WASHINGTON — Republican presidential hopeful Rick Perry on Sunday accused the Obama administration of “over- the-top rhetoric” and “disdain for the military” in its condemnation of a video that purportedly shows four Marines urinating on corpses in Afghanistan.
Perry’s comments put him at odds with Sen. John McCain, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, who said the images could damage the war effort.
“It makes me sad more than anything else because . . . I can’t tell you how wonderful these people (Marines) are. And it hurts their reputation and their image,” McCain said when asked about Perry’s position.
Perry said the Marines involved should be reprimanded but not prosecuted on criminal charges. “Obviously, 18-, 19-year-old kids make stupid mistakes all too often. And that’s what’s occurred here,” Perry told CNN’s “State of the Union.” He later added: “What’s really disturbing to me is the kind of over-the-top rhetoric from this administration and their disdain for the military.” The Associated Press
