, who have been outspoken on their views of the president, concluded with a harsh critique of Obama’s categorization of the Islamic State – or ISIS – as “JV.”
And now, we have this recent, heinous event: the beheading of an American citizen by a barbaric organization you foolishly referred to as ‘the JV team’ in your statements to the New Yorker magazine in January. You, sir, are the JV team. It’s time for you to step down and allow a true leader to restore our honor and protect our sons and daughters.
Vaughn’s last day with his daughter, Chamberlyn.
Read Billy and Karen Vaughn’s full letter to the President here.