Trump's claim that 1775 revolutionary army 'took over airports' busted
The United States president, Donald Trump, claimed in his speech on Independence Day, that the army “took over the airports” from the British during the revolutionary war in the late 1700s.
The Guardian UK reports that Trump made the claim during his hour-long speech at the Lincoln memorial in Washington DC as part of his 4th of July “Salute to America” celebrations.
Deviating from his usual style of impromptu speeches, Trump gave a scripted address in which he talked about the history of Independence Day and American achievement in various fields. He also paid tribute to each branch of the military in turn.
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During his tribute to the army, Trump said: “In June of 1775, the Continental Congress created a unified army out of the revolutionary forces encamped around Boston and New York … The Continental Army suffered a bitter winter of Valley Forge, found glory across the waters of the Delaware, and seized victory from Cornwallis of Yorktown.
“Our army manned the air, it rammed the ramparts, it took over the airports, it did everything it had to do, and at Fort McHenry, under the rockets’ red glare, it had nothing but victory.”
How true is President Trump's claim?
According to Daniel Dale, a reporter and fact checker for CNN, there were no airport and airplane in the 1700s and early 1800s.
Air travel did not occur in the US until early in the 1900s, The Guardian also states. The Wright brothers, praised by Trump earlier in his speech, are credited with flying the world’s first plane in 1903.
Aside that, there is another historical confusion in this section of Trump’s speech. The battle of Fort McHenry which Trump mentioned occurred during the war of 1812, and not the American revolutionary war which took place several decades earlier.
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Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that Trump peddled false and misleading claims numbering up to 9,014 within 773 days.
As of the end of Sunday, March 3, the 773rd day of his term in office, Trump had accumulated 9,014 suspicious claims, according to Washington Post, citing The Fact Checker’s database.
The US president averaged nearly 5.9 false or misleading claims a day in his first year in office.
In his second year, Trump reportedly hit nearly 16.5 a day and so far in 2019, he is averaging nearly 22 claims a day.
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Source: Legit.ng
