- Retired four-star US Army Gen. Barry McCaffrey, one of the most highly-decorated officers in the nation, signaled his dismay at the polarizing political climate of the country.
- "Our two political parties are broken," McCaffrey said in a tweet, calling the Republican Party "a Trump cult" for what he saw as failing to hold Trump accountable via impeachment.
- McCaffrey also took issue with Democrats, whom he likened to a "clown car that cannot bring together a fractious America with a sensible message."
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One of the most highly-decorated retired US Army officers signaled his dismay at the polarizing political climate of the country, as President Donald Trump delivered his State of the Union address on Tuesday evening.
"Our two political parties are broken," retired four-star Gen. Barry McCaffrey said in a tweet. He called the Republican Party "a Trump cult" for what he saw as its failure to hold Trump accountable in his impeachment trial.
On Wednesday afternoon, Trump was acquitted on charges of obstruction of Congress and abuse of power in relation to his controversial contacts with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his rejection of congressional subpoenas.
Trump's 78-minute speech to the joint session of Congress on Tuesday was met with protests from Democratic lawmakers on several occasions.
The most striking was House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's dramatic act of ripping up his speech towards the end.
McCaffrey also took issue with Democrats, whom he likened to a "clown car that cannot bring together a fractious America with a sensible message of what a united America looks like."
His comment comes as presidential hopefuls campaign in the Democratic primaries, which were supposed to have kicked off in the Iowa caucuses on Monday.
As of Wednesday afternoon, the Iowa Democratic Party had released only partial results from the caucuses due to a glitchy app used by officials to record votes.
McCaffrey was awarded three Purple Heart medals, two Distinguished Service Crosses, and two Silver Stars during his 32-year military career.
The former infantry officer served multiple combat tours with the US Army's 82nd Airborne Division during the Vietnam War and commanded the 24th Mechanized Infantry Division during Operation Desert Storm.
McCaffrey later went on to serve as the director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy for President Bill Clinton's administration.
McCaffrey has been highly critical of the Trump administration in the past. He described Trump's surprise visit to US troops in Iraq in 2018, the first in his presidency, as "embarrassing" and "entirely inappropriate."
During his trip, Trump signed pieces of campaign memorabilia for the troops, including hats emblazoned with the "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan — an act which McCaffrey suggested was politicizing the non-partisan stance of the US military.
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