The family of a soldier killed in Afghanistan has received a $25,000 check President Donald Trump promised them from his personal fortune months ago but sent just last week.
"I am glad my legal counsel has been able to finally approve this contribution to you," Trump wrote in a letter to Chris Baldridge, the father of the slain soldier, enclosed with the check dated October 18 seen by ABC11 WTVD Monday.
Baldrige's 22-year-old son Army Sgt. Dillon Baldridge was shot and killed along with two other soldiers on June 10 by an Afghan police officer.
Weeks later in July Baldridge received a phone call from Trump during which the president offered his condolences. After a 15 minute conversation, Trump also promised Baldridge $25,000 and said that he would get his staff to set up a fundraiser for the family online, according to an interview in The Washington Post.
Neither occurred for more than three months until Baldrige shared his story with the Post on Wednesday, October 18, after Trump kicked off a controversy early last week when he said past presidents didn't call the families of soldiers killed in combat.
In letter to Baldridge family, shared only w/ @ABC11_WTVD, @realDonaldTrump says "I hope this will make things a bit easier." @ABCWorldNews pic.twitter.com/MFu2DpGlQK
— Jonah Kaplan (@KaplanABC11) October 23, 2017
Several families have disputed the president's claim that he "called every family of someone who's died."
On Monday the president again disputed the account of a phone call he made to the widow of Sgt. La David Johnson after her husband was killed in an ambush in Niger October 4. During an appearance on Good Morning America, Myeshia Johnson said Trump told her that her husband "knew what he signed up for." Trump again denied making the statement.
The same day the story about Baldrige appeared in The Post a White House official confirmed to CNN that the check was in the mail and had been "in the pipeline" since Trump's call.
"The check has been sent," White House spokeswoman Lindsay Walters said. "It's disgusting that the media is taking something that should be recognized as a generous and sincere gesture, made privately by the president, and using it to advance the media's biased agenda."
The check was delivered to Baldrige's home in Zebulon, North Carolina, Monday by FedEx from Trump Tower in New York City.
After making a similar pledge to donate to a charity set up in the name of a woman held hostage and slain by the Islamic State, President Barack Obama didn't follow through for 17 months, according to ABC News.
"I hope this will make things a bit easier, but nothing will ever replace your son, Dillon. He was an American hero," Trump wrote in his letter to Baldridge.
Baldridge's wife Jessie Baldridge told ABC11 that they were "so moved and grateful, and we promise to use the money to honor Dillon's legacy."
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Graham Lanktree covers U.S. politics for Newsweek. He is based in London and frequently appears as a contributor on BBC ... Read more
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