UPDATE: We spoke to the dude who took this Nazi photo and he told us something that makes this whole story even more hilarious. Read here.
Not long ago, Donald Trump sent out the following tweet:
The tweet is now deleted. Why did Trump delete it? Maybe it has something to with those the soldiers marching next to The Donald’s shoulder:
#MEGAFAIL ===> Yes, those aren’t just WW2 Germans, they’re Waffen-SS in the Trump campaign pic https://t.co/BSFNuNrK6R
— John Schindler (@20committee) July 14, 2015
Yes, Trump (or his graphic design minions) apparently included a photo of soldiers from the Waffen-SS, the notorious military wing of the Nazi SS, in the image. John Schindler, who seems to know his World War II German uniforms, has been detailing the Trump campaign’s photo-research fail:
100% certain Waffen-SS ID on the Trump pic….if media want an explainer how I am certain, ask me https://t.co/b3pwWmdwHY
— John Schindler (@20committee) July 14, 2015
.@charles_gaba @MichaelNiemerg @realDonaldTrump they’re wearing Waffen-SS cuff titles, FFS…dude on left has late-war SS “dot” camo uniform
— John Schindler (@20committee) July 14, 2015
Notice the late-war Waffen-SS “dot” camo tunic, with SS eagle on left arm as in the Trump pic https://t.co/b3pwWmdwHY pic.twitter.com/ulScwicbZU
— John Schindler (@20committee) July 14, 2015
See also Waffen-SS tunic with unit cuff title & SS eagle on left arm, as in Trump pic https://t.co/b3pwWmdwHY pic.twitter.com/IdQlwcIebJ
— John Schindler (@20committee) July 14, 2015
It’s not clear what the source of the photo in the Trump tweet is; the soldiers in the photo could be modern-day World War II reenactors. According to the most recent poll from Suffolk/USA Today, Trump leads the GOP field by three points.
Update, Tuesday 3:40pm ET: And the answers begin to trickle in…
Found @realDonaldTrump‘s german soldier stock image here (searched “world war II soldiers”) http://t.co/GKkcNTUKpm pic.twitter.com/ysWGeePZIr
— Reed F. Richardson (@reedfrich) July 14, 2015
Update 2, Tuesday 3:46pm ET: This GIF, by our own Ivylise Simones, is perfect:
Update 3, Tuesday 4:00pm ET: The Trump campaign says an intern did it:
Trump campaign responds: An intern did it. pic.twitter.com/oZBJAtwffl
— Eric Geller (@ericgeller) July 14, 2015
