Iraq and Afghanistan Vets BREAK SILENCE on TRUMP WAR
March 16, 2026·52 min·4 clips
Fred Wellman exposes how the US is repeating Iraq war mistakes with Iran, while leaders smile.
Fred Wellman opens by examining a clip of National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett discussing how the war with Iran will lead to economic stability, drawing a parallel to identical promises made before the Iraq War 23 years earlier. Wellman, who served 18 years as an Army combat aviator including during Desert Storm and Iraq, criticizes the administration for conducting military operations without congressional authorization or a public case for war.
Wellman highlights Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's demeanor during briefings, noting the contrast between smiling officials describing increased bombing capabilities and the reality of military casualties, including six soldiers killed at a command post in Kuwait that lacked overhead protection despite the known threat of Iranian drones.
The host recounts his experience as a military public affairs officer, explaining the legal requirements and careful protocols for informing the public about service member deaths. He contrasts those standards with a Department of Defense press release that described a soldier as "believed to be a casualty" -- an unprecedented departure from established notification procedures.
Wellman introduces Dr. Kyleanne Hunter, a Marine Corps veteran who flew Cobra helicopters in both Iraq and Afghanistan and now leads IAVA. Hunter describes the annual tradition of veteran service organizations testifying before Congress on policy priorities, noting that what was planned as a routine session on VA reform became urgent when the Iran conflict escalated overnight.
Hunter explains that the veteran community's reaction crossed political lines. IAVA's membership is roughly split into thirds among Republican, Democratic, and politically unaffiliated veterans. All groups express deep concern about the cavalier approach to military engagement and the lack of congressional authorization.
Both guests discuss the long tail of war, including PTSD that may not surface for years, burn pit illnesses, and new types of injuries from cyber warfare and sophisticated adversaries. Wellman notes his own PTSD did not manifest until seven years after leaving the Army.
The conversation turns to the VA, where both argue that despite needing reform, the VA provides better and more cost-effective care for veterans than the private sector, particularly for women veterans. Hunter describes being screened for rare cancers linked to military service -- screenings no civilian provider would have thought to conduct.
A significant portion of the episode focuses on the Richard Starr Act, which would allow roughly 50,000 medically retired veterans to receive both their military retirement pay and VA disability compensation simultaneously. Hunter explains that current law forces these veterans to choose between two separate funding streams: a pension for time served and disability compensation that exists partly because service members cannot sue the government for workplace injuries.
Senator Blumenthal's attempt to bring the Richard Starr Act to a floor vote through unanimous consent was blocked by a single senator, Ron Johnson, who offered no explanation. Hunter and Wellman note the irony of spending billions daily on a new military engagement while denying a few hundred dollars a month to injured veterans.
The episode closes with discussion of how budget rules on Capitol Hill are being used to pit groups of veterans against each other, and the broader concern that as a new generation of combat veterans is being created, the systems meant to support them are being quietly dismantled without veteran input.
