Fact check: What has Donald Trump said publicly about his bone spurs and military service?

1. Summary of the results

Based on the available analyses, Donald Trump has made very few direct public statements about his bone spurs and military service. The most significant information comes from testimony by his former lawyer Michael Cohen, who claimed that Trump told him "I wasn't going to Vietnam" and that Trump fabricated the bone spurs diagnosis to avoid military service ^[1]. According to Cohen's testimony, when asked for medical records to support the bone spurs claim, Trump provided none and stated there was no surgery ^[1].

Trump's 2016 campaign officially stated that he received a minor medical deferment for bone spurs on both heels of his feet, which was expected to be short-term, though the precise details remain unclear and controversial ^[2].

Importantly, one widely circulated quote attributed to Trump - "would you really want a president who was dumb enough to let himself get drafted?" - has been debunked as false, with no evidence that Trump ever made this statement ^[3].

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

The analyses reveal significant missing context about the circumstances surrounding Trump's bone spurs diagnosis. The daughters of a Queens foot doctor claimed their late father diagnosed Trump with bone spurs as a "favor" to Trump's father, Fred Trump, specifically to help Donald avoid the Vietnam War draft ^[4]. However, there is no documentation to corroborate this family's account ^[4].

This raises questions about the legitimacy of the medical deferment, as it suggests the diagnosis may have been arranged through family connections rather than legitimate medical necessity. The Trump family and supporters would benefit from maintaining the narrative that the bone spurs were a legitimate medical condition, while political opponents and critics benefit from portraying it as draft dodging.

The controversy also highlights the broader issue of wealthy families' ability to secure medical deferments during the Vietnam War era, when many working-class Americans were drafted and served.

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The original question itself does not contain misinformation, as it simply asks what Trump has said publicly about his bone spurs and military service. However, the analyses reveal that there is very little direct public commentary from Trump himself on this topic.

The main source of information comes from Michael Cohen's testimony, which could be viewed as potentially biased given Cohen's status as a former associate who later became adversarial to Trump ^[1]. Additionally, the foot doctor's daughters' claims lack documentation and come decades after the alleged events ^[4].

The analyses also demonstrate how false quotes can circulate widely, as evidenced by the debunked statement about being "dumb enough to let himself get drafted" ^[3], showing how misinformation can fill the void when public figures remain largely silent on controversial topics.