Vietnam Draft Deferments: Five Deferments Including Bone Spurs, While Calling Others Cowards
The four student deferments were legal and widely used by college students of the era. The 1968 bone spurs medical deferment, obtained after Trump's student deferments expired at graduation, came from Dr. Larry Braunstein, a podiatrist in Jamaica, Queens — a building owner named Fred Trump. Braunstein's daughters told the New York Times in 2018 that their father provided the diagnosis as a 'favor' to Fred Trump, the landlord. Trump has described his bone spurs in varying ways over the years, at times saying they had healed on their own and at other times appearing not to remember which foot was affected. He has praised military service at Veterans events while criticizing specific veterans including John McCain for being captured.
Record summary
Grade
Grade 2 of 5: Major Abuse of Power
Executive actions that exceed constitutional authority, circumvent statutory constraints, or weaponize government institutions for political ends. Scale and definitions
- Status
- Concluded
- Incident date
- Record updated
- Location
- New York, NY
- Category
- Corruption & Self-Dealing
- Legal posture
- Reported
- War-crime classification
- Enabling conduct
- Verification
- Cross-referenced
- ICC relevance
- No
- Sources
- 3 cited
- Stable ID
trump-pre-presidency-vietnam-draft-deferments- Victims
- Vietnam veterans who served while Trump obtained deferments; veterans who were later attacked by Trump despite his own avoidance of service; democratic discourse distorted by Trump's subsequent military posturing despite personal history of draft avoidance
- Alleged responsible parties
- Donald Trump, Draft-age individual who obtained five deferments; obtained bone spur diagnosis that may have been provided as a favor; subsequently praised military service and attacked veterans while having avoided service himself— Private individual / Trump Organization
- Fred Trump, Father; Queens building owner; daughters of the diagnosing podiatrist told the New York Times that the diagnosis was provided as a favor to Fred Trump who was the podiatrist's landlord— Trump Organization
Key points
- Trump received four student deferments while attending Fordham University (1964-1966) and then the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School (1966-1968); these deferments were legal and common among college students of the era; they are notable primarily in the context of Trump's subsequent military posturing and attacks on others who avoided service
- In 1968, after his student deferments expired, Trump obtained a medical deferment for bilateral heel spurs; the diagnosing physician was Dr. Larry Braunstein, a podiatrist whose office was in Jamaica, Queens — where Fred Trump owned buildings; Braunstein's daughters told the New York Times that their father provided the diagnosis as a 'favor' to Fred Trump, describing it as gratitude for the landlord relationship
- Trump has given conflicting accounts of his bone spurs over the years: in a 2015 interview he initially said he received a 'medical deferment' but did not remember details; in another interview he said the problem 'healed' on its own over time; in 2018 when asked which foot was affected, he pointed to one foot then added 'heel spurs in both feet, actually'; the varying accounts raised questions about the authenticity of the underlying diagnosis
- Trump criticized Senator John McCain — a Vietnam POW who was tortured for over five years after being shot down — in July 2015, saying 'he's not a war hero. I like people who weren't captured.' The statement was widely condemned. Trump made it while himself having avoided service in the same war through deferments.
- Trump later described Vietnam-era sexually transmitted disease avoidance as his 'personal Vietnam' in a 1997 Howard Stern interview — a remark that drew criticism from veterans organizations; he made the comment while discussing dating in the 1970s and saying that avoiding STDs was like service in a war
- The contrast between Trump's draft avoidance and his subsequent military posturing — attending military school (New York Military Academy, a private boarding school), praising generals, attacking perceived military weakness — became a recurring subject of criticism from veterans groups throughout his political career
Overview
Trump received five Vietnam-era deferments. Four were student deferments — legal, common, and widely used. The fifth was a medical deferment for bone spurs, obtained from a doctor who was a tenant of his father's, whose daughters later told the New York Times the diagnosis was provided as a favor.
He subsequently spent his adult life praising military service, surrounding himself with generals, and attacking veterans — including John McCain — for being insufficiently heroic.
The Bone Spurs
The bone spur diagnosis came from Dr. Larry Braunstein in Jamaica, Queens. Braunstein's office was in a building owned by Fred Trump. Braunstein's daughters remembered their father mentioning it: he had helped Fred Trump's son avoid the draft. They said it was a favor — the kind Fred Trump helped with.
Trump's subsequent accounts of his bone spurs varied. He couldn't always remember which foot. He sometimes said both feet. He said they healed on their own. For a medical condition serious enough to exempt him from military service, his recall was strikingly imprecise.
The McCain Attack
In July 2015, at an event with evangelical conservatives in Iowa, Trump said of John McCain: "He's not a war hero. I like people who weren't captured."
McCain had been shot down over Hanoi in 1967. Both his arms and one knee were broken. He was beaten and tortured. He refused early release when his captors discovered his father commanded U.S. forces in the Pacific — a decision that extended his imprisonment. He was held for more than five years.
Trump avoided service in the same war through five deferments, including one whose legitimacy became the subject of investigative reporting decades later. He said he preferred people who weren't captured.
The Personal Vietnam
In 1997, on Howard Stern's show, Trump described his experience navigating sexually transmitted diseases during his 1970s dating life as "my personal Vietnam." He said it was "very dangerous" and that he was "the equivalent of a great and very brave soldier."
He appeared to mean it.
Update log
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Updated with NYT investigation into bone spur diagnosis origins.
Sequence of events
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First student deferment — Fordham University
Trump receives his first student deferment while attending Fordham University in the Bronx. He will transfer to the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School in 1966. Student deferments continue through graduation in 1968.
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Student deferments expire — bone spur medical deferment obtained
Upon graduation from Wharton, Trump's student deferments expire. He is examined by Dr. Larry Braunstein, a podiatrist whose office building is owned by Fred Trump, and receives a diagnosis of bilateral heel spurs. He is classified 1-Y (unfit for service).
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Classification changes to 4-F — not qualified for service
Trump's classification changes from 1-Y to 4-F (not qualified for service) as the military updates its classification system. He is never drafted and never serves.
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Trump attacks McCain — 'I like people who weren't captured'
At a campaign event, Trump says John McCain is not a war hero because he was captured after being shot down over Vietnam. McCain was held as a POW and tortured for over five years. Trump made the attack while having himself avoided service in the same war through deferments.
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NYT investigation — bone spur diagnosis may have been favor from Fred Trump's tenant
The New York Times reports that Braunstein's daughters stated their father provided Trump's bone spur diagnosis as a favor to Fred Trump, who was his landlord. The daughters say their father mentioned it as an example of how Fred Trump helped people.
Sources
- The Diagnosis That Exempted Trump From Military Service — The New York Times
- Trump's bone spurs and the Vietnam draft — The Washington Post
- Trump received 5 draft deferments during Vietnam era — The Associated Press