During a campaign meeting in New Jersey with Jewish supporters, Trump mentioned that he had given Miriam Adelson, an important donor to the presidential candidate, the USA's highest civilian honor – the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
He said that the award is "better" than the USA's Medal of Honor, the famous "Medal of Honor", which is the highest military honor in the country and is awarded to soldiers for their bravery and valor in battle.
They are either in very poor shape, because they have been hit by bullets so many times, or they are dead, he said, comparing them to Adelson, who is "a healthy, beautiful woman".
Criticism of Trump is widespread among Democrats and representatives of veterans, including from a spokesperson for presidential candidate Kamala Harris.
Former military officer Florent Groberg, who received the Medal of Honor in 2015 after saving colleagues from a suicide bomber in Afghanistan, says that he has "enormous" respect for the Presidential Medal of Freedom, but that they cannot be compared.
