Horrifying: National Guard Troops Forced to Be in DC Fed Raw Meat, Metal Shavings
It’s appalling that prisoners and illegal immigrants are treated better than our own men and women in uniform.
Members of the Michigan National Guard deployed to protect the area around the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., have reportedly complained about being sickened by undercooked and contaminated food being served to them.
They were also fed inadequate breakfasts and meals that lacked special dietary options for the soldiers who are required to stand outdoors for 12-hour shifts.
“Multiple soldiers have been getting sick and vomiting after eating, and most of the food is being thrown away,” one soldier told lawmakers.
The U.S. Daily Mail tweeted photos from a story about the stomach-churning chow captioned, “Raw chicken and METAL SHAVINGS: The disgusting meals which have hospitalized Michigan National Guard troops.”
Raw chicken and METAL SHAVINGS: The disgusting meals which have hospitalized Michigan National Guard troops https://t.co/DcFs3qf2kE
— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) March 3, 2021
A whistleblower told WXYZ-TV in Detroit about the ongoing problem with the food being served to the soldiers that had sickened some so badly, they required hospitalization.
Many have resorted to purchasing food on their own or are simply consuming the shelf-stable meals military issues for use in the field since they couldn’t trust meals from the contractors.
“Yesterday, for instance, there were 74 different meals found with raw beef in them,” a sergeant told the news outlet on the condition of anonymity, adding that “soldiers had found metal shavings in their food.”
After these problems were taken up the chain of command, the boxes of prepared meals were supposed to be checked for proper heating and quality control.
The whistleblower said that was still inadequate to address the issues, and that the already-undercooked food was marked as safe to leave out for hours.
“No, it’s not. It wasn’t good from the start and now it’s had hours to become even more dangerous,” the sergeant said.
Some of the meals even contained chicken that still had feathers attached, The Detroit News reported.
The Michigan congressional delegation appealed to state Gov. Gretchen Whitmer last month, but the problem persisted despite assurances it was resolved, leading the House delegation to send another letter to the governor on Tuesday urging action.
“It’s not only a Michigan guard problem. I stop and talk to all the guard out there, and they said it’s improved, but still far from perfect,” Michigan Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell said.
“Ultimately, it’s the National Guard that hired the contractor — not those of us on the Hill,” she deflected.
Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, who serves on the Armed Services Committee, called for the food vendors’ contracts to be canceled and for the troops to be paid a per diem to buy meals.
“While I understand the ad hoc nature of these deployments and appreciate the tremendous efforts made by many of those under your command, it is simply unacceptable that these men and women are being fed chicken with the feathers still attached and raw ground beef and then, to add insult to injury, they are forced to purchase food with their own money,” Peters wrote to top brass from the National Guard and Army in charge of securing the contracts.
The fact that they’re in Washington, D.C., at all is a contentious subject as guardsmen and women remain on duty despite the lack of any credible threat.
Nearly 1,000 Michigan soldiers were deployed to protect the perimeter of the Capitol building after the Jan. 6 incursion, making up 20 percent of the 5,200 troops still stationed there.
The problems with the food service come on the heels of previous reports of troops sleeping on floors as lawmakers walked on by.
It’s unfortunate that the troops on the ground can’t even receive the basic necessities — a problem that would be treated as a national crisis if these were prisoners or unaccompanied minors at the border during a Republican administration.
While it’s true that they’re working on improving conditions and that outside contractors are ultimately to blame, this is a problem that disrespects the military and demonstrates to the world how little America cares for its own.
It’s no secret that Democrats have not been friendly to the military in the past, so this is especially worrisome given that the national government is currently controlled almost completely by Democrats, including Commander-in-Chief Joe Biden.
With troops now deployed right in lawmakers’ own backyard ostensibly for their protection, it’s possible they will experience newfound respect for the sacrifices these men and women make every day to protect and defend America.
In the meantime, lawmakers should rectify the situation so that our National Guard members can eat a meal without ending up hospitalized — it’s the least they can do for the men and women in uniform sent to protect them.
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